Hyper Nintendo Technical Specifications
The Hyper Nintendo Entertainment System (called the Hyper Famicom in Japan) is a home video game console developed by Nintendo and Sony, and would be the last game hardware device that Sony and Nintendo would collaborate on, as the companies would agree to break up their business relationship in amicable fashion shortly after the Hyper Nintendo's launch. While comparable to OTL's Playstation 5 in hardware capabilities, the device sits somewhat flatter than the PS5, it's a bit smaller (though not too much smaller, as it still needs room to accommodate the sizable CPU and the device's cooling needs) and unlike OTL's PS5, it has no need for a stand, and is meant to sit flat horizontally rather than be stood up vertically. It's white and black in color, with a black base upon which a polished, somewhat rounded white console sits, with a black stripe in the middle where the disc drive and relevant USB ports are. The device also has some red trim, with a small red Nintendo logo on the top. Unlike OTL's PS5, which had a digital only model, all Hyper Nintendo consoles, at least in the first generation, come with a disc drive, which will play the Blu-Ray games and movies compatible with the console. The Hyper Nintendo's CPU is slightly less powerful than that of the OTL PS5, but the GPU is slightly more powerful, as the system is geared toward playing games as accurately and effectively as possible. Its CPU is a custom 8-core AMD clocked at around 3.41 GHz per core, while its GPU utilizes a custom AMD RDNA capable of up to 3 GHz (capable of 14 teraflops, putting it ahead of OTL's Xbox Series X and Playstation 5 in that regard), making the Hyper Nintendo's system architecture very similar to that of the OTL PS5, right down to the company and type of CPU/GPU utilized (Sony also used AMD for the Game Boy Zero's internals). The Hyper Nintendo comes with 16GB of RAM and a 1 terabyte SSD, and is backward compatible with Sapphire and Reality games via its disc drive, while software-wise, it's capable of emulating games from every Nintendo generation all the way back to the NES, and players can continue to carry their accumulated store purchases with them to the new console as part of the "backwards compatibility culture" that Nintendo and Sony have nurtured over the past 25 years. The Hyper Nintendo is capable of utilizing all of the Reality's virtual reality accessories, but Hyper Nintendo games don't have much of a focus on VR going forward, with the feature mostly appearing in third party titles.
The Hyper Nintendo utilizes a controller that hearkens back to the Super Nintendo's design, though with ergonomic improvements such as the familiar dual grips of TTL's modern controllers, and all the modern buttons and inputs (two shoulder buttons on each side, a "home" button", clickable analog sticks, etc), though it does lack the touchpad of OTL's PS5 controller, and visually it resembles something like an 8bitDo SN30+ controller, with modern functionality and retro feel. It does have the adaptive triggers of OTL's PS5 controller, which allow the triggers to adjust their resistance based on what's going on in the game, and it also features advanced rumble functionality, similar to the HD Rumble on OTL's Nintendo Switch Joycons. The controller also features a headphone jack for wired headsets, and a USB port for charging and other accessories such as keyboards for games such as RPG Maker titles and others that allow players to type out words. The console itself features all the modern ports including HDMI and optical outputs, and can also accept SSD storage drives, including a custom flash card with 500GB/1TB/2TB/4TB storage options (similar to the planned memory expansions for OTL's ninth gen consoles). The Hyper Nintendo is capable of playing games in full 4K HD, and even has the potential to play some games in 8K, though not many gamers have the televisions to take advantage of that thus far.
