Here’s what we know about Nintendo’s next console, which is scheduled for 2024

According to sources that spoke to VGC, the development kits for the next-generation Nintendo console are already in the hands of key partner studios, and its launch is scheduled for the second half of 2024. Here is everything that is currently known about the next generation of Nintendo’s game console.

The console is scheduled for release in the second half of 2024. The company plans to ensure sufficient stocks of the console at launch to avoid the shortages seen with the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S.

Some characteristics of the Nintendo console that insiders point out:

• Portable mode: The next-generation Nintendo console will have a portable mode similar to the Nintendo Switch.
• Screen: Two sources suggest that an LCD screen will be used instead of an OLED display to keep costs down, given the increase in memory required for gaming.
• Internal storage: The current Switch has 32 GB of internal storage, but next-generation PlayStation and Xbox games often exceed 100 GB, but it remains to be seen whether Nintendo will offer more storage.
• Physical games: The new console will accept physical games through a cartridge slot.
• Backwards compatibility: Details regarding support for existing Switch games (both physical and digital) remain unclear.

According to Tokyo-based industry consultant Dr. Serkan Toto, a 2024 launch makes sense due to a projected double-digit drop in Switch hardware and software sales this year. Sales of Nintendo consoles are expected to fall by 16.5% year-on-year, and games by 15.9%. A new device in 2024 could prevent a sharp increase in these losses.

Christopher Dring, head of B2B gaming at ReedPop, believes that the 2024 launch fits into Nintendo’s historical trend of releasing new products mid-cycle, compared to PlayStation and Xbox. The challenge for Nintendo will be to convince its more family-friendly “casual” fans to upgrade.

How Nintendo approaches the porting of digital game libraries, Nintendo Account, and backwards compatibility could be crucial to the successful launch of the new console.