Jubenhimer
Member
I think it's clear at this point that for now at least, securing 3rd party support for the Nintendo Switch is easier said than done. While the system is pretty powerful and developer friendly, it still falls short of the PS4 and Xbox One, meaning some of the more graphically intensive games probably won't even be ported at all. That being said, I do think there are plenty of other ways Nintendo can secure third party support. Aside from the obvious indie, Japanese, and less graphics intensive games, all one needs to do to look at third party support done right on a modern Nintendo console is the Nintendo DS. The DS was a weird handheld with dual screens, specs barely more powerful than the PlayStation, a very basic online system, and seemingly useless control gimmicks that at first many developers didn't know what to do with.
Fast-forward today, it's only the second best-selling system in the industry, following very closely behind the PlayStation 2. The combination of Install base, unique features, and being dirt cheap and easy to develop for led the DS to have a lot of support from 3rd party developers. It's easy to forget with the 3DS's relative lack of it, but the DS actually had some great western support. EA managed to get nearly all Need for Speed and Sports games on it, along with Skate it as well. Ubisoft brought Assassin's Creed to the thing. Activision brought custom versions of every Call of Duty game since Modern Warfare to it, and even Guitar Hero, Rockstar brought it's biggest franchise to the system. Plus, there were plenty of exclusives from smaller developers as well like Renegade Kid with Moon and Dementium, which showed what the DS was capable of graphically when in the right hands. And of course, Japanese developers brought a lot of exclusives as well.
I think the Switch could be the same way. If the install base is there, big 3rd parties will bring their IP to it. Maybe not always in the form of ports, but exclusive entries that can only be experienced on it, as well as any new IP tailored to the system. The Switch much like the DS, is dirt cheap to develop for compared to its contemporaries (development kits are only $500), so as long as the system can keep up it's momentum, the likes of Activision, EA, and Ubisoft could potentially make room in their development budget for it.
We could especially see a return, to the kind of quirky, innovative exclusives that defined the DS, especially with the added benefit of indies and the eShop. Look, Nintendo will never be the place to play all the latest and greatest from AAA developers, that ship sailed years ago, and Nintendo's made it clear that's neither the audience or market they primarily focus on. But, they can provide a place for developers, where ideas, not budgets can shine through.
Fast-forward today, it's only the second best-selling system in the industry, following very closely behind the PlayStation 2. The combination of Install base, unique features, and being dirt cheap and easy to develop for led the DS to have a lot of support from 3rd party developers. It's easy to forget with the 3DS's relative lack of it, but the DS actually had some great western support. EA managed to get nearly all Need for Speed and Sports games on it, along with Skate it as well. Ubisoft brought Assassin's Creed to the thing. Activision brought custom versions of every Call of Duty game since Modern Warfare to it, and even Guitar Hero, Rockstar brought it's biggest franchise to the system. Plus, there were plenty of exclusives from smaller developers as well like Renegade Kid with Moon and Dementium, which showed what the DS was capable of graphically when in the right hands. And of course, Japanese developers brought a lot of exclusives as well.
I think the Switch could be the same way. If the install base is there, big 3rd parties will bring their IP to it. Maybe not always in the form of ports, but exclusive entries that can only be experienced on it, as well as any new IP tailored to the system. The Switch much like the DS, is dirt cheap to develop for compared to its contemporaries (development kits are only $500), so as long as the system can keep up it's momentum, the likes of Activision, EA, and Ubisoft could potentially make room in their development budget for it.
We could especially see a return, to the kind of quirky, innovative exclusives that defined the DS, especially with the added benefit of indies and the eShop. Look, Nintendo will never be the place to play all the latest and greatest from AAA developers, that ship sailed years ago, and Nintendo's made it clear that's neither the audience or market they primarily focus on. But, they can provide a place for developers, where ideas, not budgets can shine through.