I’d say there’s a good chance of BC since they’ve supported it for every handheld as well as 2 TV console gen switchovers (GC to Wii, Wii to Wii U).
I find it so comical, that is Nintendo fans are saying something so logical and uncontroversial, yet say it with a lot of doubt, since Nintendo could very well fuck us over for no gain at all.
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As long as the Switch’s successor is still ARM based there is no reasonable excuse to not make it backwards compatible
Even stuff like the Steam Deck can play emulated Switch games, and that’s an x86 PC, a machine with a more similar architecture should absolutely have no problem with it.
Doesn’t mean I’m banking on backwards compatibility though.
It would be really nice to be able to download all the games I purchased for the switch if backwards compatibility is in play. I don’t necessarily think it’s essential though, I plan on keeping the switches (plural) I’ve already bought as I like to do with all my old consoles.
What is essential is the ability to use old hardware with the new switch. At the very least, Bluetooth controllers should still be supported so I could use my switch pro and 8bitdo controllers. Joy cons and docks would be nice to have, but I think those would ultimately depend on what kind of form factor the new hardware has. I doubt Nintendo will abandon the hybrid dock able format, but we will see.
I dunno, not being able to carry over Switch purchases would be a huge bummer for me. Hell, I’d probably delay purchasing it if the platform ended up being a graveyard for the first few months.
I really hope it’s not a graveyard. Nintendo’s not exactly the best when it comes to launch library releases. Even their relatively successful ones were basically “saved” by just having one killer app among a sea of mediocrity otherwise. See: Super Mario 64 for the N64, Wii Sports for the Wii (Twilight Princess helped the Wii but was also on GameCube), Breath of the Wild for the Switch. Consoles that didn’t have that one game didn’t perform well at launch at all, and some such as the Wii U never really got off the ground, even if others like the GameCube and 3DS eventually recovered.
Which is exactly why letting us port our libraries over will be such a big thing. Hell, I’d end up buying it just so I can have something that can actually run Pokémon Violet at playable framerates!
I’m mostly the opposite. I try (very poorly) to both save money and live a bit of a minimalist lifestyle, so I trade in or sell every console I own when the new model is released. So backwards compatibility is pretty important to me. I would be happy to drop the joycons in the trash as soon as a new Nintendo console is released lol.