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Launch Title Summaries-
Super Mario Adventure 2
Super Mario Adventure 2 is a 3-D platformer exclusive to the Hyper Nintendo, and is the direct sequel to 2016's Super Mario Adventure. The gameplay can be compared to OTL's Super Mario Odyssey, though the game is somewhat less "open world" than its predecessor, allowing Mario to roam freely, but restricting his movement somewhat as he collects Stars located throughout the world. There are 18 worlds in all to explore, though these worlds are a bit smaller than the worlds of Super Mario Adventure, trading vastness and exploration for a more diverse set of places for Mario to travel through and between. Though Super Mario Adventure 2 is more of a "closed" world than the previous game, the game does utilize the freedom it does have to provide more natural, organic barriers between the worlds, in a system somewhat inspired by games like Endotherm. When traveling between individual worlds, scenery of one world will often blend into another. For example, the fire world is surrounded by a waterfall world, a factory world, a cave world, and a circus world, and at each of these boundaries, you can see some strange phenomena as you go between them: steam rising from between the fire and waterfall worlds, some melted slag between the fire and factory worlds, lava flowing into the cave, and fiery circus performers near the boundary between those worlds. It's quite subtle, but an excellent way of knowing when you're crossing between each world. The game does feature a "hub" of sorts, with Mushroom City positioned in the southern part of the map, though it's actually its own world in its own right, with secret tunnels beneath buildings and its own set of Stars to collect. The game has 1,000 Stars in all, and they're as plentiful and easy to collect as the Moons in Odyssey, as you'll often stumble into one when exploring. The more Stars you have, the more the map opens up to you, though there are some "shortcuts" you can access if you're able to find them. The world design of Super Mario Adventure 2 can be somewhat compared to Super Mario World, with all sorts of secrets, hidden transports between worlds, strange enemies and challenges coming out of nowhere, and the thrill of finding secrets and exploration seeping into all corners of the world itself. You can get up high and see into other worlds that it's not possible to access, though it is actually possible in some instances to get to a high place and use something like the wind or a cape to get to a world you otherwise wouldn't be able to get to yet (the game designers knew this, and use higher barriers to block off worlds they really don't want you exploring right away). Much of the game's Stars are earned through platforming challenges, with many blurring the lines between 2-D platforming and 3-D platforming. There are of course some stars that require you to collect lots of objects, others that rely on defeating enemies and bosses (with major bosses dropping multiple Stars at once), and a decent amount earned through minigames, as the game has a wide array of them and at least one minigame can be found in each world. Super Mario Adventure 2 can almost be described as a "greatest hits" for the series of sorts, bringing back familiar elements and challenges from all sorts of previous games, but making sure to include lots of fresh new surprises to keep players on their toes. There are power-ups galore, from the familiar Fire Flower and Tanooki Suit, to Ice Flowers, the Cape, Jet Mario, Hammer Mario, and Boomerang Mario. Cappy returns as well, and players can of course fling him at enemies and jump on him to reach new heights, though the ability to transform into different enemies isn't featured in TTL as it is IOTL. The game's graphics are bright and colorful, a definite showcase for the Hyper Nintendo's capabilities, with realistic lighting and water effects, and tremendous draw distance, blending the whimsical, cartoony style of Mario with the latest in cutting edge graphical techniques, as the plumber and his friends have never looked better. The game's soundtrack features more than 100 different songs: each world has its own motif, as do many characters, and songs capture the feel of each area perfectly, with some songs specifically designed to blend into each other as Mario crosses between worlds. The developers said that they want to make discovering each new world a "memorable event", even though the game itself rarely interrupts the action to thrust cutscenes or dialogue in the player's face. Players are given the ability to explore and have a fun time with Mario and friends as they traverse the vast world.
The main plot focuses on Bowser, who has had it with Mario and his friends interfering with his plans, and who decides to launch an all-out invasion of the world with his armies and with the Koopalings along for the ride. He doesn't even bother with kidnapping Princess Peach, instead declaring that once Peach sees how strong and tough he and his armies are, she'll swoon into his arms and marry him willingly. Of course, Peach isn't about to marry Bowser or take what happens to her subjects lying down, and she joins Mario and Luigi on their mission to save the world. Players start out controlling only Mario, but later in the game, after two crucial points, you gain the ability to control Luigi (about 20 percent of the way through) and then Peach (about 50 percent of the way through). Luigi and Peach each have their own abilities and movement, though they don't differ too much from Mario's and it's possible to complete every star with any of the three. You also get help from allies such as Toad, Yoshi, Daisy, and Prince Cream, though none of them are playable (it is possible to ride Yoshi during certain segments of the game), and there are also friendly Koopas, ghosts, moles, and others who will help Mario and friends along the way. The game's 18 worlds are as follows:
Mushroom City: The first world visited, and the main hub of the game. Contains Peach's castle, as well as a lot of different secret passages between buildings and the like. It's eventually possible to reach any other world from Mushroom City.
