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Laura Kate Dale : March 17th is Nintendo Switch's release date

NateDrake

Member
I think Nintendo and free don't mix

We know what you think.

How do people openly leak this stuff on Twitter and not get in trouble?
The people sharing information on Twitter or their own website aren't under any legal obligation to remain silent. Now, they could get punished in other ways - as in being blacklisted or some such, but there's no legal ramifications as they didn't breach a contract or steal documentation.
 
I don't expect the new 3D Mario on launch month because there's very little time to promote the game as big as 3D Mario. It's probably an E3 showcase then will be available near or during holidays.

As for the launch titles, I expect the following 1st party games:

- Zelda BotW
- Splatoon enhanced
- Mario Kart 8 enhanced
- A totally new, unannounced game

We'll probably see some additional 2-3 games within 3 months. Maybe more ports, or maybe new games from the January announcement. I expect to see Pikmin 4 in January announcement, but will be released a month or two after launch to promote the game some more. Then at E3, they'll probably do the bigger reveals, and maybe more Wii U ports. Some of the games I expect to see at E3:

- The new 3D Mario
- Smash Bros 4 port
- Retro Studios' new IP
- Pokemon game from Game Freak
- A new HAL game
- New Monolithsoft game
- Exclusive 3rd party games from Japanese partners like Bamco, Capcom, KT, Platinum, SEGA/Atlus

Some of which will slowly trickle until the end of next year, and some will probably get to 2018-2019 like your usual HD games nowadays.
I often see lists like this prior to Nintendo launches and then it ends up being nothing like the lists people posted on GAF. With Nintendo, it's safer not to expect much when it comes to launch. They're the masters of post-launch droughts.
 

random25

Member
I often see lists like this prior to Nintendo launches and then it ends up being nothing like the lists people posted on GAF. With Nintendo, it's safer not to expect much when it comes to launch. They're the masters of post-launch droughts.

I really don't see anything "grand" about the list though. That's just 4 first-party titles at launch, with 3 being Wii U ports they showed during the trailer. I remember Wii U had 3 or 4 first-party titles on launch day mixed with more than 20 third party titles, so that's pretty much a normal expectation.
 

mugwhump

Member
I agree that Nintendo will have just a few major titles on launch day. Even if they had like 10 titles ready they'd only release a handful of them at launch. Not that they'd ever have 10 titles, even with Wii U ports.
edit: Yo I forgot about amiibo. As far as I'm concerned that makes smash a hard lock for a launch title.

MK8, Smash, and Splatoon will have ‘Directors Cut’ editions at launch, which include previous DLC plus new content. If you own them digitally on Wii U you can download them for FREE. Nintendo is trying to co-operate with retailers for a trade-in system to ‘upgrade’ your Wii U physical copies for free or very discounted price.

YES YES YES PLS PLS PLS

Nintendo is working on a Rhythm Heaven game with Nintendo characters. Switch bundles will be $260 for basic

This has been cemented as my favorite rumor of the generation
 

Roo

Member
I often see lists like this prior to Nintendo launches and then it ends up being nothing like the lists people posted on GAF. With Nintendo, it's safer not to expect much when it comes to launch. They're the masters of post-launch droughts.
I've seen some really outrageous lists with over 10 first party games "ready for launch" but I think expecting BOTW, Mario Kart 8, Splatoon, some filler IP like Wario, Something Party and a new IP isn't that fart fetched.

Two of them are based on old games, the other is a cross gen game and the rest will depend on their budget and for how long they've been on development.

They obviously will show way more games but I assume they'll spread them throughout the year. After all, E3 2017 will be 3 months after launch.
 

HawthorneKitty

Sgt. 2nd Class in the Creep Battalion, Waifu Wars
I agree that Nintendo will have just a few major titles on launch day. Even if they had like 10 titles ready they'd only release a handful of them at launch. Not that they'd ever have 10 titles, even with Wii U ports.
edit: Yo I forgot about amiibo. As far as I'm concerned that makes smash a hard lock for a launch title.



YES YES YES PLS PLS PLS



This has been cemented as my favorite rumor of the generation
Did Rhythym Heaven on 3DS do well? I mean digital only yadayadayada, but still.
 

J@hranimo

Banned
Splatoon is a killer app in Japan. They needed this game to be at launch to get a good start in that region.

I'm aware of that haha *glances at avatar* but unless it is just an enhanced port, I don't see it immediately at launch. It could be a Melee situation launching a little after launch but still.
 

jmizzal

Member
It depends on how robust this next game will be. We'll see in about two months time though.

I think they should announce Splatoon 2 but say they will show more later, but then show off Splatoon enhanced port on Jan 12th and announce it to come at least before June
 

-shadow-

Member

J@hranimo

Banned
I could honestly see Splatoon Switch coming out around the summer like the Wii U version did.

If they're serious about eSporting it they could combine it with an E3 tournament like they did for Smash

Yeah I could see something like this happening (at least in Japan D:), but I think having it release in May would be great since it's two years after the first game + space out the releases for the Switch. Hopefully the launch will be really stacked to justify its release not too long later lol.

