Industry analysts are bringing in the new year with a myriad of predictions, and, once again, the Nintendo Switch Pro counts as a consistent prediction; several analysts even claim it might even outsell Microsoft’s Xbox Series X|S and Sony’s PlayStation 5 this year.
During the beginning of 2021, there were analysts making speculations about the possible launch of a Pro edition for the Nintendo Switch. Certainly, 2020 the past year came and went with no such console releasing in the market, but that’s not going to break fans from being optimistic.
Rumors about a theoretical Nintendo Switch Pro particularly picked up some steam in the previous half of 2020, as reports implied that gaming developers were told by the Japanese gaming giant to make their games ready for 4K.
Even leaks about a supposed upgrade to a mini-LED screen made rounds on the internet, but all Nintendo Switch Pro-related speculations were recently disproved by Doug Bowser, Nintendo America’s CEO.
Apparently, though, Bowser’s persistence that the company is emphasizing its efforts on the standard and Switch Lite editions hasn’t intimidated some analysts from holding out hope that a stronger Nintendo console is in development.
Experts at GamesIndustry.biz recently collected 2021 predictions from several industry analysts – obviously, not everyone’s speculations lined up perfectly. NPD analyst Mat Piscatella doesn’t appear to believe Nintendo plans to launch a “new iterative [Switch] model” this year.
Dr. Serkan of Katan Games believes 2021 will establish the correct time for a hardware refresh; so, too does Piers Harding-Rolls of Ampere Analysis. However, all of them predicted that the Nintendo Switch will once again come out on top as the best-selling hardware in the market, regardless of whether sales are affected by new software, hardware, or a mix of both. While the Switch is anticipated to move the most units this year, Harding-Rolls and Toto expect that the PlayStation 5 will still continue to outsell the Xbox Series X|S.
A possible Nintendo Switch Pro doesn’t appear too improbable, even in 2021. However, in addition to the abovementioned statement of Doug Bowser, the president implies the hardware creator has no plans for such a console.
After all, Nintendo’s last two home consoles, the Wii and Wii U, never got mid-gen refreshes of the “Pro” variety. With the Nintendo Switch still selling like hotcakes in spite of the rollout of newer devices from Sony and Microsoft, it’s certain that Nintendo doesn’t need to release a 4K-enabled console with ray tracing to compete.
