Sources claim Nintendo is working on a hybrid device and has already sent dev kits to key partners.
Fresh reports indicate Nintendo is planning to release a successor to the Switch during the second half of 2024.
According to VGC, multiple people with knowledge of the Nintendo's next-gen hardware plans have stated the device will be another hybrid that can be used as a home console or handheld.
The outlet adds that development kits have already been sent to "key partners," and claims Nintendo has chosen that launch window to help it avoid supply issues at launch.
Two sources also claim the console could feature an LCD display to keep costs down and, like the Switch, will utilize game cartridges.
Eurogamer has corroborated some aspects of VGC's report, and says its own sources believe Nintendo will roll out a Switch successor in the second half of 2024.
Weighing in on those reports, Tokyo-based industry consultant Dr Serkan Toto told VGC the release window being touted sounds "realistic."
"I would generally say that looking at Nintendo’s financials, it seems clear that it’s time for a new piece of hardware in 2024,” he said. “Hardware is already projected to fall 16.5 percent year-on-year in the current fiscal, while the minus for software is expected to hit 15.9 percent," they added.
"The only way to stop these losses from totally ballooning next fiscal is a new device, and the second half of 2024 sounds like a realistic release window to me."
The Nintendo Switch has sold over 125 million units worldwide since launching in March 2017, but as noted by Toto, hardware sales have started to slow down.
Nintendo's fiscal report for the year ended March 31, 2023, showed that hardware sales dropped by 22.1 percent year-on-year to just under 18 million units. Another drop is expected this year, with Nintendo expecting to shift 15 million consoles by March 2024.
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