Nintendo NX to Run Android OS?

Reports suggest that Nintendo’s next console could boast an Android operating system. The in-development Nintendo system, codenamed the NX, might opt for the Google-made OS in an effort to give “developers more flexibility in making content that can also be on smartphones and tablets,” according to Japanese business news site Nikkei (translation courtesy of NeoGaf user duckroll).

Nintendo’s current-gen console, the Wii U, has been a commercial failure, despite strong sales following the release of popular titles Mario Kart 8 and Super Smash Bros. for Wii U., so the company are eager to move on to its next innovation.

The NX is described as a “dedicated game platform with a brand-new concept” by Nintendo President Satoru Iwata during the reveal that the company was working on mobile games, though he added that “It is too early to elaborate on the details of this project, but we hope to share more information with you next year.” During a sales call earlier in the month, Iwata said, “we are calling it a ‘new concept,’ we are not thinking of this as a ‘simple replacement’ for the 3DS or the Wii U,” adding that the NX will not be revealed at this year’s E3. We do know, however, that the NX could be region-free, based on comments Iwata made during that same sales call.

Nintendo’s venture into mobile gaming, in partnership with DeNA, should see its first release by the end of this year.

Thank you IGN for providing us with this information.

Image courtesy of TechCrunch.