Former Nintendo boss "surprised" more Xbox games aren't on Switch 2
Believes it would "be in their best interest".
Former Nintendo of America boss Reggie Fils-Aimé is "surprised" that Xbox has "not yet fully embraced" the newly released Switch 2, as part of a discussion on third-party support.
In an interview with The Game Business, Fils-Aimé stated Nintendo will "never position itself as a direct competitor to PlayStation", though the company would "welcome some of the latest core gamer-type of content". Microsoft's Phil Spencer, meanwhile, called Nintendo a "great partner" and confirmed support for the Switch 2, though little has been announced so far.
"I'm surprised that Xbox has not yet fully embraced Switch 2 from a software perspective," said Fils-Aimé. "Certainly some games could easily be ported over to Switch 2. And I'm surprised that we haven't seen more of that. I thought there would be much more, especially during this timeframe leading into the Holiday.
"All through the fall, I was fully expecting some dedicated announcement. And I'm surprised it hasn't happened."
Fils-Aimé also noted that Nintendo, PlayStation, and Xbox are no longer directly competing, due to their differing approaches this generation. While PlayStation focuses on premium products and exclusives, and Nintendo remains focused on its hybrid console series, Xbox is moving further into publishing.
"I do think that the years of direct competition are done," said Fils-Aimé. "With a large part of the Xbox business now being publishing, by definition, they're a big third-party publisher that also makes some hardware. From that standpoint, they are no longer directly competing with the PlayStation business. And in fact, they need support from Sony for Microsoft's software to reach the largest audience. And as I said earlier, I think it would be in their best interest to find ways for Xbox software, beyond Minecraft, to make its way onto the Nintendo platform. So, from that standpoint, direct warfare is over.
"But, on the other hand, gamers out there have limited budgets. You have to win for every dollar spent; you need to win for every minute spent playing. And so there's always going to be a war going on. It may be below the surface, but there's always going to be a battle for attention and mindshare."
Last year, Xbox games Pentiment and Grounded made their way to the Switch and were set to be followed by Hi-Fi Rush, though that's reportedly shifted to Switch 2. Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is officially coming to Switch 2 next year.
Meanwhile, last month Xbox announced its long-time exclusive Halo is headed to PS5. Could Switch 2 also be on the cards?