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Summary
- Weird and wonderful Nintendo products would bring the company’s flair for fun to mundane tasks.
- Nintendo Alarmo and the Nintendo Music mobile app show the company’s interest in lifestyle products.
- Nintendo Switch 2 will be revealed by the end of March and could integrate well with some of these concepts.
Nintendo sure caught everyone off-guard this year by releasing an alarm clock and music streaming platform when we were all the Switch 2. I welcome this quirky lifestyle product revolution and even have a few ideas as to what Nintendo could make next.
A Nintendo Watch
Let’s start with an obvious one, not only because smartwatches are a hot commodity, but also because Nintendo’s already dipped its toe into similar waters.
An optional accessory you can buy when attending Super Nintendo World at a Universal theme park is the Power-Up Band. These wristbands use NFC sensors to interact with games scattered around the land, and relay data like high scores to Universal’s app. These bands also double as an Amiibo of the Mario characters they represent, giving them continued relevance after you return from your trip. It’s a neat idea that’s proved popular, even if a bit pricey at $40 (on top of an already expensive theme park ticket).
However, what if Nintendo bundled this functionality into a smartwatch that also included micro-games you could play on your wrist? Nobody has capitalized on the concept of smartwatch games yet, leaving a lane ripe for Nintendo. The company has been at its best when exploring novel uses of technology in games, so the glove… err, watch fits.
On top of this, there are many ways a smartwatch could uniquely integrate with the Switch 2, including using it as a microphone for voice chat and responding to in-game moments with haptics. This presents an avenue for Nintendo to return to its ill-fated Wii concept of using the player’s pulse as a gameplay mechanic.
Nintendo Vacuum
Waking up to an alarm is a necessary evil which Nintendo attempted to make fun with the Alarmo. The Vacuumo could do the same for cleaning your house or apartment.
The main functionality of a Nintendo vacuum would be something like a music box, only instead of cranking a lever to hear a Nintendo tune, notes play as dust is collected. Beyond simply adding charm to an otherwise mundane task, this also serves to let the user know when an area is clean. This would be a boon for vacuuming areas where debris is hard to see, like on carpets and under the couch.
Pair it with a small screen that depicts visuals corresponding with the sounds, like Mario platforming through classic levels or Samus making a great escape to her ship. Luigi’s Mansion themes are also an obvious choice (there should be an entirely Poltergust-themed variation, in fact). This level of detail is something I think the Alarmo could’ve benefited from, but it’d be even more at home on a device that you’re awake when using.
Nintendogs Accessories
It’s shocking that Nintendo hasn’t capitalized on Nintendogs during the Switch era, instead leaving this treasure trove dormant since 2011. Perhaps a line of electronic dog care products could be an avenue for resurrecting it.
We’re talking about tech-infused harnesses, food bowls, brushes, toys, the works. Each of these would track how you care for your real-life dog and give equivalent goodies to your virtual dog in a Switch 2 or mobile Nintendogs entry. In other words, Nintendo could gamify your dog. Not that you should need any extra incentive to take care of your dog, but a bit of incentive would certainly spruce things up. Heck, also include a product line for cats!
What about a Nintendogs Tamagotchi? This seems like an obvious winner for Nintendo, though to sweeten the deal, it could be used as a pedometer that syncs with the hypothetical new franchise entry I outlined. This Tamagotchi could also let you play with your dog while at work or in transit, then use amiibo-esque NFC tech to transfer that progress into the Switch 2 game.
Nintendo Calendar
The annual My Nintendo loyalty program calendars have been a staple of my desk for years now. Why not save a few trees and make an even better digital version of these?
A screen-based desk calendar would give Nintendo the ability to offer variants that cater to the specific interests of fans and add heaps of pizzazz in the process. One idea: animated themes could increase in detail as the month progresses. For example, one month could feature Link conquering a different task each day before finally facing off with Ganon. Or perhaps you could watch an empty plot of land turn into a bustling Animal Crossing town as it becomes increasingly populated day-to-day. There are endless possibilities here that would make the passage of time just a tad less existential.
It’s also a great companion for the Alarmo. Most people keep that alarm clock next to their bed, which means a digital calendar for your desk that could moonlight as a clock wouldn’t be redundant. It could even have a speaker and interface that connects with the new Nintendo Music mobile app.
Game Boy Classic
Yep, you bet I’m drudging up the topic of Nintendo’s “Classic” line of plug-and-play consoles. I’ll occasionally plug in the NES Classic or SNES Classic for a touch of nostalgia, but if the Switch era taught me anything, I’d use a grab-and-go handheld even more. There’s no better way to bring this back than a Game Boy Classic.
What I’m pitching here isn’t relegated to only original Game Boy games. Though they should be part of the package, Nintendo Switch Online already has them covered. Instead, this should be a celebration of all Game Boy generations, Color and Advance included. I’d personally pay a premium for a foldable handheld modeled after the Game Boy Advance SP that played a large library of both Nintendo and third-party offerings.
The device would undoubtedly be more expensive to produce than other Classic consoles, so the ensuing higher retail price would be easy to swallow if it came bundled with a killer collection of games (and hard to swallow if not). I’d even pay extra for some mainline Pokémon representation.
There’s no shortage of premium-priced handhelds that emulate the Game Boy experience, but if handled well, Nintendo would absolutely dominate this market. I wouldn’t expect anything in the near horizon though, as Nintendo won’t want an ounce of focus off the Switch 2 in 2025.
Nintendo Wireless Charger
It may sound like I’m scraping the bottom of the barrel with this one, but I actually think a simple Qi2 charger where Nintendo characters call out charge percentages would be a novel spin on this typically mundane tech.
My reason for including this digs a bit deeper than a mere speaker, though. What if the Switch 2 has wireless charging capabilities that could sync up with a Nintendo-made charger? It could serve the function of a portable dock to make moving your Switch between TVs easier. You may not get the same power bump of a standard dock, but an easy way to get Switch games on any TV would be a marvel.
Maybe the Nintendo Watch and Game Boy Classic would even charge wirelessly with this. What seems an unexciting prospect at face value actually brings the entire line of products I’m pitching together.
Nintendo Toothbrush
If Pokémon Sleep predicted the Alarmo, Pokémon Smile could do the same for a Nintendo Toothbrush.
Whereas Pokémon Smile requires the fairly awkward mechanism of holding or mounting a smartphone to face you while brushing, an actual toothbrush would be able to more accurately read brushing patterns. Sound effects could be used to let you know how you’re doing and when a healthy two (or more) minutes of brushing is up. Pairing it with a smartphone could enhance the experience, but wouldn’t be necessary.
In the spirit of gamifying self-care, maybe there could be some small reward attached for achieving daily goals, such as My Nintendo Platinum points. This would take a concept typically aimed at kids and give it adult appeal.
Nintendo Switch 2
What more needs to be said, other than a few requests for more customization options, of course.
But for real, I’m hotly anticipating official news on Nintendo’s next console as much as you are. We’re luckily guaranteed to get a reveal in the early part of 2025. Speculation and itemized feature requests have been wearing thin for a hot minute; I’m ready to blab about the real deal.
To be frank, while there’s no Nintendo gadget I covet more than the Switch 2, I’d also be extremely jazzed for more lifestyle products like those I hypothesized about here. They continue the company’s toy-making legacy while offering use-cases for all demographics, adults included. Hopefully, Nintendo also sees value in this, and the recent lifestyle forays aren’t an anomaly.