Switch not launching with a true killer app?

If Zelda: BOTW is pushed back then what is the game that will drive initial Switch sales?

All those Wii U ports won't be enough, its going to have to launch with at least one brand new 1st party title to get people interested on a greater scale.

I guess we'll find out in January when all the games will be announced for it.

Wasn't there a rumor going around that the 3D Mario title was a Switch launch game?

Rumors have it that a 3D Mario will be launching with it. We don't know for sure until January though.

to be fair, we dont know what the launch lineup is at this point

If they said their legacy catalog would be ready to download day 1, I wouldn't care if they made a new game for like 5 years.

Are you referring to the Gamecube VC rumor? I just hope F-Zero GX become a VC title.

It might launch with a 3D Mario game that we only saw seconds of. Zelda: BOTW will give the Switch a boost in sales when it comes out. Splatoon can help with the launch.

Wasn't rumors circulating that Game Freak was working on releasing a Pokémon game for the Switch as well?

3D Mario is a bigger system seller than Zelda. Splatoon at launch would also be a system seller. Zelda would provide a boost in June and Pokémon Stars would provide a massive boost during the holiday season.

@FireEmblem_Man: nah, I'm just speaking in general. If scooping up classic NES and Snes games to play on the go is a reality then sign me up. Ive bought them on my ds/3ds but a portable home console with all the fixins sounds so good

I think placing this emphasis on the Zelda game to be the launch killer app is going to backfire. I maintain the game won't be good, but time will tell if I am wrong.

If they launch with a strong Virtual Console library and the 3D Mario, I think it will be fine. Splatoon, Mario Kart and Smash might help, though none of those are enough to get me to buy at launch. Like TheEroica said, if that VC library is strong on Day 1, I'd probably go all in.

Since when is a 3D Mario game not a true killer app?..rumour has it this is launch title. :P

Yep, but it's possibly coming out next fall, it's Pokemon Stars.

You do realize that if it also has Virtual Console at launch you'll be able to play stuff like Super Mario World, Super Metroid, Paper Mario on the go right? I already find that pretty enticing.

Uh aside from a very few confirmed games we have no idea what the launch line up will look like. Let's wait until the event in January. Besides LKD said there would a new Mario at launch.

The Switch is nostalgia focus. Its all about buying and playing old games.

Some say it might be ready at launch, while others have said launch window, but how much pull does a Mario platformer have these days?

Honestly considering no one has a wii u including myself, toss us some games like bayonetta 2, the wonderful 101, 3d world, tropical freeze, pokemon stars, smash bros wii u, etc etc on it and I'll be fine.

Of course I'd want more but being able to get a system with a future lineup with some digital or remastered games of that quality would be a fine reasons to purchase the system.

Dream? I'll take a luigi's mansion 3, new ip, a mario 3d game, and maybe some of the wii u games i mentioned.

@drummerdave9099: "You do realize that if it also has Virtual Console at launch you'll be able to play stuff like Super Mario World, Super Metroid, Paper Mario on the go right? I already find that pretty enticing."

Can you already do that on the 3DS?

@PSP107: You can only play some of the SNES games out of the ones you mentioned and that's only if you have a New 3DS. The 3DS doesn't have N64 titles in their VC.

@PSP107:

Only up to SNES if you have the New 3DS models. Switch having access to both N64 (ehh...) and Gamecube VC is a lot more enticing. True, many buy into this for nostalgia (myself included), but it's still just as much a selling point as new games.

Boy do I wish the PS4 was backwards compatible with the massive library of digital content I own for PS3. Then maybe the ugly thing would see use on a regular basis.

@mmmwksil: "Only up to SNES if you have the New 3DS models. Switch having access to both N64 (ehh...) and Gamecube VC is a lot more enticing. "

NES/SNES were way better products than N64/GC.

@PSP107:

You won't get an argument from me there. But I'm not against buying a few games from N64 and GC if I had the option. And like someone said before me, the entire catalog of NES/SNES games available on Wii/Wii U is not available on N3DS. It's one of the weirdest, most disjointed things out there, so I'd like for Nintendo to consolidate the eShop libraries into a single device.

can't wait till jan eh? :P

@emgesp:

I don't know. It's hard to tell. I think the Wii U launches took a hit because the hardware itself was poorly marketed, yet the Mario titles still sold very well.

