Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick indicates Nintendo’s next console, which is rumored to launch next year, should have backwards compatibility if possible so as not to break a “contract with consumers”.
A report at VGC the other week indicated development kits for the new console are now with key partner studios. That report indicated that backwards compatibility support for Switch games (physical and digital) on the new system remains unclear.
Nintendo apparently wants to convert as many Switch users over to the new system as they can, but some third-party publishers have expressed concern that legacy support for Switch games will negatively impact sales of next-gen titles.
In a new interview with GameIndustry.Biz, Zelnick was asked what the negative impact a feature like backwards compatibility has on software sales for new systems. He’s uncertain but indicates the feature is kind of a crucial one:
“I’m not sure. You need to give consumers what they want and optimize their experience, and you can’t not deliver a feature you’re able to deliver so as to maximize sales.
That isn’t fulfilling your contract with consumers. You have to do the very best you can for them. I suppose it’s possible the lack of backward compatibility could enhance your revenue for a period of time, but at what cost?
We’re not a hardware manufacturer, so we don’t get to make those decisions. But I think if you can be compatible technically, then you want to be. However, in certain instances, if the leap forward is great enough, that’s not a possibility.”
The Switch has been one of the most successful game consoles of all time, but isn’t backwards compatible with previous generation systems – instead games from those systems are playable via the Nintendo Online subscription service.
Both the current-gen PlayStation and Xbox consoles are capable of playing almost every game of the previous generation (PS4, XB1).
Microsoft once touted backwards compatibility as a key feature of its console, but it discontinued new additions to the program in November 2021. As such, the Xbox Series X|S can play just 30% of Xbox 360 titles and 6% of original Xbox titles.
