This week we got a little tease, and I mean little from Sony at CES and some rumors from Nintendo and their plans for this year which seem to be lining up with my predictions from last weeks episode for Nintendo’s plan for 2020.

PlayStation 5

The Consumer Electronics Show or as you most likely know it (CES) took place this week in Vegas as usual with every year getting seemingly less and less about games. CES has had some big gaming announcements in its history including the place where Microsoft unveiled the original Xbox with the help of Bill Gates and Dwayne Johnson aka The Rock.

After Microsoft surprised fans by unveiling the form factor and the official name of their next gen system at The Game Awards it was looking like we were going to get something small from Sony regarding their plans for the PS5. Well Sony did not disappoint as they unveiled the official logo of the PS5. It looks just like the PS4 and the PS3 logo but with a 5. Such a strange announcement, I wonder why Sony even felt the need to unveil the logo at all.  I guess it has people talking about how strange it was and any news is good news but it just seemed unnecessary, especially considering how familiar it looks to all the rest. 

Afterwards Jim Ryan, SIE President spoke with Business Insider Japan to add a bit more fuel to the next gen fire and let the consumers know that more information is coming soon. Although it seems like there is no better time to give the “consumers electronics” news than at CES.

"Each time a new console is released, the processor and graphics improve, those are enticing of course, but we need to have special appeals as well. We have already confirmed the use of an solid-state drive. Having load times that are next to nothing is a major change” 

This isn’t Sony’s first console and they are more than aware that they will need to start marketing this product soon. Although at this point after the first information about the console being revealed through wired magazine last year and now the CES logo only reveal, I’m not sure if they are teasing on purpose to generate higher levels of anticipation and hype or if they are just unaware. 

Jim Ryan continued on by talking about the features that are already known “3D audio and the haptic feedback support of the controller are also things that, when you try them, you will be surprised at how big a change they are. Even just playing the racing game Gran Turismo Sport with a PlayStation 5 controller is a completely different experience. While it runs well with the previous controller, there is no going back after you experience the detailed road surface via haptic control and play using the adaptive triggers.  But you know. There are still more unique elements for PlayStation 5 to come that separate it from previous consoles. The 'bigger differences' have yet to be announced."

Nintendo Switch Pro 

After only being in 2020 for less than a week, rumors began circulating about an updated Swtich Pro coming later this year with production beginning within the next few months. Before the Switch Lite launched last year and even before it was announced there was plenty of rumors of a pro version launching alongside a lite version. 

As is the norm for technology nowadays, it seems key to have a tier offering of your product. Successful precedents for Nintendo to look at include IPhones and even a much more parallel example being the competing consoles. Xbox offers the standard Xbox One as well as the Xbox One S, Xbox One X and even Xbox One S All digital. Sony on the other hand offers a base PS4 in addition to the PS4 Pro. There is clearly different segments of the market who don’t care about the bells or  whistles or the high resolution or frame rate and just want to play the game in the least expensive format.  

On the other hand there is always a segment of the market who will want to be the early adopters and want to have the latest and greatest products available to them. While we don’t have sales data, based on what Microsoft has said the premium Xbox One X has sold very well and this is telling based on how Microsoft has began marketing their next gen console the Xbox Series X. It sounds as though Microsoft will in fact have the two offerings at launch including the previously named Lockhart and Anaconda. Microsoft has began messaging the more expensive and more powerful product to the customer first. Somewhat of a bold choice but clearly Microsoft has data on their side to support this decision. 

This leads us all the way back to Nintendo and the rumors of a Pro version of the Switch.  In terms of what features have been floating around I have read about 4K support, OLED Display, metal housing and larger cartridges. 

The story that got the wheels turning again was from Digitimes, however, the most factual evidence or credible sources come from games industry dot biz who spoke with Dr. Serkan Toto, CEO of game industry consultancy Kantan Games and he said “there’s no doubt that Nintendo will launch a ‘Switch Pro’ in 2020” 

As for when we can expect the latest iteration of the Switch and what features we might see, Dr Toto elaborated “after the summer holidays to counter the roll-out of the PS5 and next-gen Xbox later in the year. 4K support, bigger cartridge sizes, and of course beefed-up components.” This makes complete sense and lines up with the strategies that Nintendo has adopted over the years, mainly including the ‘Blue Ocean’ strategy. They are very aware that it wouldn’t make sense for them to release the Switch Pro during the later parts of the year when it would be going head to head against the two new entries from Microsoft and Sony. On paper the technical specs of the Switch Pro would pale in comparison to the other two consoles, which makes sense why they would want to release it in the summer when people will be hungry for new consoles.

This is exciting as it is anytime we get new consoles or updated consoles. With the increased power of the Switch Pro, I wonder what flagship game they will shop in the second half of the year to really emphasize the power of the Switch Pro.