Report: Nintendo Could Confirm New Hardware As Soon The End Of August

Nintendo could be planning to confirm the existence of its next console at Gamescom this year, a startmenu source familiar with Nintendo partner studios tells us.

As reported by VGC and corroborated by Eurogamer, the follow-up to the Switch is reportedly planned for release in the second half of 2024. Both sites have cited sources that state development studios have devkits in hand. However, startmenu has learned that the Japanese-based firm could be confirming the existence of new hardware as soon as the end of August 2023.

The source, which is in regular contact with multiple studios and platform holders across the industry, told startmenu that Nintendo plans to announce a follow-up to the Switch “at Gamescom.”

The source originally tipped startmenu off to this at the end of July 2023. Due to a lack of evidence supporting the claim, however, we didn’t feel comfortable reporting the story. We also felt it highly unlikely that Tokyo company would announce the existence of a console in the European region, considering the leadership of the company is mainly centred in Japan and the USA.

However, several details of VGC’s report lining up with what startmenu’s sources said have convinced us that this story holds some truth to it. The source also told startmenu they believe that several studios with close partnerships with Nintendo have received devkits to begin familiarising themselves with the new hardware.

It is unclear if the claim of “at Gamescom” means that Nintendo will be holding a Nintendo Direct the week of the show (22nd to the 27th of August) or if the company with announce a potential Switch 2 at a Gamescom event, such as Geoff Keighley’s co-run Opening Night Live event on the 22nd of August.

The Switch was announced via a tweet in 2016, only a handful of months before the console’s release, and previous to that, the Wii U was first unveiled at E3 2011 back when the company still attended the LA convention. Since then, Nintendo has stepped back from almost all in-person live events in favour of pre-recorded Nintendo Directs. 

Nintendo confirmed its attendance at the show for the first time since 2019 when the Koelnmesse and The German Games Industry Association announced the return of console manufacturer and publisher. 

However, despite the company's confirmation that it will be at the show, there has been little indication as to what it will be showing, even down to what games Nintendo may demo. It is also worth noting that, despite a jam-packed winter slate of releases, including Super Mario RPG and Super Mario Bros. Wonder, the company has not been booking any behind-closed-doors appointments with press, bar a single third-party game that the console manufacturer is helping to distribute. 

To dive into pure analysis and speculation, we are still somewhat sceptical that Nintendo would make a console announcement before the winter season, as confirmation of a new console to cannibalise Switch sales come the holidays. We are also still somewhat hesitant to believe that Nintendo would make such a big announcement at a show that it has not prioritised for several years now. 

However, we do believe that it’s very likely - even if Nintendo doesn’t confirm a new console this month  - that the company will be using one of the last remaining international, in-person industry events to meet with partners from across the globe to discuss upcoming hardware.