Nintendo has finally decided to show off their new "home gaming system", code-name NX. It's time to see what Nintendo has up their sleeves and put all the rumors to rest.
GBAtemp will covering the announcement and the OP will be updated as new information rolls in from the preview. Remember, the video starts at 9AM Central Standard Time, so be sure to watch, and discuss your thoughts here!

Nintendo Official Site

Trailer

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It's called the Nintendo Switch. Rumors are true, it's a tablet with connectable buttons that you can play at home and on the go. Console Controller looks similar to the Xbox One's. Has small little remotes and supports multiplayer. NBA game being shown. 3D Mario title. When you connect the portable controllers the system goes from console to portable. Skyrim and Splatoon shown. Still coming March next year.

Press Release​

Detachable Controllers Reinvent Gaming

REDMOND, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- In an introductory video released today, Nintendo provided the first glimpse of its new home gaming system and revealed that it is called Nintendo Switch. In addition to providing single and multiplayer thrills at home, the Nintendo Switch system also enables gamers to play the same title wherever, whenever and with whomever they choose. The mobility of a handheld is now added to the power of a home gaming system to enable unprecedented new video game play styles.

At home, Nintendo Switch rests in the Nintendo Switch Dock that connects the system to the TV and lets you play with family and friends in the comfort of your living room. By simply lifting Nintendo Switch from the dock, the system will instantly transition to portable mode, and the same great gaming experience that was being enjoyed at home now travels with you. The portability of Nintendo Switch is enhanced by its bright high-definition display. It brings the full home gaming system experience with you to the park, on an airplane, in a car, or to a friend’s apartment.

Gaming springs into action by removing detachable Joy-Con controllers from either side of Nintendo Switch. One player can use a Joy-Con controller in each hand; two players can each take one; or multiple Joy-Con can be employed by numerous people for a variety of gameplay options. They can easily click back into place or be slipped into a Joy-Con Grip accessory, mirroring a more traditional controller. Or, if preferred, the gamer can select an optional Nintendo Switch Pro Controller to use instead of the Joy-Con controllers. Furthermore, it is possible for numerous people to bring their Nintendo Switch systems together to enjoy local multiplayer face-to-face competition.

“Nintendo Switch allows gamers the freedom to play however they like,” said Reggie Fils-Aime, President and COO, Nintendo of America. “It gives game developers new abilities to bring their creative visions to life by opening up the concept of gaming without boundaries.”

Developers can design their games supporting a variety of play styles, which gives gamers the freedom to choose an experience that best suits them. Some of the publishers, developers and middleware partners announcing support for Nintendo Switch are as follows:

Companies that will support the Switch
505 Games
• LEVEL-5 Inc.
• Activision Publishing, Inc.
• Marvelous Inc.
• ARC SYSTEM WORKS Co., Ltd.
• Maximum Games, LLC
• ATLUS CO., LTD.
• Nippon Ichi Software, Inc.
• Audiokinetic Inc.
• Parity Bit Inc.
• Autodesk, Inc.
• PlatinumGames Inc.
• BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment Inc.
• RAD Game Tools, Inc.
• Bethesda
• RecoChoku Co., Ltd.
• CAPCOM CO., LTD.
• SEGA Games Co., Ltd.
• Codemasters®
• Silicon Studio Corporation
• CRI Middleware Co., Ltd.
• Spike Chunsoft Co., Ltd.
• DeNA Co., Ltd.
• SQUARE ENIX CO., LTD.
• Electronic Arts
• Starbreeze Studios
• Epic Games Inc.
• Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc.
• Firelight Technologies
• Telltale Games
• FromSoftware, Inc.
• THQ Nordic
• Frozenbyte
• Tokyo RPG Factory Co., Ltd.
• GameTrust
• TT Games
• GRASSHOPPER MANUFACTURE INC.


• UBISOFT
• Gungho Online Entertainment, Inc.
• Ubitus Inc.
• HAMSTER Corporation
• Unity Technologies, Inc.
• Havok
• Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment
• INTI CREATES CO., LTD.
• Web Technology Corp

Screens





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It will be powered by a custom Nvidia Tegra chip.

Nintendo Switch is powered by the performance of the custom Tegra processor. The high-efficiency scalable processor includes an NVIDIA GPU based on the same architecture as the world’s top-performing GeForce gaming graphics cards.

Nvidia Blog

Nintendo Switch Site

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Nintendo First Look​

The detachable controllers are called Joy-Con controllers.