I think they should announce Splatoon 2 but say they will show more later, but then show off Splatoon enhanced port on Jan 12th and announce it to come at least before June

In a perfect world! I wish.
 

kIdMuScLe

Member
This is the way I see it...

Launch - Zelda and Splatoon

April - whatever 3rd party game with Nintendo promoting

May - Mario kart for the kids to get ready for their summer

July - Mario mAker

September - Smash Bros

I also have a feeling that Nintendo is gonna go the way of Sony and do 3rd party bundles for the big games. Maybe offer as an incentive a percentage of the bundle plus no fees for the game sold.
 

AzaK

Member
This is the way I see it...

Launch - Zelda and Splatoon

April - whatever 3rd party game with Nintendo promoting

May - Mario kart for the kids to get ready for their summer

July - Mario mAker

September - Smash Bros

I also have a feeling that Nintendo is gonna go the way of Sony and do 3rd party bundles for the big games. Maybe offer as an incentive a percentage of the bundle plus no fees for the game sold.

If that's all they can release in a year they're in trouble again.
 

Shikamaru Ninja

任天堂 の 忍者
I legit feel bad for these guys. They made some great games and reduced to Mario VS Donkey Kong, a couple of awful apps and porting a worthless game (due to lack of online).

If developers get royalty points, this will be a lucrative project for them.
 
This is the way I see it...

Launch - Zelda and Splatoon

April - whatever 3rd party game with Nintendo promoting

May - Mario kart for the kids to get ready for their summer

July - Mario mAker

September - Smash Bros

I also have a feeling that Nintendo is gonna go the way of Sony and do 3rd party bundles for the big games. Maybe offer as an incentive a percentage of the bundle plus no fees for the game sold.

This sounds awful. Every single game you listed is a Wii U port, including Zelda.
 

Anth0ny

Member
This sounds awful. Every single game you listed is a Wii U port, including Zelda.

as sad as that is, I wonder what else they can realistically release next year (before 2D Mario in December) besides Pikmin and a bunch of Wii U/3DS ports.

Maybe Animal Crossing? Would tie into the mobile game nicely. 2D Mario would be good, too.
 
The 1.5 ports are the only games Nintendo doesn't mind sharing or being "open" about at the moment. There are definitely original projects. January 12th.

Oh, for sure. I don't agree with that poster's prediction for a second. Switch is almost assured to have a large amount of original first party content in 2017.

as sad as that is, I wonder what else they can realistically release next year (before 2D Mario in December) besides Pikmin and a bunch of Wii U/3DS ports.

Maybe Animal Crossing? Would tie into the mobile game nicely. 2D Mario would be good, too.

The majority of Nintendo's internal teams haven't released a major game in, what, two years? Probably longer for some of them? If they don't have a bunch of stuff ready to go next year, they shouldn't be in the hardware business anymore.

God help us if Switch's first year is nothing but Wii U ports.
 

LordKano

Member
as sad as that is, I wonder what else they can realistically release next year (before 2D Mario in December) besides Pikmin and a bunch of Wii U/3DS ports.

Maybe Animal Crossing? Would tie into the mobile game nicely. 2D Mario would be good, too.

Retro Studio's game.
 

Anth0ny

Member
Retro Studio's game.

announcement and release in the same year from them seems unlikely, though I guess it's possible!

The majority of Nintendo's internal teams haven't released a major game in, what, two years? Probably longer for some of them? If they don't have a bunch of stuff ready to go next year, they shouldn't be in the hardware business anymore.

I know, but they looooooove dragging stuff out, usually resulting in droughts.

We have 3D Zelda, Mario Kart, 3D Mario, Splatoon and Smash covered next year. I'm speculating Animal Crossing, Pokemon port and 2D Mario, maaaaaybe Retro's game. What else is there, realistically?
 
announcement and release in the same year from them seems unlikely, though I guess it's possible!

Tropical Freeze was announced in June 2013 and would have actually released in November if Nintendo hadn't delayed it for strategic reasons. The game was finished in 2013.
 

jwj442

Member
Tropical Freeze was announced in June 2013 and would have actually released in November if Nintendo hadn't delayed it for strategic reasons. The game was finished in 2013.
Returns did come out the same year in 2010. Metroid Prime 3 had a soft annoucement in 2005, but nothing shown before 2006.
 

Anth0ny

Member
Tropical Freeze was announced in June 2013 and would have actually released in November if Nintendo hadn't delayed it for strategic reasons. The game was finished in 2013.

But that was also a direct sequel to a Wii game that shared a lot of assets.

All indications are telling us Retro is working on a big new thing right now. I really don't think it'll be ready for next year. Early 2018.
 

sphinx

the piano man
as sad as that is, I wonder what else they can realistically release next year (before 2D Mario in December)

are you serious? for like 3 years they have been releasing very very few games (and most of them B-tier) on Wii U.

it's been clear they've been preparing all this time for Swtich's Launch year.

