It seems outlandish to think about now that it’s sold 156 million units, but there was a lot of skepticism about the Nintendo Switch in October 2016. The Wii U had been a massive flop, selling just 13.5 million units in its lifecycle, making it the second-worst-selling Nintendo console since the Virtual Boy. Thanks to a July 2016 Eurogamer report, observers already knew the project codenamed “Nintendo NX” was a portable system that used a docking station to connect to a TV set.
To skeptics, the NX sounded underpowered compared to the PlayStation 4 and Xbox 360 — and had too much in common with the unpopular Wii U. What’s more, handheld consoles had fallen pretty dramatically out of fashion amid the rise of smartphones and free-to-play mobile games throughout the 2010s. While some aspects of that first look haven’t aged particularly well, much of the company’s vision for the Switch remains consistent even today.
A decade later, let’s take a look back at some highlights from the reveal. Two things were conspicuously absent from this three-and-a-half minute video: young children and the red and blue Joy-Cons that would become the Switch’s trademark color scheme. Handheld game consoles had a pretty strong association with children at this moment in the industry, so the point Nintendo was driving at here is clear: this is a slick piece of tech for busy adults with social lives — and rooftop house parties to attend.
Yes, you could see Mario and Link, but Nintendo also wanted it to be abundantly clear that this machine also played more “adult” third-party games like NBA 2K18 and Skyrim. Even while docked, the Switch doesn’t take up a ton of space, and you won’t grimace to see it docked beneath your television. At one point in the footage, you can see the Switch sitting on what appears to be a slim photo ledge.
It’s far harder than it should be to find non-ugly furniture to house a PlayStation 5 or Series X, but that’s never been a problem for the Switch. The small footprint and unobtrusive design are still massive selling points, even in 2026. It’s pretty funny that The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim, then a six-year-old game, was used to sell a new Nintendo console launching in 2017.
And it was a huge get for Nintendo at the time! Third-party companies had largely avoided porting games to Wii U due to the dual-screen hardware’s quirks and lousy sales. Xbox’s landmark acquisition of Bethesda was still several years away at this point, and Nintendo was the scrappy underdog.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