Beachfront Lake: A lake/beach world, featuring different water environments and various beach-related hazards. There's also a great treasure at the lake bottom.
Rockslide Cliffs: A mountainous/cliff area, populated by Lakitus and moles, overlooking the beach and the city and various other areas.
Kilo-High Plains: A plains area atop the cliffs, featuring a village of Toads and Koopas, and also some cloud-related areas.
Forest Of Seclusion: A confusing maze-like forest area and a clear tribute to the Forest of Illusion, complete with remixed music from Super Mario World (though it also has an area with the Forest Maze music from Super Mario RPG).
Hotfoot Heights: A fiery area where lava flows up from the ground, and where powerful boulder enemies make their homes.
Rainbow Falls: A waterfall-themed area, with spectacular views and lots of flying challenges.
Yoshi's Island: A tropical area where the Yoshis live, which is under attack from Bowser's army and must be liberated.
Clear Blue Ocean: A vast ocean with a majority of the game's water exploration.
Seven-Ring Circus: A fun circus world, though not everything here is as it seems...
Mechakoopa Factory: A factory world, in which Mario must slow down production.
Darklight Caverns: A series of caves where light and darkness must be manipulated to guide the player's path.
Sportside Arena: An arena full of sports-themed enemies and challenges.
Sweet Sweet World: A world of sweets, themed around a giant birthday cake. It's Wendy O. Koopa's birthday here, 365 days a year.
Magikoopa's Keep: A high fantasy/ghosthouse hybrid world in which the Magikoopas preside over a haunted old castle.
Thunderclap Skies: A world taking place around a literal thunderstorm cloud, full of sky platforming and lightning hazards.
Piratecrag Cove: A rocky crag where pirate Koopas fiercely work to keep intruders out.
Bowser's Cruise Ship: Bowser's luxury cruise ship, which is capable of both sailing the oceans and flying through the air. The seat of Bowser's power, where he must be defeated.
Though it is possible to reach some worlds earlier than expected, the list above presents the order in which these worlds are explored as Mario and his friends traverse the game. While some worlds can only be accessed via acquiring enough stars, other barriers require an individual Koopaling to be defeated, and these Koopaling fights are quite spectacular affairs, utilizing the environment and giving each Koopaling their own personality and skills. There are some throwbacks to previous boss fights in the series, but for the most part, these fights are fairly unique, and a bit trickier than bosses in the series before. You'll usually defeat the Koopalings in the following order: Roy, Lemmy, Morton, Larry, Wendy, Ludwig, and Iggy, but it is possible to take down Lemmy before Roy and Larry before Morton, and sequence breakers can of course throw everything completely out of whack. The final battle takes place on Bowser's cruise ship and features Bowser himself, including a memorable scene where Peach tells Bowser off, which actually hurts his feelings a bit, though Bowser then recovers and decides that if he can't have Peach, that's fine, he wants to conquer the world for himself (and there's also a touching scene where Bowser's Koopalings all show their support for him). Bowser is, of course, defeated by all three heroes, and flung off his cruise ship, which is floating high in the air. It takes him a long time to splash down below, though it's clear he'll eventually be fine, the only thing that's wounded after his defeat is his pride. After Bowser's defeat, Mario pilots the ship all over the world, using its magical powers to restore what Bowser destroyed, then everyone returns to Peach's castle for a big party where Mario gets a huge cake and a kiss from Peach.
