Nintendo Switch’s release schedule for 2023 and 2024 explained

Nintendo Switch’s release schedule has never seemed more barren. There was no new Nintendo exclusive planned after next month’s Pikmin 4,Third-party developers had virtually abandoned the old platform. Expansions for Mario Kart and Pokémon would keep two of the Switch’s biggest franchises alive through the end of the year, but beyond that was one big question mark over the future of a console that Nintendo has said it won’t replace until April 2024 at the earliest.

In fact, Nintendo had a few surprises up its sleeve, which pad out the Switch’s 2023 slate quite nicely: A new 2D Mario, a new WarioWare, Detective Pikachu ReturnsIt is also a remake Super Mario RPGAll of these games are due to be released before the end the year. A new Peach title and the remastering of Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon, the Switch’s 2024 remains something of a mystery. Nintendo has done its best, but there is still no disguising the fact that this is a console in its final years — its final year, perhaps.

Now, what is the Nintendo Switch launch schedule?

Image: Nintendo

You can’t accuse Nintendo’s internal studios of slacking. Between now and the end of 2023 — and in the wake of smash hit Tears of the Kingdom – The Legend of Zelda — Nintendo will release Everyone 1-2-Switch, Pikmin 4,, Super Mario Bros. Wonder, The WarioWare series: Move it!” Super Mario RPG, plus Detective Pikachu Returns in collaboration with The Pokémon Company and developer Creatures Inc.

It’s a solid enough lineup, looking to capitalize on the runaway success of Super Mario Bros. MovieNintendo will please all fans, both casual and core. Wonder shouldn’t be underestimated: 2D Mario games still have a huge appeal, and if you discount the Switch’s Deluxe edition of New Super Mario Bros. UIt’s the first in more than 10 years. Nintendo might have a big hit in its hands during the holiday season.

Add to these titles two new waves of content for the Switch’s best-selling game, Mario Kart 8 DeluxeThe. Area Zero: Hidden TreasureExpanding for Pokémon ScarletYou can also find out more about the following: VioletSwitch’s calendar is certainly lively. One could even call it busy.

The trouble arises when you look beyond Nintendo’s own efforts. Warner Bros., the biggest publisher on Switch is the last to do so: it will bring its brands. Mortal Kombat 1.In September, the Platform will launch. Hogwarts LegacyFinally, the Switch will be released in November. The performance of both versions on Switch will be closely monitored. Sega has also offered its support through Persona 5 TacticaThe month of November and Sonic SuperstarsThe fall is a good example of this Persona 3 ReloadedSwitch appears to have been left behind. Ubisoft has a few more Just Dances and other games. Mario + Rabbids Sparks Of Hope DLC.

Image: Nintendo EPD/Nintendo

Indie ports, like Vampire SurvivorsSecond-string games such as MythForceYou can also find out more about the following: Palia, and a procession of remasters and reissues like the Batman: Arkham games, Metal Gear Solid, Star Ocean, and Nintendo’s own Pikmin. It’s clear Nintendo is doing a lot of work on its own to make new Switch releases feel fresh.

In 2024 things are a lot murkier. Ubisoft’s Lost Crown: Prince of PersiaArrives in January. Nothing else is set. Nintendo is continuing its Mario Movie push by releasing the Peach and Liigi games. The New World of Steam by Professor LaytonThe almost mythical is bound to appear at some stage. Hollow Knight Silksong.

This is the point where we run out of all announced games. There’s one big one left on the board: Metroid Prime 4, although it’s reasonable to wonder if Nintendo is considering holding back this title — long, long in development — for the Switch’s successor, or perhaps for a dual-platform bridge release, in the style of The Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild. As for rumors, the firmest one is that Switch remasters of two other Zelda games — The Wind Waker You can also find out more about the following: Twilight Princess — exist, and might even be finished, but Nintendo has yet to find a suitable spot in the release calendar for them.

Why doesn’t Nintendo just make more Switch games — or move on to a Switch 2?

Nintendo’s Switch is in a bit of a pickle. The Switch is getting old, but it’s too successful to replace just yet — and its games sell so well in the long term that releasing sequels doesn’t always make sense. “Sustaining the Switch’s sales momentum will be difficult in its seventh year,” Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa acknowledged on a recent investor call.

It is too late to catch up on the latest gaming developments, as the console was built using older technology when released in 2017. The multiplatform, larger publishers are also losing interest. In fact, it’s possible that even Nintendo’s internal studios are now banking titles for the Switch’s successor.

Ubisoft boss Yves Guillemot has said that Nintendo advised against last year’s sequel to Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle, with the platform holder saying it’s better to do one iteration of a game per console generation. “We should have waited,” Guillemot admitted in a recent interview with GamesIndustry.biz, explaining that the sales curve of a Mario game on Switch is much, much longer than is typical on other platforms: “On Nintendo, games like this never die.”

Nintendo has always followed its own advice. It was therefore unlikely that the company would ever release an a Mario Kart 9Or a follow up to Super Mario OdysseyThe Switch is not a good platform for sequels, as they will only take away from the sales long tail of the predecessor. It seems that one reason we’re not getting more Switch games during its final years is, paradoxically, because Switch games sell too well. It’s a good problem to have. So is the issue Nintendo faces over timing the console’s replacement.

From a software perspective, it would seem that now is the perfect time to replace the Switch — the tech is too old, and the games are drying up. But from a hardware perspective, while it might be true that the successor is simply not ready, it’s also true that Nintendo will be anxious not to move too soon. Switch sales are declining, but still have decent momentum at a projected 15 million units this year, while the platform’s total audience is gargantuan: It’s the third-best-selling console of all time. Nintendo won’t be too eager to leave all those customers behind in favor of a leap into the great unknown, even if all it can feed them is indie games and DLC.

Will Nintendo reveal any exclusives to the Switch after this Nintendo Direct? It seems unlikely, but the truth is that we don’t know — and it’s quite possible that Nintendo doesn’t, either. Nintendo can ride it out for a few quiet years, pick the right moment, and take their time with 125 million consoles.