Is more power "enough?"

I wanted to let the dust settle from the supposed "leak" of the successor to the Nintendo Switch last week before I gave my perspective. I think people need to keep things in proper context. First of all, this "leak" is someone that took pictures of a prototype, and 3D rendered composites based off of photographs on that prototype, possibility even a dev-kit. It is NOT confirmation of the final design. Many things made apparent in those images may or may not be in the final product, or only serve a purpose in development. For instance, the second USB port could be for developers to use while the prototype is docked to get around the hassle of the problems using the normal USB port when docked.

Also, sometimes dev-kits have more RAM allocated than the final product does. Remember when the Wii U dev-kits had 3GB of RAM, but the final product only had 2GB of RAM with 1GB allocated to the OS? Don't forget that we have seen people "leak" photographs of so-called prototypes of hardware before. Remember that ridiculous oval-shaped controller that was supposed to be the NX?

These were "real," because it was a physical, tangible thing. It just wasn't the Nintendo Switch. Someone took the actual US patent filing by Nintendo here...

...and just 3D-printed a prototype off of it.

Anyone can say anything they want about images leaked on the internet that Nintendo refuses to comment on one way or another because there is no risk of being "wrong." People within the industry that claim their "sources" claim that the leaked images match up with what they were TOLD, can easily dismiss it later on if the Switch successor looks like something else. They can just say,

"Well, it was a prototype, so it wasn't a final design"

....and their journalistic-integrity is not harmed because technically, that usually is the case in the creation of any mass-market product.

I myself work in Graphic design, and when working with a client, as designers we create many of what would fit the description as a "prototype" for a design.

We start off with the concepts that the client wants. Then, we create a "mood board" which encapsulates all that information from the client along with ideas, colors, patterns, textures, typefaces, etc. that we as the designer may want to use. Then from there, we create rough sketches of what the final product might look like. Maybe somewhere between 8-12 of very loose rough sketch ideas of the final product. Next, we select 3 or 4 of the strongest design ideas and create refined sketches by making the design look more polished and like a finished product. Lastly, we select the one concept that we feel is the strongest and go with that as the final design, and put that design through all the paces to make sure that the design meets the expectations of the client. I say all that to say that at anytime in that entire process, someone can randomly pull one of my revisions and claim that is the final design. Sure, it is "real" because I actually did it, but that does not mean that it is indicative of the final design, or if I'm even using that particular concept going forward. So, this is just an illustration of how product design works and that you can't just take images of something still in development and run away claiming you have the final design.

I do find it puzzling as to why Nintendo is using all of this secrecy and subterfuge for something as transparent as a more-powerful console. If that is ALL the Switch successor has to offer, there really is no excuse to be this quiet, or to have developers locked up in NDAs.

Everyone expects it to be more powerful than the predecessor, and everyone knows that it is coming. No one's jaw is gonna drop unless the final product gives you PS5/XSX-level performance with clock-speeds maxed out and DLSS fully-engaged. Still, while that would be a shock to those born after the GameCube era, those of us older than that remember the days when Nintendo had bleeding-edge technology every generation. Even if Nintendo is delaying the RELEASE of the Switch successor because the want to minimize shortages, that has little to no bearing on the ANNOUNCEMENT of the product.

When you look at other forms factors of technology announcing the next iteration of their device that is a continuation, the specs and capabilities are fully available long before the device hits the market. We just have to wait for it to come out. People already know what the specs are for the newest iPhone, or Android phone, or GPU from AMD or nVidia long before they release, and these are companies actually in competition with each other. So, it just doesn't make any sense for Nintendo to be this quiet, and it is gotten silly at this point. It seems like there is something else they are hiding in addition to the increase in performance.

Whenever the Switch successor is revealed, POWER is what needs to be at the forefront of the Direct, or conference, or what ever method they choose to unveil this. I don't need to see ANY of the normal (and annoying) "You can play the new Nintendo console with family and friends" nonsense showing people with the fake smiling and laughing, and playing games in ways most of us never do in front of blank screens. We need to see POWER.

The VERY FIRST THING that needs to be shown in that presentation is a AAA 1st-party title built from the ground-up on that hardware with clock speeds running at the max, Ray-Tracing in full effect, and DLSS turned wide open. I don't care what it is. It doesn't have to be Mario or Zelda (although that would drive the point home the best.) It does need to be something familiar that everyone knows. Maybe a new Donkey Kong game? Imagine a Donkey Kong game done in the style of Ratchet and Clank for the PS4 or even the PS5? Yeah, I'll give you some time to let this image sink into your mind............ ...................... Once you do that to get everyone's attention, then you can elaborate on the specs of the console that make it possible. Then, you show some more ground-up games running on max settings. Next, you show some established 3rd-party IPs that are KNOWN to require high-performance from hardware to run smoothly. Lastly, you end with a teaser of a major game coming down the line. That's how I would reveal the Switch successor is it is just a more-powerful Switch and that's all. How would you do it?