'When I first saw the lineup, I was kind of scratching my head': Former Nintendo exec Reggie Fils-Aimé shares his thoughts on Switch 2

Former Nintendo of America boss Reggie Fils-Aime said he was “kind of scratching his head” after seeing the company's first lineup of games. switch 2 software.

talking gaming businessThe former Nintendo veteran shared his thoughts on the company's handling of the Switch 2 this year, as well as Nintendo's overall position in the video game market compared to Microsoft and Sony.

Discussing PlayStation's dominance, Fils Aimé, who left Nintendo in 2019, said he expected the company to continue to thrive alongside Nintendo because the latter would never position itself as a direct competitor. As for Xbox, Fiers-Aime expressed surprise that Microsoft hasn't released more games for Nintendo's new console.

“From a business perspective, when I first saw the lineup, I was kind of scratching my head,” Fiers Aimé said of Nintendo's decision to launch Donkey Kong Banana, Kirby's Sky Knight, a new Hyrule Warriors game, and two cross-gen games: Metroid 4 and Pokémon Legends: ZA in the first six months of the Switch 2.

It's not a stale lineup by any means, but it lacks the powerful one-two punch of the Switch's new 3D Mario and Zelda, which launched at the same time, as well as the groundbreaking new series: Splatoon.

“Certainly, I underestimated the enhanced content of the Nintendo Switch 1, which I think is very compelling,” Fils-Aime continued. “The things that you get for free as part of a Nintendo Switch Online subscription, I think that helps drive some momentum. Of course, (Donkey Kong) Bananza is a key driver for them.”

Fils-Aimé added more to the Switch 2's potential as the largest third-party gaming platform, though he said Nintendo needs to make sure other developers can leverage its hardware's potential in the same way it has – by using a deep understanding of the Switch's internals to squeeze big games like Kingdom Tears onto a small cartridge.

“But let's be clear,” Fils-Aimé said, “In my opinion, Nintendo will never position themselves as a direct competitor to the PlayStation. It's not in their DNA, and it's not how they see the business opportunity. But are they going to welcome some of the latest core gamer type content, whether it's the latest Assassin's Creed or Call of Duty to their platform? Absolutely. Do I think there's that player base there? Definitely games?

“The key is making sure third-party developers have the toolset so they have the ability to bring the best games to Switch 2, and that's something the team is thinking about every day.”

Microsoft is a company that has been hesitant about the Switch 2, having launched several games on the Switch 1 (including Grounded and Pentiment), but has yet to discuss any future plans for the Nintendo platform.

“I'm surprised Xbox hasn't fully embraced the Switch 2 from a software perspective,” Fils-Aimé noted. “Of course, there are games that could be easily ported to Switch 2. I'm surprised we don't see more of them. I thought there would be more, especially in the time leading up to the holidays. All fall, I was expecting some dedicated announcements,” he continued. “I'm surprised this didn't happen.”

After bringing Sea of ​​Thieves and Hi-Fi Rush to PlayStation 5, Nintendo fans have been patiently waiting for Microsoft to confirm whether these and other games would be coming to Switch 2. There's also the slight issue that Microsoft previously promised to launch Call of Duty on Nintendo hardware – despite There's no sign that's going to happen with this year's Black Ops 7. Perhaps it won't be until 2026 that Microsoft finally makes its intentions clear.

Ultimately, Fils-Aimé said he's “enjoying” playing the Switch 2 so far, though he noted: “The company didn't give me one for free.”

Photo credit: Samantha Burkardt/Getty Images for SXSW.

Tom Phillips is IGN's news editor. You can contact Tom at [email protected] or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social