Plug and play, the Nintendo Switch logo invites. The emblem symbolizes two directions of using the console, the ability to control characters from a distance. The elements of the sign represent the game between two partners or teams.
Nintendo Switch: Brand overview
Founded: | March 3, 2017 |
Founder: | Nintendo PTD |
Headquarters: |
Japan |
Website: | nintendo.com |
Nintendo Switch is a hybrid console released by a company of the same name. It is a tablet that can be connected as a stationary game console or as a portable gamepad. She has wireless Joy-Con sensors with familiar buttons and a joystick. Through them, tactile feedback is determined, and movement commands are given. The device can be connected to the console from two sides. The gaming device was introduced in 2016 and released in 2017. The lite version (mobile) came out in 2019. The developer is Nintendo Platform Technology Development.
The story of the Switch console began, oddly enough, with the decline of the company. The fact is that after the release of the DS and Wii game consoles in 2004 and 2006, interest in them did not last long. Because of this, Nintendo was on the verge of bankruptcy. The management first started talking about serious losses in 2012, after which they decided to revive the process and offer consumers something fresh. However, Satoru Iwata, the firm’s head, believed that if they switched to something else, they would lose their identity. Then it was decided to present a continuation of one of the existing models – Wii U. It was released in 2012. However, the novelty suffered a commercial failure.
The idea to create something completely different stubbornly hovered among the team members. And after the appearance of the reanimated old version, it even intensified. Then, Tatsumi Kimishima, Genyo Takeda, and Shigeru Miyamoto came up with a strategy to revitalize the company with the Switch concept. The unusual console was built on progressive gaming equipment with the maximum involvement of intellectual potential. Work on it intensified when Kimishima took over as president of the firm and Miyamoto became creative director.
Meaning and History
The unusual appearance of the gadget is associated with the concept of unifying the two styles of play. For example, gamers choose portable devices in Japan because they play on the road and in social groups on the Internet. In the West, users prefer stationary devices, as they play alone at home. The Switch design is hybrid and fits both cultures. With removable controllers, the console can be connected to a TV screen or used in manual mode.
Moreover, the word “Switch” was chosen for the name not only because of the principle of switching from portable to stationary mode. It is also the idea of switching to a new parallel reality – from everyday life to a bright, entertaining one. Given the importance of this principle, the designers used this word in the logo. In total, there are three variants of the logo in the history of corporate identity.
2016 (pre-launch)
The very first logo came out during the development of the console. It was a working version, a prototype code-named NX. This is what is mentioned in the announcement trailer for Sonic Forces. The original style of the emblem echoes the design of the Wii and Nintendo eShop signs. And since this is a temporary version, not fully formed conceptually, the inscription “Switch” is absent in it. The central place is occupied by the name of the company, executed in lower case. The first letter is an exception – it is capitalized. The word “Nintendo” is in an oblong oval. Alongside, on the right, are the uppercase letters “NX.” All elements are gray in the same shade.
2017 – today
The new generation game console, marked with a different logo, was launched in 2017. The shape of the key part resembles the side elements of the hybrid console, which are intended for connection and control of the gameplay. They are placed according to the principle of the Asian signs of yin and yang, side by side, but not merged, with contrasting dots on a mirror opposite background. This means that one side is colored red with a white circle inside (left), and the other, on the contrary, is white with a red dot (right). Below is the name of the prefix, ungrouped into two lines: in the first one is written in small grotesque “NINTENDO,” in the second in large chopped type – “SWITCH.” All elements are shown in a red square.
2019 – today
This logo first appeared on the Nintendo Switch Lite console, released in Fall 2019. It contains only one phrase – the full name of the lightweight model of the console. It is located on one line, emphasizing the last word, which is much larger than the rest of the inscription. All elements are gray.
2021 – today
In the summer of 2021, the gaming company introduced a fresh console development with a 7-inch screen and a resolution of 720p. She called the new Nintendo Switch OLED Model and used this phrase in the corporate logo. The inscription occupies two rows with an emphasis on the top line, the letters bolder and larger than those on the bottom. The words are in dark grey.
Font and Colors
Each version of the hybrid console has its logo. This is due not only to their characteristics but also to the desire of the developers to make a product that is not similar to the previous one. Therefore, even an intermediate version has a personal emblem: it was intended for advertising.
In the logo of the base console, the inscription is made using the FF Mark typeface – even, smooth, grotesque. Otherwise, a thin sans serif font is used. Likewise, the proprietary palette is also not the same. In one version, the color scheme consists of a combination of red and white; in the other two, it is a combination of gray and white.
Nintendo Switch color codes
Dark Charcoal | Hex color: | #2a2a2a |
---|---|---|
RGB: | 42 42 42 | |
CMYK: | 0 0 0 84 | |
Pantone: | PMS Neutral Black C |