I expect no less than 15 major, new, as-of-now-unkonwn, undisclosed projects in January's presentation, with most of them targeting a 2017 release date

there's a ton they need to show if they want any momentum.

Zelda is not enough and 1.5 ports certainly aren't either.
 

Tom Nook

Member
This is the way I see it...

Launch - Zelda and Splatoon

April - whatever 3rd party game with Nintendo promoting

May - Mario kart for the kids to get ready for their summer

July - Mario mAker

September - Smash Bros

I also have a feeling that Nintendo is gonna go the way of Sony and do 3rd party bundles for the big games. Maybe offer as an incentive a percentage of the bundle plus no fees for the game sold.

Hopefully the 3rd party will release new games during that time frame. After Zelda, there's nothing to play for 4 months.
 

LordKano

Member
are you serious? for like 3 years they have been releasing very very few games (and most of them B-tier) on Wii U.

it's been clear they've been preparing all this time for Swtich's Launch year.

I expect no less than 15 major, new, as-of-now-unkonwn, undisclosed projects in January's presentation.

there's a ton they need to show if they want any momentum.

Zelda is not enough and 1.5 ports certainly aren't either.

Dude. Let's try to get serious here.
 
But that was also a direct sequel to a Wii game that shared a lot of assets.

All indications are telling us Retro is working on a big new thing right now. I really don't think it'll be ready for next year. Early 2018.

I hope you're ready for another Donkey Kong!

Seriously though, Retro has never taken more than three years to develop a game since MP1. Late 2017 would be four years since their last project wrapped. If it's not out next year, it's likely due to release timing, not the game being unfinished.
 

Anth0ny

Member
are you serious? for like 3 years they have been releasing very very few games (and most of them B-tier) on Wii U.

it's been clear they've been preparing all this time for Swtich's Launch year.

I expect no less than 15 major, new, as-of-now-unkonwn, undisclosed projects in January's presentation, with most of them targeting a 2017 release date

there's a ton they need to show if they want any momentum.

Zelda is not enough and 1.5 ports certainly aren't either.

like what? a bunch of new ip?
 

Shikamaru Ninja

任天堂 の 忍者
I hope you're ready for another Donkey Kong!

Seriously though, Retro has never taken more than three years to develop a game since MP1. Late 2017 would be four years. If it's not out next year, it's likely due to release timing, not the game being unfinished.

If it's a new IP or original take on an IP, those require longer times in the oven.
 
If it's a new IP or original take on an IP, those require longer times in the oven.

Possible, but I still don't see it. DKCR was a new take on an IP and they got that out in three years. And that was after an internal shakeup with a bunch of lead devs exiting to form Armature.

Of course, anything could happen but a 4+ year project from Retro would be unprecedented.
 

jwj442

Member
Nintendo has also been winding down 3DS releases for awhile, though more gradually than the Wii U and with much more third-party help to keep things going. With a few exceptions like Pokemon and Kirby, most first-party games since Majora's Mask have been Wii U ports, spinoffs, or late localizations. Their teams have to be working on something.

Yes, people were saying similar things about how they must be working on a bunch for the Wii U. The difference is (hopefully) that then they had major resources focusing on the 3DS, and maybe even sacrificed the Wii U (not that it would ever have been a true success) to an extent to save the 3DS with key software. That and the difficulties of HD development that hit Nintendo 6 years later than everyone else.

OrbitalBeard is right: If they can't have a massive first-year lineup, there is no point in them making hardware anymore.
 

J@hranimo

Banned
It has been about two years since any bigger games came out that had a decent enough budget behind it. Most we've been given on both Wii U and 3DS are spin-off games, smaller games using similar assets and...Starfox Zero. Splatoon was the outlier imo.


I bet we'll definitely see a launch combo of at least Zelda BotW + Nintendo online game (Smash, Mario Kart, Splatoon) with the others being spaced out throughout the year. I could see Mario Kart being the likely candidate though especially with how easily they can add more content via amiibo (like for Mii costumes).
 
I don't see how 15 projects is too much, I mean everything, including digital-only games, not just AAA Xenoblade/Zelda budgeted games.

nintendo has a ton of IPs and they can use them too.

You're thinking 15 games developed by Nintendo not including Smash port, Splatoon port, Mario Kart port?
 
You're thinking 15 games developed by Nintendo not including Smash port, Splatoon port, Mario Kart port?

I don't think we'll see that many in January, but when you add in E3, I'd be surprised to see less than 15 new games announced next year. Of course, a number of these will be smaller titles.
 
I don't think we'll see that many in January, but when you add in E3, I'd be surprised to see less than 15 new games announced next year. Of course, a number of these will be smaller titles.

Yeah, I don't think we'll see that many in January. I'll say through trailers, screenshot or a full reveal the games we'll see around 10 games from Nintendo. Nintendo will probably want lots of third party attention to on the stage.
 
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