There have been many rumors about a more powerful Switch console being in development, but that isn’t happening, according to Digital Foundry’s John Linneman, who claimed in a new episode of Direct Weekly that Nintendo was, in fact, planning an improved revision of the hardware but ultimately decided against it.
“I think at one point internally, from what I can understand from talking to different developers, is that there was some sort of mid-generation Switch update planned at one point, and that seems to be no longer happening,” Linneman said. “And thus, it’s pretty clear that whatever they do next is going to be the actual next-generation hardware.”
Some of the previous stories that suggested a Switch Pro might be on the way include…
- Nintendo Switch Pro Listed at French Retailer for 399 Euros
- Nintendo Switch Pro Reportedly Features USB 3.0 and Ethernet Ports, as Well as a Microsoft Surface-Styled Stand
- Nintendo Switch Pro with OLED Display and 4K Support to Launch as Early as September
- “New Nintendo Switch Pro” Listing Surfaces on Amazon
…but if Linneman is to be believed, Nintendo fans will have to wait for a true successor, one that will presumably try to put a unique spin on gaming like the Switch did with its hybrid concept.
Piers Harding-Rolls, an analyst with Ampere Analysis, predicted earlier this year that a Switch update with 4K-capable hardware is unlikely to happen and that Nintendo will release a next-gen console instead in two years.
“I’m not expecting a Switch Pro in 2022,” he said. “We have a next-gen Nintendo console in our forecasts for late 2024, so I’m not convinced a ‘Pro’ model is going to appear at all.”
The Nintendo Switch leverages a custom Tegra processor from NVIDIA, as noted in its system specifications.