During Nintendo’s most recent financial report, the company’s relatively new president Shuntaro Furukawa took questions from investors on the company’s performance and future plans. One investor pointed out to Furukawa that there are many big games that are missing from the Switch; while he did not name any titles specifically, it is logical to assume he means games like Red Dead Redemption II, which sold 17 million copies in its first week. Furukawa’s answer was blunt: some things just won’t come to Switch and that’s an unrealistic expectation.
“We believe that giving consumers a wide selection of software is an extremely important part of operating our platforms,” Furukawa said in the English translation of the Q&A provided by Nintendo. “That is why we welcome the introduction of a variety of titles from many different software publishers. Even so, I do not think it is realistic to expect that every major title will become available on Nintendo Switch. We are speaking with publishers about them actively putting titles on Nintendo Switch that would be an especially good fit for its unique features as a home console system you can carry around, including handheld mode and the ability to bring systems together for local multiplayer. Given the strong publisher support Nintendo Switch has, I would expect the number of titles on it will increase a lot more. That is what really keeps the Nintendo Switch business on the right track.”
While the Switch has indeed gotten better third party support than most Nintendo home consoles, there are still a number notable of games that pass the system by, whether it be due to technological limitations or a market reasons. Bethesda, as an example, has shown a willingness to try and make it work with titles like Doom Eternal and Wolfenstein, but has also said that there are limits to what can be done on the system in the case of games like Fallout 76.
Later, Furukawa points out that the currently Japan-exclusive cloud service to stream third party games is another option. That service has been used for Resident Evil VII and Assassin’s Creed Odyssey so far in a similar method to, as examples, Google’s Project Stream and PlayStation Now, but physical distance from the servers makes the titles unplayable outside of Japan. It is unknown if Nintendo plans to ever bring that method, and thus the necessary servers, westward.
