Two big-name announcements rumored for next week's Nintendo Switch event

By Brad Jones January 3, 2017

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Next week, Nintendo will lift the lid on the Switch console. The company’s next piece of hardware is unveiled to the masses as part of a presentation that will be beamed to all corners of the globe. With a matter of days left to go before the event, it seems that a couple of its announcements may have already been leaked.

It’s been rumored for some time that Ubisoft’s long-gestating sequel to Beyond Good & Evil will be a Switch exclusive. Now, the word is that it will only be exclusive for twelve months before heading to the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC, according to a tweet from Laura Kate Dale.

Dale has become established as a trusted source of Switch information, thanks to her diligent reporting ahead of the console’s reveal in October 2016. At this point, although we’re still mired in rumors and unconfirmed reports, but Dale’s information seems to be legitimate.

The sequel to Beyond Good & Evil will be granted a digital and retail release on the Switch, but will be digital-only on other hardware. A teaser trailer is expected to air at Nintendo’s Switch event next week.

Apparently, the presentation will also see confirmation of another long-awaited release: Nintendo will announce a new translation of Mother 3 that’s set to debut on the system’s new iteration of the Virtual Console service, according to another tweet from Dale.

Mother 3 is a Game Boy Advance game originally released in 2006, the follow-up to cult SNES role-playing game Earthbound. The title has never been officially released outside of Japan, and has long been lusted after by Nintendo fans.

The Switch reveal video from last year was an unabashed attempt to market the new system to casual and lapsed gamers. However, if Nintendo brings a Beyond Good & Evil sequel and Mother 3 to next week’s event, it will be a clear statement of the company’s intent to appeal to its hardcore fan base as well as mainstream audiences.

Nintendo will hold its Switch presentation in Tokyo on January 12 at 11 p.m. ET.

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Brad is an English-born writer currently splitting his time between Edinburgh and Pennsylvania. You can find him on Twitter…

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