Nintendo is weaning itself off Mario and Zelda as it looks to original games

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Nintendo could exist working on coming upwardly with original game franchises every bit it looks to become less reliant on the Mario and Zelda franchises.

In an interview with Japanese publication Nikkei (courtesy of VGC) Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa outlined the company's programme to further invest in original games going forward.

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Furukawa said, "Games are non a necessity of life. In order for customers to choose games in their finite time, they have to exist interesting. Contest is tough, and I am not optimistic.

"In the future, nosotros will focus on creating new game series as well every bit long-sellers such as Mario and Zelda."

Nintendo has e'er had a rich stable of gaming IPs at its disposal, with several massive franchises exclusively under its control. These include legendary series like Mario, Zelda, Metroid, and Animal Crossing.

Withal, about of these franchises are now decades old — Mario celebrated its 35th-anniversary last year, Zelda is hit the same milestone this year — so information technology makes sense that Nintendo is keen to try and create some new serial to continue its slate fresh.

Splatoon is arguable the newest Nintendo franchise that has really taken off and become one of the company'southward cadre franchises. The start game in the colorful shooter series debuted on the Wii U in 2015, and a sequel launched in 2017 for the Nintendo Switch. Splatoon 3 was appear earlier this year for a 2022 release.

Nintendo has released a scattering of original titles for the Switch, including Artillery and Band Fit Adventure. But it definitely sounds like the plan is to have a punt new series more often — while, of course, ensuring that the bankable flagship franchises go on.

The Switch'due south lifecycle

In the same interview, Furukawa commented on the Switch's expected lifecycle: "We always say that we are in the centre of the Switch's lifecycle, and since ane piece of hardware can be used to play both stationary and portable games, we tin offer a broad variety of software for this purpose. The life cycle tin can still be extended."

Because the Switch originally released in 2017, it sounds similar Nintendo is planning on getting at least another four years out of the arrangement. And so maybe don't await a Nintendo Switch 2 anytime soon, of course, that doesn't rule out a mid-generation refresh similar a Nintendo Switch Pro coming much sooner.

Furukawa also discussed the electric current Switch stock issues, which are due to the global semiconductor shortage which is impacting just well-nigh every tech product out there. He said in that location is a "possibility of shortages at some retailers in the future" and that in "some cases we may not be able to prepare enough for orders."

While not abundant, the supply of the Switch has been fairly stable over the last year, though the initial lockdowns in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic did hit stock levels quite significantly.

Withal, it sounds similar finding a Switch to buy could get tougher in the coming months. So make sure to go on tabs on our where to purchase a Nintendo Switch guide for the latest stock information.

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Rory is a staff writer at Tom's Guide based in the United kingdom of great britain and northern ireland. He covers a wide range of topics including tech news, deals, gaming, streaming and more. When he's not writing hot takes on the latest gaming hardware and streaming shows, he can be institute watching a deadline unhealthy amount of movies and being thoroughly disappointed by his terrible football team.