Summary
Nintendogoes in phases between releasing something revolutionary and something that lands with a thud. The Switch was definitely a game changer when it launched in 2017, prompting many companies to develop their own Switch-like consoles with portable options. The Steam Deck became the default, butother portable consolesare noteworthy, including the ASUS ROG Ally, the Lenovo Legion Go, and to a lesser extent, the PlayStation Portal.
Will theNintendo Switch 2be just as revolutionary as the Switch with its features? So far, Nintendo has shared details on GameChat, GameShare, guides players can access on their phone, and the news that Amiibo will still be around. However, there aresome features they should announce next or get ready by the June 5 launch date if they want to make the Switch 2 another hit Nintendo console.
7Bring Back The Social Hub
From MiiVerse To StreetPass
While the Wii U wasn’t a smash hit for Nintendo, it had some fun ideas that fans fondlyremember, like Miiverse. When booting up the Wii U, players could see their Miis, and the Miis of their online friends, in a little plaza. They could see what games people were playing, represented by their gathered Mii bodies, and they could even doodle notes, which wasn’t anything game-breaking for the industry but was cute all the same.
Then there was SpotPoss and StreetPass on the 3DS, which updated social interactions as players passed others while traveling, leading to some mini-games. This was a fun social era for Nintendo, and it would be nice to see some sort of social hub return to the Switch 2.
6Bring On The Streaming Apps
From Disney+ To Netflix
Streaming apps on consolesbecame ubiquitous in the HD era. If a new console came out, chances are Netflix, Hulu, and others would follow, which made sense for the evolving digital era of streaming content. Nintendo has a 4K-capable system in the Switch 2, so these apps will be in greater demand now.
Everything under the sun should be available to download onto the Switch 2 from the Nintendo eShop, from standards like Disney+ to weird outliers like Tubi. It’s an obvious ask, and yet, given the last console, it seems like a big wish to ask for from Nintendo.
5Manage Your Classic Games
The GameCube Library Could Get Huge
Honestly, for many fans,the GameCube iconappearing was one of the biggest hype moments in the Switch 2 Direct. Those poor games have remained trapped on Nintendo’s old system for ages, and now they can finally be played again, albeit through a slow drip feed.
All of the previous classic console selections had relatively small download sizes because old cartridge-based games didn’t have that much data. However, GameCube games can easily reach a GB in size, and the more Nintendo releases in the catalog, the bigger the app will get. Nintendo should consolidate all of these classic console collections into one single app, and then allow players to download the games they want onto their system; otherwise, it’s going to turn into a storage hog.
4How About Some DS Support?
Use That Phone App
TheDS had some amazing games, and the problem with porting them to modern consoles lies in the dual-screen setup. Many re-releases have tried different schemes, likeThe World Ends With Youand theMega Man Zero/ZX Legacy Collection. It all depends on what the bottom screen was used for. If it was a map, then it seemed like a no-brainer to just shift that functionality to a menu, but with the Switch 2, Nintendo has another option.
During the Switch 2 Direct, Nintendo showcased support for the upcoming enhanced versions ofThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the WildandThe Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom,wherein players could set up the game’s map on their phone. Nintendo could use this same technology and add DS games to the Switch’s classic library with ease.
3eShop Tweaks
Bring Back The Wii Music
The 3DS and Wii U were a fun era for socializing with friends and random people online, but further back, the Wii had a spunky social feature too. The Wii’s eShop jingle became so catchy that a lot of YouTubers parodied it, like thisskit fromNirvana the Band the Show.
Why was this jingle abandoned by Nintendo? It helped them stand out from other digital storefronts, and now they are all just blank slates for players to CONSUME products, devoid of all flights of fancy. Let’s go back and embrace the weird Nintendo.
What’s The Harm?
There’s a secret feature a lot of people don’t know about on the Xbox app. Players can go into the store and pre-download a game even if they haven’t purchased it yet. Players cannot access the game until release time, and of course, they have to buy the game, so there is no harm from Microsoft’s perspective in allowing users to do this. This can be done on consoles for pre-downloadingGame Pass gamesas well.
The PS5 should allow this, along with the Nintendo Switch 2. It would be nice to give players the option of a digital game in case they can’t get a physical copy. That’s one scenario, but there are many reasons why this feature would be attractive.
1Keep Your Price Hikes, Add Payment Plans
What’s There To Lose?
When the $10-per-game price hike happened on thePS5 and Xbox Series X & S, fans were shocked. First, game prices hadn’t risen in over a decade, and it happened during one of the worst times in global economic history: the COVID-19 pandemic. It wasn’t an easy pill to swallow on top of the high price point of these consoles, but fans had to bite the bullet, and it seems like that proverbial bullet will be even harder to swallow with the Switch 2’s game price announcement.
However, Nintendo can make history by keeping their high prices but offering players digital discounts, like some sort of payment plan for games, which have become common options for most online purchases these days. If players cannot meet payment thresholds, then Nintendo can always revoke the digital license. It’s not a perfect setup, but it’s one they could explore.
