Nintendo has “no plans” to announce a new Switch console at E3 2019, the company’s president Shuntaro Furukawa has confirmed. This follows reports that Nintendo is set to begin shipping a cheaper model of the Switch before the end of June.
In a call that saw Nintendo post earnings below analysts’ expectations, the company also tempered expectations when it came to the long-rumored updated Switch console. Analysts had predicted a cheaper Switch console would lead Nintendo to 18.5 million units shipped for the current financial year; Nintendo has stated its own expectations of 18 million units.
“As a general rule, we’re always working on new hardware and we will announce it when we are able to sell it,” Furukawa said. “But we have no plans to announce that at this year’s E3 in June.”
Nintendo has also fallen behind estimates for the previous financial year. Analysts had projected that the company would ship 17.5 million Switch units (via Bloomberg), though it instead shipped 17 million. 119 million games were shipped during the same time period, below its projected 121 million.
But it’s not exactly doom and gloom for Nintendo. The runaway success of exclusives such as Super Smash Bros Ultimate, Pokemon Let’s Go! Pikachu and Eevee, and Super Mario Party saw the company increase its software sales by 87%, even though it fell below analysts’ estimates.
While Furukawa has stated that a new Switch model won’t be announced at E3, many reports have suggested the console is coming either way. Both the Wall Street Journal and Eurogamer claimed its sources have confirmed the existence of at least one new Switch model, with the former outlet suggesting that two new models are on their way.
It has also been reported that unlike the Xbox One X and PS4 Pro, the new Switch model won’t be an upgraded version of the standard console. Instead, it will be similar to the New 3DS, presenting a more affordable version of the Switch.
