Nintendo NX release date rumors: Company explains reason behind delay, promises to bulk up console's ecosystem
Initially touted to be released later this year, the Nintendo NX won't be out of the shadows until next year after Nintendo chose to delay the much talked-about console for reasons that haven't been made clear until now.
In Q&A with investors, Nintendo president Tatsumi Kimishima explained the logic behind the hold-up.
"One of the reasons for choosing the launch timing that we did is so that the software line-up will be ready in time for the hardware launch," Kimishima said via Metro.
"Not only at launch, but we also need to be able to continuously release titles after launch. We are planning for this to be a platform that consumers can enjoy for a long time," he further explained.
Nintendo knows better than to release the Nintendo NX early without a rich lineup of games for buyers to enjoy it with. "Selling at a loss at launch would not support the business, so we are keeping that mind in developing NX," he said.
Kimishima adds that their goal is to give gamers "a fully realized experience" through the Nintendo NX, a feat they won't be able to do if they released the console too soon.
There's so much riding on the success of Nintendo NX given that Kimishima expects the sales of the consoles to compensate for the reduced sales performance of the Wii U.
The company predicts that there will only be 800,000 Wii U hardware sales by the end of their fiscal year in March 2017. This is not even half of the amount from last year's 2.4 million units. Kimishima expects the Nintendo NX to fill the gap.
As far the release titles are concerned, "The Legend of Zelda" is the only game confirmed to come to Nintendo NX. The Wii U version of the game was supposed to come out this year but Nintendo found it better to bring the game to the new console and make fans wait a bit longer hopefully for a much better product.