Super Mario Adventure 2 is released on November 20, 2020, day and date with the Hyper Nintendo as the premiere launch title alongside Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. It receives extremely high praise from critics, primarily for its world design, but also for its incredibly fun platforming, and of course, the excellent graphics and music. It gets enormous sales, with sales only slightly limited by the fact that some families just can't afford to purchase both it and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. It would become the system's signature game, proving that Mario is still Nintendo's most popular character and that his games are still guaranteed hits and killer apps, and the game's style would find itself influencing many games in the ninth generation, which seek to provide the same synergy within their worlds as this game enjoys. Nintendo would embark on a different direction with future Mario titles, but would definitely reuse many of the elements that worked for this game in their future games going forward.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is a fighting game exclusive to the Hyper Nintendo. It continues the themes and gameplay of the popular Super Smash Bros. series, pitting characters from a huge variety of video game properties, mostly Nintendo but plenty of others, in frantic combat with one another, utilizing a huge array of items and gimmicks with a light-hearted feel. Though primarily a party game, Ultimate, like every other game in the series, is also a tournament fighter, and its options can be adjusted to remove the items and stage gimmicks for a more skill-based approach, so, like every other game in the series, Ultimate can appeal to players of any skill level, from casual newcomers to hardcore gamers.
The Super Smash Bros. Ultimate base roster features a total of 90 characters, 80 of whom have appeared in previous games in the series, and 10 of whom are entirely new. The base character list is as follows, in alphabetical order:
Ahsoka Tano
Ash Beckland
Battletoads
Blizzeria
Bowser
Calypso
Captain Falcon
Cindake
Cless Alvein
Cloud
Conker
Deathborn
Diddy Kong
Donkey Kong
Dr. Mario
Erick
Falco
Feraligator
Florges
Fox
Fulgore
Ganondorf
Heihachi
Ice Climbers
Jade
Joanna Dark
Jughart
Kairi
Kamek
Karkena
King Dedede
King K. Rool
Kirby
Lady LeChique
Lake
Lane
Lash
Lilith
Link
Little Mac
Lucas
Luigi
Luma
Marcus
Mario
Marth
Marx
Matthew Fullington
Mega Man
Meta Knight
Midia
Mike Jones
Morpho
Morticloak
Nero
Ness
Parappa The Rapper
Peach
Pikachu
Pit
Prince Cream
Pyron
R.O.B.
Raquel
Rayman
Rebecca
Ridley
Samurai Goroh
Samus
Shad
Shirei
Shuldercrash
Simon Belmont
Solid Snake
Sora
Sweet Tooth
Thrillseekers
Toad
Vaon
Vapor Snake
Veil
Victoria
Villager
Wario
Wolf
Woofle
Xenda
Yoshi
Zelda
Zero Suit Samus
The game also features a total of 15 DLC characters, spread across three packs of five characters each. These packs are released on a once-per-year basis, with the first pack spanning 2021, the second pack spanning 2022, and the third pack spanning 2023. The DLC characters, in order of release, are:
Fighters Pack #1 (2021):
Sadira Blackheart (from Blackheart)
Ryu (from Street Fighter)
Waluigi (from the Mario series)
Pokemon Trainer Ellie (using Turfkey, Clawbask, and Direflame) (from Pokemon Order and Chaos)
Pac-Man (from Pac-Man)
Fighters Pack #2 (2022):
Anna Goldstar (from The Adventures Of Anna Goldstar)
Terry Bogard (from Fatal Fury)
Zero (from the Mega Man X series)
Ben Brochner (from Ben Breaks The World)
Crono (from Chrono Trigger)
Fighters Pack #3 (2023):
Albert Wesker (from Resident Evil)
Lucy Brunstein/Netizen X (from Cyberwar)
Vault Boy (from Fallout)
Amity Blight (from The Boiling Isles)
Captain N (from Captain N: The Game Master, he also comes with a Nintendo Power Nester skin, Mr. Sakurai bends his rules about no characters who didn't originate from a video game because he sees Captain N as a tribute to all Nintendo fans, who he says should be represented in the game because they made all of this possible with their support over the last 25 years since Super Smash Bros. first came out in Japan)
Like OTL's Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, the roster starts with just the original characters from the first game, but you can acquire new ones through just playing for ten minutes in any mode, or through playing the game's World Of Light mode to free them, while DLC characters all get added immediately. The game's variety of modes and features are quite similar to OTL Ultimate's, with most of the same options, and a slightly expanded online system (with much better connectivity). The game features well over 100 different stages, with each DLC character getting their own stage and music options, and over 1,500 different music tracks featured in the game as well. The game also features the "Spirits" system from OTL's Ultimate, where players can acquire different spirits from each featured game, allowing for characters who aren't in the fighter roster to be represented via their character spirit, which can be earned through a variety of different mini-games and challenges. The game doesn't have Miis, so it doesn't have Mii costumes, but it makes up for this with skins that can be acquired via gameplay or via the Fighter Packs or various DLC packs.