The 3DS Mario titles sold well too but it's hard to say whether or not they would shift a system when you consider how things went with the Wii U and New Super Mario Bros. U.

Generally speaking though, Mario games sell better than Zelda games. It wouldn't be crazy to think that a Mario game would likely drive more sales than a Zelda game.

We don't know if The Switch will have an app store or not ;)

We have no idea what the Switch launches, so this discussion is irrelevant. We can talk about it after Jan 12th

Nintendo have to go hard or go home.

I guess they'll likely survive from now on with their portable systems and the mobile market. Their home consoles seem poor tbh

I hope we get Pikmin 4, I thought I remember a Nintendo rep saying in the past that it wasn't happening, but then again they said the NX wasn't a hybrid and that they weren't delaying LoZ Wii U to be an NX launch title, so I hope their denial is probably more hope it's happening than if they do what most companies do and just don't say anything. That would make me get it at launch by itself.

I buried my hopes of a new Mario Strikers releasing any time soon. But I guess I'm the only one that would consider it to be a killer app anyway.

I think Nintendo is looking at this like a launch window, a time period between march and x-mas 2017

timeline:

March- launch the system, with a decent set of games by console launch standards. The hardcore fans will sell out the early stock, and the device probably will have quite a lot of interest just because of the novelty concept of the idea. This is why all the marketing is adult-focused at this time.

May- Golden Week in Japan will give additional boost to the system considering that Japan embraces the mobile market. The Switch will probably have a compelling mobile-focused game to release at this time (pokemon maybe).

Summer- Breath of the Wild launch, and probably some ps4/xbone ports start trickling in.

X-mas 2017- do a 're-launch' of the system of sorts. At this point, there can be improvements in the hardware quality, and even a price cut. There will be lots of games out for the system, and probably be one or several killer apps released at this time. Marketing will be aggressive and will focus more towards youth, and they will have the stock to meet demand.

We'll see. I'm not expecting them early on.

In Nintendo was smart, they go a full remaster Mario 64 as there Switch launch game and I be A-Okay with just one launch game.

that'd be sick

Personally , dont give a damn if itll offer N64 games or GCs or whatever on release.. We damn played/playing those games for ages ( in many different ways if you get what i mean , i dont need to pay hunderd of dollars to play SM64 on 1080p ffs , i do that 10 years now ).

Its what they will try to offer when it comes to new games in order to even be interested let alone decide to buy Switch.. New Zelda is a good start , new Mario also but i want to see whats next. I want games in 2018 , 2019 and beyond... NOT a bunch of games for 2 - 3 years and then ....dust collection. Thats the real bet Nintendo needs to win this generation or we might end up with another GC/Wii/Wii U situation.

Here's a question. If Mario platformers sell better than Zelda and its releasing alongside the Switch then why the hell are Nintendo hyping up Zelda and waiting until January to show off Mario? Why haven't they been hyping up Mario, is it because of Super Mario Run?

I think you answered your own question. Mario is already a universally known and well liked IP that doesn't need as big a market push as something like Zelda. Yes, Zelda is popular too but it's not up to Mario level of recognition in the mainstream. Besides BotW is pretty much guaranteed to have a much bigger budget and is much more of an investment in terms of man power so it makes sense that Nintendo would want to do everything they can to ensure it's success. You could also ask this question of any of Nintendo's planned Switch launch titles. I'm sure they want the Switch event to be a big media blow out because, well, gamers slurp up that kind of hype.

Also a few months of hype after the January event seems ample enough time to market a Mario title.

@emgesp:

Another factor might be that Nintendo wants to show consumers their willingness to embrace modern game design with the open world and such.

Presumably we'll find out in January. Nobody knows at this point. There's no firm information about Breath of the Wild's release date, or about any other potential launch games. Aside from anything else, we don't even really know much about what games are in development.

Here's a great example of a game that was just revealed - who knows when it will launch though?

"app"

Maybe they saw that the Pro released with nothing and think they don't need to either.

I heard Rumors that the Pack in Game was Splatoon.

@LegatoSkyheart: I heard that too, which is great for me since I never played it on the Wii U.