Nintendo Switch Off to Wobbly Start as Pricing, Timing Unveiled

Nintendo Switch Off to Wobbly Start as Pricing, Timing Unveiled
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Nintendo’s new Switch gaming console is off to an underwhelming start, according to Bloomberg. The new machine, a tablet-sized device with wireless controllers that can be used anywhere but also connects to TVs, will go on sale March 3 at a price of $300, with a brand-new Zelda game as its launch title. None of that, however, was enough to convince investors that it will be a big moneymaker for the company, whose shares fell 5.8 percent after Nintendo executives held a presentation in Tokyo.

Nintendo is counting on the Switch to end years of pain at its console division, which released a successor to the popular Wii in 2012, only to see it flop. After shunning the smartphone market for years, its long-awaited foray into smartphone gaming got off to a rough start, with last month’s  disappointing debut of Super Mario Run. With Switch, there isn’t any single distinguishing feature, like the Wii’s motion controllers when that machine debuted a decade ago, likely to lure buyers for the new console and its games. That’s fueling concerns Nintendo may be losing its ability to deliver hit entertainment products.

Switch surpassed most analysts’ estimates of a price between $250 and $280. At $300, the Switch would cost more than Sony’s $260 PlayStation 4 and Microsoft ’s $240 Xbox One, based on current U.S. retail pricing. An early leak of the price in Canada triggered a decline in Nintendo shares hours before presentation. Nintendo also introduced one new feature for the Switch: an online gaming network. While details were scarce, the company said it would let people play with friends and chat online. The service will initially be free from March, and become a paid service later in the year.

For new games, Nintendo also introduced a new Mario game called Super Mario Odyssey as well as Splatoon 2, a successor to the popular paint-throwing game. Another new title called Arms was introduced, designed to work with the Switch’s new Joy-Con motion-sensing controllers. While the controllers pack more features and sensors, allowing for new ways to play games, they are essentially upgrades of Wii’s motion controllers.

It’s critical to have a lineup of compelling games that have broad appeal. The Switch, however, will have less than a dozen titles when it goes on sale, half what Wii U had when it debuted. In terms of battery life, Nintendo said the Switch will provide 2.5 to 6 hours of gameplay. Nintendo’s promise of delivering high-end graphics in a portable package also rests largely on its ability to maximize battery life.