The main single player mode is the World of Light, which operates on a similar level to OTL's. You start out as Kirby, after every other character has been captured and has had their soul taken by a mysterious army of mechanical creatures led by an entity known as Galeem. You explore a vast world map, fighting these different spirits to clear the board and rescue different characters, battling a few bosses along the way as you uncover the mystery behind just what did this to everyone and how you're going to save the universe before it can strike again. OTL's World of Light is somewhat shorter than TTL's, with less sections and a less complex map, so you arrive at Galeem's in just a few hours of making your way through the map. Thus, it seems like the game is fairly underwhelming when compared to past Adventure modes... but as you find out, there's a good reason for this. As it turns out, Galeem was created by Evangelyne, the antagonist of Squad Four Betrayal, which has been brought back online by Dr. Remiel. Evangelyne was tasked with protecting the universe from an invasion of darkness, but it calculated that the gathered heroes wouldn't be powerful enough, so Remiel made the difficult decision to have Evangelyne, through Galeem, take the spirits of the heroes and clone them to create an army of replicants to battle the darkness while the heroes themselves remained imprisoned but safe. As more heroes are freed and the heroes get closer to Galeem, Evangelyne tries to send more machines and replicants after them, but eventually, the heroes reach the laboratory where Evangelyne and the rest of the heroes are located. After Galeem is defeated, the world is seemingly restored... only for a tremendous dark power to begin overtaking everything. Evangelyne manages to get the heroes to safety in time, and they watch as the dark incursion propagates across all of existence. The heroes realize that by destroying Galeem, they enabled the forces of darkness, led by Dharkon and an army of their fiercest foes, to take over. They resolve to undo the damage they've created by challenging Dharkon, who has erected an enormous tower populated by evil villains, and as the first part of this mode ends, another version of "Lifelight" plays to signal the beginning of the second half: World of Darkness. World of Darkness is MUCH closer in spirit to the original arcade/adventure modes of Smash's past, featuring an ascending tower of increasingly difficult challenges, 18 bosses comprised of various villains from all across the video game universe, and lots of fun and unique event battles that can't be found in any other mode. It also allows for a lot more player freedom, with any character able to be chosen and an expanded Spirit loadout to allow players to tune their characters for any challenge (there's also a Hardcore mode where Spirits aren't allowed to be used and the difficulty is cranked up further, only true Smash Bros. masters need apply). At periodic times throughout the tower, there are cutscenes where various characters talk with one another and battle enemies, these cutscenes are dripping with fanservice, lots of fun interactions with a focus on humor, emotional catharsis, and just plain badass moments. All 90 of the game's base characters (97 if you count the three Battletoads and six Thrillseekers) get at least one moment to shine, though of course fan favorites like Mario, Link, and Kirby get many. World of Darkness is plenty of challenge and pure fun leading up to the top of the tower, which is nothing but cool battles and epic cutscenes, including a scene where Evangelyne gets to redeem itself after the events of Squad Four Betrayal by heroically sacrificing itself to save the heroes from a surprise ambush by Dharkon. The game's final battle sees Dharkon transform into an eldritch horror in a battle that takes multiple phases to defeat, a true final boss battle for the ages, complete with an epic rock/choral/orchestral theme that perfectly fits the battle. Once Dharkon is defeated, the threat is finally ended and the heroes go back to their own worlds, except of course for when they meet in the Smash Bros. arena to engage in ferocious fights.