It feels like Nintendo has drifted in and out of 2023, all the while continuing to sell millions of Nintendo Switch units and software. Looking back, did the legendary Japanese company do enough this year to make an impact?
In 2023, Microsoft has been busy completing multi-billion-dollar deals with Activision Blizzard, while Sony has been showcasing why the PS5 is a truly next-gen beast with the incredible Spider-Man 2. But what about Nintendo? As usual, the “family-friendly” company seems to have been quietly going about its business.
It’s been an interesting year for Nintendo and the dominant Switch console. There have been some highs, but I’d also argue there have been some lows, too, that the multimedia messiah might already be mulling over heading into 2024.
Where would Nintendo be without Zelda and Mario?
Time and time again, both Mario and Zelda prove that innovation and ingenuity are no fluke. Nintendo invests an astonishing amount of time and resources into these franchises, and 2023’s The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and Super Mario Bros. Wonder are the reasons why.
With scores of 96 and 92 on Metacritic, TotK and Wonder reinvented established, 40-year-old franchises, sprinkling a cornucopia of new ideas into their tried and tested recipes. I’ve logged nearly 100 hours with TotK, but feel like I have so much more still to see. Old abilities are out, and in come Fuse and Ultrahand to unleash new possibilities. A familiar Hyrule also became a new Hyrule, thanks to the Sky Islands and Depths, easily justifying TotK’s prolonged development time that left fans yearning for something to fill their empty heart container.
On the other hand, Mario Wonder is the reason I play games—it’s fun and makes me happy. But Mario has been a bit greedy in 2023, though. Alongside Wonder, a breathtaking remake of Super Mario RPG enraptured us all and helped one of the series’ less-heralded iterations to flourish, discover a new audience, and welcome a younger generation while taking old-school fans on a one-way trip to the nostalgia kingdom.
Seriously, where is the Switch 2 or Switch Pro?
Pokemon Scarlet and Violet was an eye-opening experience highlighting the Nintendo Switch’s technical inferiority. Severe frame-rate drops, bugs, glitches, and generally poor performance were an indictment of how the Switch is falling behind thanks to its dated specs—and that was in 2022.
Technical behemoths like Tears of the Kingdom showed that AAA Switch titles can look pretty good with the right optimization, but how jaw-dropping could Pokemon or Zelda look on the long-rumored Switch Pro or Switch 2?
The Wii U came out in 2012, with the Switch following suit in 2017, so we should be due a new console soon, right? Well, you could argue that the need for the Switch was more immediate given the disappointing sales of the WiiU—estimated to be a shocking 14 million. Whereas the Switch, as of Dec. 12, 2023, has sold well over 120 million units and counting.
As a fan and regular consumer of Nintendo gaming media, I’d like to see the efforts of the company’s most talented developers rewarded by showcasing system-selling AAA titles in glorious, pristine detail. I expect an announcement in 2024, and I’ll have my wallet gaping, ready to throw more money at Nintendo.
An overreliance on remakes and remasters?
Metroid Prime Remastered was incredible, the Super Mario RPG remake was stunning, Kirby’s Return to Dream Land Deluxe superseded its OG Wii counterpart, and Pikmin 1+2 redelivered past puzzling perfection. There’s one trend here that you’ve already picked up on—remakes and remasters.
It’s not the end of the world or that big of a deal, and I’m a complete hypocrite because, without some of these releases, I wouldn’t have experienced some incredible games that I’d never played before. Plus, they’re classics! But it does seem like quite a few of Nintendo’s biggest releases are dedicated to remade IPs.
Not only that, but we know 2024 will deliver a Mario vs. Donkey Kong remake, Luigi’s Mansion 2 HD, and a reimagining of Paper Mario: Thousand-Year-Door. Hypocrite alert again: I will be buying at least one of these and maybe more.
No doubt Nintendo has more things in the pipeline. But I would like to see more fresh IPs, like Princess Peach: Showtime!, and perhaps include the above originals on Nintendo Switch Online for those who can’t shell out for every remake and remaster.
2024 already looks stacked
Playing my own devil’s advocate here, the aforementioned 2024 titles announced have already got mine and every other Nintendo fan’s mouths watering. Throw in a new Contra, and some lost games like Hollow Knight: Silksong and Switch fans are in for another joy-filled year of gaming.
If the promise of a new Nintendo console does happen, you can get the whiteboard out and start wishing for any number of franchises to pump out a new entry.
Super Smash Bros.? A new Pokemon game or two, dare I say it? Metroid Prime 4? Nintendo rarely does anything wrong and generally listens to its fans. With many more Nintendo Directs on the horizon, we should all strap ourselves into our Mario Karts and await a green light of more gaming greatness as Nintendo continues to give the people what they want.
