Nintendo Switch will bring together the mobility of a handheld with the power of a home gaming system for the first time, and has been met with an overwhelmingly positive response so far.
While the concept has been well received, there has since been some concerned speculation over whether it will directly replace both Wii U and Nintendo 3DS. But, when asked, Nintendo has reiterated that it will primarily be “a home gaming system first and foremost.”
“Nintendo Switch is a home gaming system first and foremost,” a Nintendo of America representative shared with Polygon when asked if it would have an impact on Nintendo 3DS sales.
“We have made no announcement regarding the future of Nintendo 3DS. Obviously with sales of almost 60 million 3DS portables worldwide, there’s still a huge hunger for new games, such as Pokémon Sun and Pokémon Moon. There are many more games in the pipeline.”
While the answer seems to be Nintendo equivocating a bit in terms of the lifespan of the 3DS, it’s pretty easy to interpret the plans for the Wii U.
“We have nothing to announce about the production status of Wii U,” Nintendo added. “We announced in April 2016 that as we prepare for the launch of Nintendo Switch in March of 2017, Nintendo will ship 800,000 Wii U hardware units to the global market for this fiscal year. As a result, the inventory of Wii U hardware at retail will become harder to find.
“We encourage anyone who wants Wii U to communicate with their preferred retail outlet to monitor availability.”
Nintendo Switch will release worldwide in March 2017.