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is released on November 20, 2020, day and date with the release of the Hyper Nintendo. It doesn't see quite as many initial sales as Super Mario Adventure 2, but over its lifespan, would enjoy roughly the same amount of sales overall, which translates to tens of millions of units sold. It's easily the most popular Super Smash Bros. game ever released up to this point, with its huge roster and fun gameplay bringing in gamers from all across the world to the game's community. Each DLC announcement becomes a cause celebre, with expected characters and surprises alike, and as IOTL, it's a celebration of gaming for all time. It would receive a port to the Game Boy Zero in 2022, the port would be a completely faithful one with all modes, characters, and stages, with DLC purchased for one game able to be used with both. It would be the last title in the series worked on by Mr. Sakurai, as he would retire from active game development in 2024, using development of Ultimate to groom a successor who would ultimately take over for the series' seventh game on the next generation Nintendo console, whenever that game would be released.
Other significant launch exclusives for the Hyper Nintendo include:
Godfall: Published by Gearbox, this looter/hack 'n slash RPG is quite similar to OTL's PS5 title in terms of gameplay and plot, and serves as somewhat of a showcase for the new console, while also featuring an online mode in which players can party up and take on various challenges and adventures together. Like OTL's game, it sees somewhat mixed reviews due to its short campaign and fairly repetitive combat gameplay, and would see itself overshadowed quite a bit by Metroid: Samus Awakens, which Godfall gets compared to rather unfavorably.
Bugsnax: An indie adventure title in which players must roam a vast world to capture creatures who are a hybrid between various snack items and different real world insects, this game also plays rather similarly to its OTL PS5 counterpart, but due to the fact that it's appearing as a Nintendo exclusive, Nintendo allowed the company to use some Pokemon cameos, and it's possible to catch creatures heavily resembling Pokemon like Caterpie and Beedrill, with Professor Oak also making a cameo at one point. It's a cute and fun little game, appealing to a niche crowd at release, and makes a profit due to its low development cost.
Hypershot: A futuristic horseback archery game in which you control a young woman who rides on horseback across a series of stages, shooting various targets with her bow and arrow. Intended to be an original Nintendo IP designed to allow players to get a feel for the new controller features, particularly the adaptive triggers, this game is essentially a tech demo expanded into a full adventure, as the heroine is forced to rescue her kidnapped parents from an army of robots. It's definitely fun, but even with the expanded quest, it's a bit short for the full 60 dollars Nintendo is asking.
Wild Bubble's Soda Factory: A strange hybrid of a 3-D platformer and a minigame collection, this exclusive title was heavily inspired by Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, and takes place in a vast soda factory where a group of kids have to explore and learn all of Wild Bubble's secrets before getting trapped by the strange tricks and hazards around them. Definitely gets a bit overshadowed by Super Mario Adventure 2, but it's still a fun and family friendly game with a lot of silly humor and some surprisingly fun minigames, and it manages to achieve decent sales.
Renegade Racers: An off-road racing game in which ATVs, modified cars, and motorcycles participate in wild races across all different kinds of terrain, this game blends some of the realism of the Gran Turismo series with extreme offroad racing to make for one of the better Hyper Nintendo launch titles, and a way for racing fans to get their fix of the genre. Featuring some excellent graphics and realistic physics, the game is definitely one of the prettier racing titles to come to consoles, and scores good marks with critics and gamers alike.
