With the Nintendo Switch finally releasing to the eager hands of the gaming public, Nintendo has continued to keep many of its most important details under wraps. We know that the system will have a virtual console sometime down the line, but exactly when we can expect these titles isn't yet clear. We also know that there will eventually be a subscription service for online play starting in the fall, but details surrounding the nitty-gritty of it all is lackluster: we don't even have a price. By far one of the biggest enigmas, however, has to do with the official Nintendo Switch smartphone app.
The app, which the company seemingly intends to tie most of the console's social features to, was announced during Nintendo's January presentation, but little else has been said about it since. With major online titles such as Mario Kart 8: Deluxe, ARMS and Splatoon 2 on the horizon, it's been more than a little worrying to see so much silence on the Big N's end. Thankfully an update on the Japanese Nintendo Switch's built-in news stream seems to confirm that the aforementioned smartphone app will be launching in a "preview" state during the Summer of this year. An (untranslated) screenshot of said news post can be found embedded below.
Other information found in this news post includes a (re?)confirmation that the monthly Virtual Console games that will come with the Switch's subscription service will start in the fall, presumably alongside the actual "subscription" portion of the Switch's online service. Additionally, Nintendo Switch software - and others, presumably referring to Virtual Console titles - will start to have sales/discounts on the eShop starting in the fall, as well. It's good to see that Nintendo has started to lay out the groundwork for their plans for the Switch... but it would've been nice if they had rolled out this information worldwide, and in a more traditional manner. We'll be sure to keep you up to date on Nintendo Switch news as it continues to come in.
