The Nintendo Switch is reportedly getting one of the world's most popular games: 'Overwatch'

Advertisement
The Nintendo Switch is reportedly getting one of the world's most popular games: 'Overwatch'

Overwatch (Doomfist)

Blizzard Entertainment

"Overwatch" character Doomfist.

Advertisement
  • One of the world's most popular games, a first-person shooter named "Overwatch," is reportedly headed to the Nintendo Switch.
  • The team-based competitive shooter has been wildly popular since it launched way back in May 2016.
  • "Overwatch" hasn't been officially announced for the Switch, but the announcement is expected to happen on Wednesday afternoon.
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The world's hottest game console, Nintendo's Switch, is about to get one of the world's hottest games: "Overwatch."

That's according to multiple media reports and a handful of retail leaks that point to the game's imminent arrival on Nintendo's latest game console; Kotaku reports that the game could arrive as soon as October 15 in North America.

Neither Nintendo nor the game's publisher, Blizzard Entertainment, responded to Business Insider's request for comment.

Though it would certainly be a big deal if "Overwatch" came to Switch, it's far from surprising: The game is incredibly popular and already available on literally every other game platform.

Advertisement

It's also colorful, enormously fun, and ridiculously addictive - the perfect "one more match" game, especially on a kid-friendly console like the Switch.

Hanzo Overwatch

Blizzard

So, why isn't "Overwatch" already on the Switch?

"Right now there are some technical challenges," Blizzard game director Jeff Kaplan told Business Insider in a May 2017 interview. "The tech specs [on Switch] aren't quite there. It would be a non-trivial undertaking for us to make the game on Switch."

He pointed to Nintendo's history of upgrading consoles with more horsepower as something to keep an eye on. "One of Nintendo's most successful platforms is 3DS," Kaplan said. "And watch how many times they upgraded that over time," he said. "Just because something might not be feasible now doesn't mean that at some point in the future it might be an option for us."

Advertisement

Of note: The main Switch model on sale in September 2019 is almost identical to the one that launched in March 2017.

The announcement is widely expected to happen on Wednesday afternoon during a YouTube news broadcast from Nintendo, named Nintendo Direct.

Exclusive FREE Slide Deck: 40 Big Tech Predictions for 2019 by Business Insider Intelligence

{{}}