Nintendo is finally embracing mobile after years of dodging the platform in all regards. They’ve already committed to mobile apps surrounding their games, and they even have plans to bring a healthy amount of games over the course of the next couple of years.
Their next move could help them tap into the mobile market even more. Nikkei, a reputable Japanese firm, is reporting that the Nintendo NX — their next home gaming console — will use Android for the software platform.
We imagine the Nintendo NX won’t have your typical Android TV experience, but rather a custom fork that Nintendo can build on top of, not unlike what Amazon does in the realm of phones, tablets and the Amazon Fire TV.
So where do the mobile implications come in? Building a platform based on Android could allow Nintendo to create a development environment that thousands of developers are already familiar with. It won’t be as simple as copying and pasting code, obviously, but porting a game to or from the Nintendo NX could be light work. Such a platform would benefit both independent developers and Nintendo themselves, so it’s a win-win situation.
Of course, any good move to get more developers on board will be good because Nintendo has had a tremendous struggle with the Wii U. The console hasn’t been selling nearly as well as the original Wii, largely thanks in part to its lack of third party titles (which in turn is due to the fact that the Nintendo Wii U is simply not powerful enough for game developers to build the types of games they want to these days). Nintendo’s network infrastructure can also accept partial blame as developers find it a lot less pleasing to work with than that of the Xbox One’s and PS4’s.
Nintendo is sure to go all in with the Nintendo NX, and if it’s running Android by the time it’s out you can be sure we’ll be paying attention.
[via Wii U Daily]
