Since the Nintendo Switch reveal in January we've known that Nintendo plans to adopt an online model similar to Sony and Microsoft's. Whereby players pay an annual fee for access to online functionality in games and other features. In a discussion with Japanese publication Nikkei, Nintendo President Tatsumi Kimishima stated that the company is looking a potential pricing in the range of $20-30 USD. Which would make it considerably cheaper than competing services.

Unlike Xbox Live or PlayStation Plus though, any free game offerings will be timed, limiting play to a particular month. With the Nintendo Switch ready to hit store shelves on March 3, Kimishima also noted that the unique features of the console put it in a position where it could sell as well as the Nintendo Wii. Which is Nintendo's best-selling home console to date, selling upwards of 100 million plus units. As a comparison, Nintendo's last console the Wii U only managed to sell 13.5 million units by the close of 2016. A lofty goal? Perhaps. But its great to see that Nintendo believe in the Switch and its potential.

Also of note, again coming from Kimishima, is that Nintendo are also currently exploring the possibility of VR for the Switch. Now, how that would work for a console with specifications of the Switch one might need to look at mobile efforts like Gear VR as opposed to hardware intensive bits of kit like the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift. Kimishima went on to explain that many things still need to be solved in order to let players use VR for multiple hours. Which probably means they're taking a wait and see approach.



And on that note we'll leave you with Nintendo's new Switch commercial (as seen above) created specifically for this weekend's Superbowl. An event that from we can tell is all about Americans spending an afternoon watching the most lavish commercials you can imagine, interrupted by men in tights and helmets chasing a ball.