Pokémon Scarlet & Violet – by the end of the year there’ll be five mainline Pokémon games for the Switch (pic: The Pokémon Company)
The company responsible for Pokémon’s character models is already working with ‘next generation’ Nintendo hardware.
Nintendo is going to release a new console some day; that’s a fact. The real questions are when that’ll happen and whether it’ll be something entirely new or a continuation of the Nintendo Switch (probably the latter with how popular the console/handheld hybrid is).
There have been multiple rumours, claims, and theories of a Nintendo Switch 2 or Switch Pro releasing in the near future. For example, one of our readers has posited that 2023’s The Legend Of Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom will be the last major Nintendo title to release for the current Switch model.
As always, the company is keeping schtum, but evidence of its studios working with newer hardware seems to have been spotted via a job listing at Creatures.
Even if you don’t recognise the name (although it is always listed as a developer in all Pokémon games), you’re already very familiar with Creatures’ work as it is heavily associated with the Pokémon franchise.
Aside from developing a few of the spin-offs, its main contribution has been designing the 3D character models for the various pokémon across the series, which is precisely what the job listing is for.
It specifically mentions that whoever gets hired will create character models for games and apps, as well as video and print media.
The part fans have latched onto, though, is the mention of ‘research and development for other next generation hardware.’
Considering the Switch is part of the eighth generation of video game consoles (with the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S marking the beginning of the ninth), the immediate assumption is that Creatures is currently working with newer hardware.
Detective Pikachu – Creatures has been able to make a few Pokémon games of its own, including Detective Pikachu (pic: Nintendo)
Plus, since it’s unambiguously related to the Pokémon franchise, it must be Nintendo hardware. Ergo, this is a reference to whatever Nintendo’s next console is.
Assuming this is the case, this could mean that this month’s Pokémon Scarlet & Violet will be the last mainline Pokémon games to release for the current Switch hardware.
However, this doesn’t necessarily mean that Nintendo intends on releasing new hardware in the near future. After all, the company said earlier this year that the Switch could last until 2027, 10 years after it first launched.
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Plus, Creatures isn’t done with the Switch itself, as it’s expected to still be working on a sequel to Detective Pikachu, which it developed for the Nintendo 3DS.
The sequel was announced for the Switch in 2019, but there’s yet to be a trailer or any sort of update on it.
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The company responsible for Pokémon’s character models is already working on what sounds like reference to the Nintendo Switch 2.
