Overwatch Nintendo Switch version could happen, say Blizzard
'Anything is within the realm of possibility' after Diablo 3's arrival on switch marked the end of a 15-year break from Nintendo for Blizzard
SHORTLY after revealing that the six-year-old Diablo 3 was coming to Nintendo Switch in an all-new Eternal Edition, Blizzard has said Overwatch may be heading that way too.
The team-based shooter is available on PS4 and Xbox 360 as well as PC, but a Switch version was thought to be off the table as developer Blizzard hadn't released a game on a Nintendo platform for 15 years.
Because console versions of Overwatch have already been developed and the game optimised for use with controllers rather than just a mouse and keyboard -- as is the case for Diablo -- the process of creating a Switch version should be trivial.
The advent of Nintendo's paid-for online service, the originally named Nintendo Switch Online service, also makes the arrival of the shooter seem that much more likely, given consistent online play against people you don't know is core to making Overwatch and other such competitive team-based shooters work.
"Anything is within the realm of possibility... if [Overwatch developer] Team 4 picks up that endeavour, that's on them," Blizzard senior producer Pete Stilwell when discussing the announcement of Diablo 3 on the platform.
He confirmed that while Diablo 3 was their only focus on Switch, Overwatch was definitely "feasible".
Diablo 3 won't be out until next year, so it seems likely that Blizzard still has a lot of learning to do when it comes to the nuts and bolts of developing on Nintendo's platform.
When it does come out, the Eternal Edition will include all the downloadable content released for other versions of the game, as well as the option to skip the story mode entirely.
That may seem like an odd decision, but given the wide availability and age of the game, Blizzard expects many of those who pick Diablo 3 up on Switch will already have played it extensively on another platform first.
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