Gaming springs into action by removing detachable Joy-Con controllers from either side of Nintendo Switch. One player can use a Joy-Con controller in each hand; two players can each take one; or multiple Joy-Con can be employed by numerous people for a variety of gameplay options. They can easily click back into place or be slipped into a Joy-Con Grip accessory, mirroring a more traditional controller. Or, if preferred, the gamer can select an optional Nintendo Switch Pro Controller to use instead of the Joy-Con controllers. Furthermore, it is possible for numerous people to bring their Nintendo Switch systems together to enjoy local multiplayer face-to-face competition.

“Nintendo Switch allows gamers the freedom to play however they like,” said Reggie Fils-Aime, President and COO, Nintendo of America. “It gives game developers new abilities to bring their creative visions to life by opening up the concept of gaming without boundaries.”

Developers can design their games supporting a variety of play styles, which gives gamers the freedom to choose an experience that best suits them. Some of the publishers, developers and middleware partners announcing support for Nintendo Switch are as follows:

Nintendo Site

 

[Mikemk]

I'm not really sure how Nintendo expects the Switch to not replace the 3DS, the 3DS is like 6 years old now and it had outdated hardware when it first came on the market... hopefully that doesn't mean they expect everyone to own an N3DS, cause I can't afford one and a Switch.

I'm sorry, I should've said it won't replace it because it's not porrtable enough. Oh wait. I did.

 

[Xzi]

The screen looks like it's 7 or 8 inches and after reading Nintendo's wording about the screen (The portability of Nintendo Switch is enhanced by its bright high-definition display.), the resolution probably is 720p.

Would be likely if they want to save on battery life. The Shield Portable was also 720p, but that was released several years ago now. 1080p screens have become cheaper since then.

 

[Foxi4]

I don't like your tone. You really have far lower knowledge than what you believe. It is not about pcie bandwidth, it is about SoC connectors. The form factor is too small to accomondate them. You need pins for memory and I/O. PCIE is used on the large PC motherboards, not the slim 6" tablet form factor with the tiny microprocessor. Show me a 6" tablet with PCIE or SLI.

But the primary limitation is simple cost. Having a second Tegra is prohibitive. Tegras aren't cheap. Not to mention 2x Tegras will be difficult to manufacture in decent quantities @16nm, factory capacities are too full at the moment. So this is a definite no-no.

Stop being so aggressive with people who are better with tech than you, boy. You are just a gamer.

What are you talking about? Mobile SoC's use PCIe all the time, it's the default graphics interface. Just because there's no connector doesn't mean that it's not PCIe. I don't like *your* tone because you're using the fact that you're a software engineer to leverage your opinion, as if it makes it more valid somehow. Just so you know, the Tegra SoC's *do* feature a PCIe controller, so the *only* concern is the amount of available lanes. You also don't need "two Tegras", all you need is an external GPU which will take over upon docking, which is perfectly feasible. It is cost-prohibitive though, I'll give you that much.

 

[TemplarGR]

Source? Cartoonish-style graphics don't mean lack of detail in graphics, just look at Wind Waker HD or something like that (unless that's not what you mean)

What source? Are you kidding me? Polygons, textures, shaders, are more important and resource intensive than just rendering output.

 

[tarumbo83]

I'm sorry, I should've said it won't replace it because it's not porrtable enough. Oh wait. I did.

I know you said that, I'm just saying that Nintendo thinks the Switch won't replace the 3DS which I think is unrealistic, I agree that it isn't as portable as the 3DS but not much can be done about that. The only thing Nintendo can really do is make a proper 3DS successor but I think they intend for the Switch to be that..

 

[aofelix]

I think the screen will potentially be gimped but hope its not.

Sell 1080p screens at a loss for a year or two.. the technology is so old they'll be making money in no time but its nintendo... and they like to be behind.

 

[grossaffe]

Not Nintendo. Nvidia. Nintendo didn't design anything, Nvidia did. While Nvidia could have a buffed gpu portion for the Switch, it is unlikely. It won't do any good. After all, the switch is just a 6" tablet, we already have tablets with Tegra, we know how much power they need to run. If they limit the cpu power to boost gpu power, it will still be lower than the Xbox.

First off, Nintendo does have a hardware team that works with the chip-makers to custom design chips to fit their specifications. Secondly, what does it matter whether it's nVidia or Nintendo? The bottom line is that this is a custom designed gaming machine, not a tablet built from off-the-shelf parts.

