Summary
Gamescom has revealed its award categories for the year, and theNintendo Switchis notably absent. Since the hybrid console’s release, theNintendo Switchhas had an award category dedicated to its games at the yearly trade fair. However, 2024 will break the trend.
Gamescom is an annual gaming trade fair event held in Germany. It’s part of the summer circuit of gaming events that includes things like Summer Game Fest, Tokyo Game Show, and the now-defunt Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3). While these shows are typically a great opportunity for game companies to show off their upcoming releases and tease their fans with enticing details,Gamescom holds its own award showbased on what’s presented at the event.
Gamescom has revealed its award categories for 2024, but theNintendo Switch was missing from the Gamescomlist.TheGamerreached out to the organizers, who responded that the Nintendo Switch had too few submissions for it to be considered for its own unique award. As a result, the category was canceled for the year. Nintendo has had its own category since Gamescom began offering awards based on specific platform brands rather than just consoles and PC back in 2011. All the other major gaming platforms will still have their own categories, including PC, Xbox, PlayStation, and mobile.
Nintendo’s Notable Absence from Gamescom Awards
It may be concerning for some fans to see Nintendo left out like this, but it is in keeping with the planned schedule for releases. According to Nintendo, the Switch will only receive a handful of major releases in the remainder of 2024, includingEmio - The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club,Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom,Super Mario Party Jamboree, andMario & Luigi: Brothership.
The Nintendo Switch is clearly beginning to slow down its release cycle, with the end of the system’s lifecycle beginning its approach. While the company still hasn’t revealed the Nintendo Switch 2 to the public, official releases and leaks alike have indicated that it’s in development and will likely be revealed in the near future. As a result, it makes sense for Nintendo to begin shifting its focus away from the current Switch.
Although there aren’t that many huge games remaining for 2024, 2025 will be another matter. Nintendo will kick off the start of the year withDonkey Kong Country Returns HD, withMetroid Prime 4: BeyondandPokemon Legends: Z-Aarriving sometime later in the year. Rumors have indicated that theSwitch 2 may be backward compatible, so there could still be a slower but steady release of games prior to it hitting store shelves.
Nintendo Switch
The Nintendo Switch is a hybrid console launched in 2017, capable of being played in handheld mode or docked to a television. The Switch Lite, a handheld-only model, followed in 2019, with an OLED refresh coming in 2021.
