Nintendo is switching things up by mixing and matching experiences, trying to regain its foothold in the gaming console market.
On Thursday the company unveiled its next device – a hybrid that can be played at home and on the go. This latest piece of videogame hardware is named Nintendo Switch. It is a shape-changing console that doubles as a traditional home-based machine and a smaller portable device. Gamers will have time until March 2017, the official launch date, to decide whether it’s a must-have. The price for Nintendo Switch is not announced yet .
The Nintendo Switch is an all-in-one gaming machine, essentially a compact processor with removable controllers and a screen, which can be configured for playing at home with a television, or on the go. It is supposed to be a big deal for the Japanese game giant, because it has fallen behind rivals in hardware.
Nintendo reshaped the console market in the mid-2000s with its innovative Wii, whose motion-sensitive controllers and relatively simple games dramatically expanded the audience for gaming, attracting millions of so-called casual players. But Nintendo’s follow-up, the Wii U, has disappointed.
The Nintendo New Galaxy Style New Nintendo 3DS XL Console is now leading the Best Sellers list.
Last year the PlayStation 4, from Sony, outsold the Wii U almost threefold, and the Xbox from Microsoft has also done better.
Investors got to weigh in faster, though, and the initial reviews are not that great. Nintendo’s share price plummeted 7 percent on Friday after trading opened in Tokyo.