 

[Pluupy]

Well, it won't replace the 3DS. Doesn't fit in a pocket.

Get a purse? My 3DS XL doesn't fit in my pocket either. Hell, my DS Lite barely fit into my pockets what with skinny jeans.

 

[TemplarGR]

What are you talking about? Mobile SoC's use PCIe all the time, it's the default graphics interface. Just because there's no connector doesn't mean that it's not PCIe. I don't like *your* tone because you're using the fact that you're a software engineer to leverage your opinion, as if it makes it more valid somehow. Just so you know, the Tegra SoC's *do* feature a PCIe controller, so the *only* concern is the amount of available lanes.

I meant external PCIE. It was obvious. Sorry i don't bother to write down obvious things.

You can't have lanes without space, that is what i said. Put it in your head please.

 

[Deleted User]

The slowdown and framerate drops on the zelda game was HORRIBLE. but we know the FPS for that title on the Wii U is not great either so I'm not too concerned. Mario on the big screen looked beautiful...

The framerate will probably be fixed by the time the game gets released, they still have quite a bit of time to work on it.

 

[tarumbo83]

Honestly, what does it matter if the portable component isn't 1080p? The Wii U gamepad was 480p, so it's still a major upgrade. And besides, it's pretty hard to tell the difference anyways, especially on such a small screen.

 

[grossaffe]

What are you talking about? Mobile SoC's use PCIe all the time, it's the default graphics interface. Just because there's no connector doesn't mean that it's not PCIe. I don't like *your* tone because you're using the fact that you're a software engineer to leverage your opinion, as if it makes it more valid somehow. Just so you know, the Tegra SoC's *do* feature a PCIe controller, so the *only* concern is the amount of available lanes. You also don't need "two Tegras", all you need is an external GPU which will take over upon docking, which is perfectly feasible. It is cost-prohibitive though, I'll give you that much.

Don't you know that software engineering makes you all-knowing about what's possible in hardware?

 

[TemplarGR]

First off, Nintendo does have a hardware team that works with the chip-makers to custom design chips to fit their specifications. Secondly, what does it matter whether it's nVidia or Nintendo? The bottom line is that this is a custom designed gaming machine, not a tablet built from off-the-shelf parts.

Nintendo's team is good to design a desktop pc, not delicate gpus and SoCs. You overestimate their hardware team. Modern gpus are quite advanced, that is why only 2 companies are still competitive in making them, with Intel a distant 3rd and following the various mobile-only gpu makers.

 

[tarumbo83]

The framerate will probably be fixed by the time the game gets released, they still have quite a bit of time to work on it.

This. The game is still a few months away from release, optimization like that is what they do in the last few months before release.

 

[grossaffe]

Nintendo's team is good to design a desktop pc, not delicate gpus and SoCs. You overestimate their hardware team. Modern gpus are quite advanced, that is why only 2 companies are still competitive in making them, with Intel a distant 3rd and following the various mobile-only gpu makers.

I never claimed they designed the entire chip. I said they work with the chip manufacturer.

 

[TemplarGR]

I never claimed they designed the entire chip. I said they work with the chip manufacturer.

Yeah sure, they worked like this: "We want to order a Soc with such and such performance and power envelope and near that cost".

That is what their hardware team did regarding Tegra. Nvidia designed it.

 

[Deleted User]

Not real-- but I hope we'll have different colors to choose from for the #NintendoSwitch! pic.twitter.com/L2sM4ism5w

— SynthByte 📺 (@SynthByte) October 20, 2016

Even though it's not real, the green one looks nice. If it were real, that's the one I'd buy.

 

[Foxi4]

I meant external PCIE. It was obvious. Sorry i don't bother to write down obvious things.

You can't have lanes without space, that is what i said. Put it in your head please.

I already said that all you need is X4 PCIe to support an external GPU at close to a 100% efficiency, and you can do that very easily. Nothing you're saying is "obvious" because implementations like this already exist.

 

[TemplarGR]

I already said that all you need is X4 PCIe to support an external GPU at close to a 100% efficiency, and you can do that very easily. Nothing you're saying is "obvious" because implementations like this already exist.

Show me a 6" tablet with external 4x PCIE 3.0 interface. I am waiting.

 

[tarumbo83]

https://twitter.com/NinSwitchNews/status/789163968933703681
Even though it's not real, the green one looks nice. If it were real, that's the one I'd buy.

I hope they do something like that fake image, the 3DS colours look ugly to me and the home console colour choices they have are "white or black".