the_dengle on 19 January 2017
Seems obvious to me. They are making a new game for Switch at the same time. Switch games will use much higher quality assets than 3DS games (seriously, it's a jump from like 240p or something to likely 1080p for Fire Emblem in docked mode).
I just don't see this as an either-or situation. Making the engine and assets for Fire Emblem Switch will take a while. Designing a brand new game also takes a while. Reusing the tried and true Awakening/Fates engine to produce a remake of an old game would not take as long.
See also: Pokemon Black 2 & White 2.
