Nintendo has become a household name in entertainment. As one of the oldest and most successful gaming companies around it only makes sense. It has eloved franchises, die-hard fans, and dependable hardware.
That said, Nintendo is certainly not bulletproof. The Nintendo Switch has unquestionably seen record-breaking success, but no company can afford to rest on its laurels, so here are four resolutions we’d like to see Nintendo make in 2021.
Better Online Functionality
Connecting with friends and strangers to play games together has always been a staple of beloved Nintendo franchises. As early as the Game Boy, Nintendo has found ways to make these connections possible. Moving into the era of Wi-Fi and the always-connected culture, Nintendo seems to have stumbled a bit.
The Wii touted rather applaudable online functions for the time — A Wii plaza to hang out with friends, a mail system, and of course the Wii Shop Channel. The Wii U continued these same services with relatively no adaptation to the changing times. Nintendo’s handheld front offered little to be desired in online functionality as well.
However, as 2021 is gearing up, Nintendo seems to be falling behind in its online functionality entirely. While Sony and Microsoft seem to be continuously innovating their online services with new features, Nintendo seems to be playing catch up with basic necessities like voice chat.
Not only that, but the service itself isn’t implemented well into several of the company’s own first-party titles. Most notably is 2020’s big hit, Animal Crossing: New Horizons. A game based entirely around playing online with friends notably had one of the worst online experiences in recent memory. If a dire feature of your game is so impeded by your limited online functionality, it’s likely time to change things up and make dire improvements.
