Nintendo seems extremely serious about the security of the Nintendo Switch 2, going so far as to create a codename for the system's actual codename.
30.04.2024 - 09:41 / videogameschronicle.com / Phil Spencer / Satya Nadella / Jordan Middler
Hi-Fi Rush has been rated in Europe for Nintendo Switch.
This marks thefirst acknowledgment of a Nintendo Switch version of the game from an official gaming body.
PEGI (Pan European Game Information) is the official rating board for software in Europe. A Nintendo Switch version of the game being rated strongly suggests that a release is imminent.
Hi-Fi Rush, which was first released on PC and Xbox in January 2023, became one of four Microsoft first-party games to be published on PS5 alongside Pentiment, Grounded, and Sea of Thieves.
While a Nintendo Switch version of the game was rumoured alongside this, it has yet to materialize.
Assets found in an update for Hi-Fi Rush appeared to reference three new outfits for the main character: a green shirt for Xbox platforms, a blue one for PlayStation platforms and a red one for the as-yet-unannounced Nintendo Switch version.
During Microsoft’s third quarter earnings call on Thursday, CEO Satya Nadella said Xbox games have been performing strongly on the PlayStation Store.
“Earlier this month, we had seven games among the top 25 on the PlayStation Store, more than any other publisher,” he said.
During a business update earlier this year, Xbox boss Phil Spencer said that Starfield and Indiana Jones – titles previously reported to be under consideration for PS5 – would not be going multiplatform at this time, but he also told The Verge: “I don’t think we should as an industry ever rule out a game going to any other platform.”
“To ensure long-term success for both Xbox and the industry as a whole, we must continue to evolve,” Xbox said in a statement. “Today we announced that we will expand the communities we reach: we are currently in the process of bringing four Xbox games to other platforms.
Nintendo seems extremely serious about the security of the Nintendo Switch 2, going so far as to create a codename for the system's actual codename.
Xbox president Sarah Bond has confirmed that the company will continue to launch its first-party games, including Activision titles like Call of Duty, on Game Pass. This news comes in the midst of a period of uncertainty over the subscription service, as recent reports claimed that Microsoft was internally debating whether new Call of Duty titles should be launched on Xbox Game Pass.
Nintendo is ending support for X, formerly Twitter, on Nintendo Switch.
With Nintendo finally confirming that a successor to the is due to be announced later this fiscal year, more rumors are surfacing regarding the specs and features included in the new console. One popular feature request is that of backwards compatibility, enabling those who have amassed a large library of games over the past seven years to easily continue playing them on the new hardware, sometimes with patches offering graphical and performance enhancements.
Microsoft has shuttered several Bethesda-owned game studios, including Hi-Fi Rush developer Tango Gameworks and Redfall maker Arkane Austin, in order to shift focus on to its “priority games”. The Xbox parent is also closing Alpha Dog Games, makers of the mobile game Mighty Doom, while Roundhouse Studios, which also contributed to Redfall development, will be absorbed by ZeniMax Online Studios. The development, initially reported by IGN, was confirmed by affected studios Tango Gameworks and Arkane in separate posts on X late Tuesday. The shutdowns come months after Microsoft announced layoffs at Xbox and Activision Blizzard earlier this year, which made 1,900 roles redundant.
The Nintendo Switch isn’t quite the sales juggernaut nowadays, but it’s still performing fabulously despite entering its seventh year on the market. In its latest earnings report, Nintendo revealed that the console had sold 141.32 million units worldwide as of March 31st, 2024.
One prominent Persona leaker has made a claim that multiple upcoming games from Sega and its subsidiary Atlus will be coming to the Nintendo Switch 2. While the leaker hasn't named any of these titles specifically and Nintendo hasn't even officially confirmed the Switch 2's existence, some sources believe this could mean more Persona remakes will make their way to the console.
A new game based on the Nintendo World Championships appears to have been rated by the ESRB.
Around three months ago, a flurry of rumors suggested that Microsoft was preparing many Xbox exclusive games to go multiplatform, including heavyweights like Gears of War, Starfield, and the upcoming Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. Shortly after those rumors, Microsoft broadcast a 'business update event' where Xbox executives revealed that a few games were indeed making the jump to PlayStation and/or Nintendo Switch consoles. These games turned out to be Hi-Fi Rush, Pentiment, Grounded, and Sea of Thieves. Phil Spencer labeled this an experiment and warned it didn't mean other, bigger games would definitely appear on other consoles:
Microsoft has announced an Xbox Games Showcase and a “Redacted” Direct for June.
Target launch months for Xbox’s first-party games coming in 2024 have seemingly been revealed.
Earlier this year, multiple leaks and reports claimed that Hi-Fi Rush was headed to the Nintendo Switch, and though Tango Gameworks’ acclaimed rhythm action game has received a multiplatform launch, it’s only released for PS5, with there being no official word on it coming to Nintendo’s console.