The Hyper Nintendo also has a number of popular third party titles available at release, including Fallout 4, Futureshock 2, Call Of Duty: Nightfall IV, the latest games in the Madden, NBA Elite, and NHL series, and other past games such as Thrillseekers: Generation Z.
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November 20, 2020
The Hyper Nintendo launches worldwide, with an MSRP of $499.99 for the sole base model. Software is priced at $59.99, as both Nintendo and Apple decide to eschew the price increases for games that happened during the ninth generation IOTL (third party developers would test the waters of price increases, but most would stick to the $59.99 model). With Nintendo shipping plenty of units to stores, shortages are few and far between, mostly limited to urban and suburban areas with lots of shoppers with money to spare. The console would sell a total of 3,471,368 units in its first week of launch, making it the best selling launch console of all time, and these strong sales would continue into December, where the Hyper Nintendo would be a very popular Christmas gift, selling millions more units. Most gamers would purchase two games with the Hyper Nintendo, though many would purchase one and some would purchase more, leading to more than eight million software units sold in the first week of release. The top ten best selling software titles in the Hyper Nintendo's launch week would be:
Super Mario Adventure 2- 2,771,369
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate- 2,490,386
Metroid: Samus Awakens- 716,584
Call Of Duty: Nightfall IV- 596,618
Final Fantasy XV- 361,805
Godfall- 286,814
Fallout 4- 220,556
Madden NFL 21- 168,703
Renegade Racers- 127,814
Futureshock 2- 90,815
The Hyper Nintendo was thus an immediate success for the company, even moreso than the Game Boy Zero before it. The ninth generation had been launched in spectacular fashion, and no matter what happened with Apple's console, there was no denying that the Hyper Nintendo was a tremendous success. Nintendo remained the pre-eminent company in the gaming world, and even though Apple remained a fierce rival, and even though Google's Stadia platform had elevated that company to a tremendous force in gaming, Nintendo remained king, even with Sony departing as their hardware partner.
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Nintendo To Undergo "Limited Restructuring" In 2021
With Sony's partnership with Nintendo ending on January 1st of next year, Nintendo is expected to undergo what an insider calls a "limited restructure", in which a number of individuals at the company will be asked to retire or will be assigned to new positions, as the company pushes forward with its next generation of game development. This restructuring is expected to primarily involve the company's Japanese branch, but will also involve certain members of the company's North American branch, with longtime Nintendo of America head Shawn Layden expected to step down early next year. Nintendo president Katsuya Eguchi is also rumored to be considering retirement, though he has overseen a period of tremendous growth for the company, and is expected to be asked to remain onboard for at least the next few years. Though such wideranging changes would normally indicate trouble for a company, and Nintendo's stock has dipped as a result of the rumors, it's likely that many of these changes are due to Nintendo bringing in new personnel with more expertise in hardware development, as the company will be much more involved with designing the next generation of Nintendo hardware to follow their Hyper Nintendo and Game Boy Zero devices. We don't yet know who any of these new personnel will be, but most expect that for the senior leadership positions, the company will be promoting from within, and, in the same way that Katsuya Eguchi and Satoru Iwata both rose from game development positions into senior leadership positions at the company, we could see figures from various game development teams considered from this position. Masahiro Sakurai, who currently heads game development at Nintendo, is one of the people rumored to potentially take over for Mr. Eguchi if he does step down, but after the death of Hideo Kojima back in August, Sakurai has stated that he plans to retire from the industry after development on Super Smash Bros. Ultimate DLC is complete in a few years, and likely won't be considered to take over Eguchi's position as company president. This restructuring of corporate personnel is unlikely to affect development of future Hyper Nintendo or Game Boy Zero titles, and we'll likely be introduced to many of these new figures for the first time at next year's E3, when it's expected that Nintendo of America will have a new director.
-from a November 30, 2020 article on Games Over Matter
