Nintendo Switch Pokemon Game Expected in 2017

Today is the day Pokemon fans have been waiting for, with Pokémon Sun and Moon launching in North America on Nintendo 3DS (while Japan and Europe have to wait until next week). However, there's news of another Pokemon game in development.

However, this one is heading to the Nintendo Switch.

Eurogamer has reported that multiple sources have confirmed Nintendo is planning to release a Pokémon game for the Nintendo Switch before the end of 2017. If true, it will class as the first mainline Pokémon game to ever see a release on a home console.

The new game carries the codename Pokémon Stars and has Game Freak as the designated developer—the developer behind the majority of Pokémon games since Red and Green launched in 1996. Game Freak also handled Sun and Moon development and this is significant because Pokémon Stars is thought to be the third game of this generation's Pokémon releases.

Nintendo typically releases two new Pokémon games at the same time and then follows up with a third game a couple of years later offering an enhanced version of the previous two games (for example, Pokémon Yellow, Crystal, Emerald, and Platinum are all enhanced version releases). Pokémon Stars will form the enhanced version of Pokémon Sun and Moon, but on a separate platform (also a first).

We will be kept waiting until January 12 to learn the launch line-up of Nintendo Switch games. However, rumours suggest The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild won't be one of them due to localisation taking longer than planned. Zelda should appear later in 2017, and if it is closely follows Nintendo's first home console mainline Pokémon game, the Nintendo Switch could have a bumper holiday season next year.

NES Classic Can Use Original NES Controllers

On Friday, we finally get to purchase the Nintendo NES Classic Edition console that comes bundled with 30 games and a controller for US$60. PCMag's review concluded it 'exudes old-school style' and has 'fantastically nostalgic design', yet still remaining inexpensive.

However, there are two grumbles that highlight how short the controller cable is and the fact you can't update or expand the system in any way.

Hyperkin NES Controller AdapterAs IGN reported, the complaint about the controller cable length can be fixed in a couple of ways, one of which adds even more nostalgia to the experience.

While Hyperkin is best known for the RetroN 5 console, it's also an experienced gaming accessories company. It has foreseen the short cable problem and is set to release an adapter for the NES Classic that allows you to plug in an original NES controller. The NES To NES Classic Adapter will be available on November 28 2016 for US$9.99 and will work with both ports on the NES Classic.
If you don't own an old NES controller, then Hyperkin will instead sell you a 6ft extension cable for US$7.99.

Nintendo includes a controller with the NES Classic that is very close in look and feel to the original, but the cable is only just over 2ft long. The original controller cable is more than twice as long, as this image posted on NeoGAF comparing the old and new confirms:

NES Controller Cable Lengths
So buying this adapter and using an old pad ultimately comes down to whether the cable is too short for you as a player. If you consider the most common TV sizes are in the 32- to 55in range, then chances are a 2ft cable really is too short to be comfortable.

It's also important to keep in mind that the Hyperkin adapter and extension cable are probably going to be the first of many solutions to the short cable problem. Who knows, a wireless controller hitting the market eventually might be in the pipeline.