Nintendo Confirms Backward Compatibility for Upcoming Switch Successor

In a notable announcement that coincided with significant political events in the United States, Nintendo has confirmed that its upcoming console, often referred to as the “Nintendo Switch successor,” will feature backward compatibility with the original Nintendo Switch games. This revelation comes directly from Nintendo’s Japanese Twitter account, attributed to company President Shintaro Furukawa, during a Corporate Management Policy Briefing that took place recently. The tweet stated, “At today’s Corporate Management Policy Briefing, we announced that Nintendo Switch software will also be playable on the successor to Nintendo Switch.” This means that existing Nintendo Switch owners will be able to enjoy their current library of games on the new hardware.

Moreover, Nintendo stated that its subscription service, Nintendo Switch Online, would also be operational on the new console. They emphasized that the company sees it as vital to leverage the success of Nintendo Switch, which has garnered over 100 million active users, and maintain the established customer relationships as they transition to new hardware. While the announcement did not delve into intricate details about how backward compatibility will function, it signifies Nintendo’s awareness that enabling gamers to carry over their existing games is a crucial factor for the new console’s success. The company confirmed that users will be able to play their existing titles and will also have access to a wide array of new titles on the successor.

In a previous statement made by Nintendo more than a year ago, they hinted that the transition from the Switch to its successor would be smooth, stating their desire to maximize customer retention while utilizing the Nintendo Account system. Recent reports suggested that backward compatibility was already in development, according to contacts within the gaming supply chain and developers.

During this briefing, Nintendo highlighted the remarkable achievement of the Nintendo Switch, noting that more software has been played on this platform than on any previous Nintendo hardware. This statistic underscores the significance of addressing backward compatibility as a key feature for their anticipated new console. Despite this assurance, many questions remain about the specifics of backward compatibility, particularly regarding physical game cartridges and how these will function with the new hardware. Nintendo has stated that more detailed information about the upcoming console and its compatibility features will be shared in the future.

Historically, Nintendo’s portable systems, like the Game Boy and DS/3DS line, have consistently offered full backward compatibility across generations for decades. For home consoles, backward compatibility has generally been retained from the Gamecube in 2001 to the Wii U in 2012; however, the Switch broke this trend. As a hybrid console, the Switch did not support individual downloadable Virtual Console games from previous systems, raising concerns among fans about how the transition to a new console will be managed.