Nintendo has had gamers buzzing with anticipation as the Nintendo Switch approaches its seventh year on the market. The speculations surrounding its successor, tentatively known as the “Nintendo Switch 2,” have been steadily growing. Recent rumors, like whispers in the gaming world, suggest that tech demos of this new console were showcased behind closed doors at Gamescom earlier this year. This sparks hope that a full public reveal might be just around the corner.
For ardent Nintendo fans, the prospect of a new console is certainly exciting. However, this excitement comes hand in hand with concerns about the compatibility of the new console with the existing Nintendo Switch game libraries.
Backward compatibility has been a game-changer for the gaming industry, as seen with the likes of the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. It allows players to seamlessly pick up where they left off in their favorite games, without the hassle of waiting for remasters or costly re-releases.
With the evolution from the Wii U to the 3DS and eventually the Nintendo Switch, many players are now questioning whether they will need to repurchase their cherished games.
Nintendo of America President Doug Bowser sought to address these concerns in a recent interview with Inverse. While he didn’t directly confirm the existence of a Nintendo Switch successor, he did indicate that steps were being taken to facilitate the transition to a new console.
Bowser mentioned that “in the past, every device we transitioned to had a whole new account system.” However, the introduction of the Nintendo Account system with the Nintendo Switch is expected to significantly reduce the disruptions gamers typically experience during the transition from one console generation to another.
It remains to be seen whether this will translate into full backward compatibility, but with digital purchases registered through the Nintendo Account rather than stored locally on the system, it’s undoubtedly a promising step in the right direction.
