If Nintendo waits a long time for a Switch successor, what do you think will happen?

[DarthMetalliCube]

Leynos said:

DarthMetalliCube said:

I do think it's likely Nintendo to somewhat follow the trajectory of the GB line, given their parallels in handheld functionality and strong sales. Plus they've still yet to release a true Switch 1.5/Pro or whatever, as the OLED's improvements are fairly small and don't relate to the actual hardware. So I think we'd likely see the Switch Pro in 2024 or even 2025 as a stopgap that can help carry it a few more years. I really think Nintendo intends to stretch out the lifespan of the Switch a decade (which is possible as long as the library continues to be strong - there's already a flood of games on the console). So I think it's very possible we won't see Switch 2 until early 2027.

Switch pro was canceled due to the pandemic and dev kits were sent back to Nintendo according to insiders. https://www.forbes.com/sites/paultassi/2022/12/28/report-nintendo-cancelled-the-switch-pro-in-favor-of-the-switch-2/?sh=3f8a539c4e58

Don't count on it at this point. GB line never had to go through a pandemic.

I see nothing that mentions definitely that the pandemic was a direct cause of the plug being pulled on Switch Pro, other than rumors and vague references to "unnamed source says". Pandemic shouldn't make a difference, especially in 2023, and if Nintendo still wanted to go through with the 1.5 update, they absolutely could. OLED was able to be released in late 2021, why would it be so much harder to manufacture a pro? I think it could still happen, likely in 2024. But even if it doesn't, there's little reason to jump into the next-gen when the console has such a massive library with pretty big releases still trickling out (not to mention cloud-based third parties), and sales still exceeding even the PS5. My prediction may be a bit outlandish but I'm still going out on a limb and sticking with early 2027 as the release for the true Switch succesor, as I have since last year.