Nintendo unveils Nintendo Switch, the first home game console that can also be taken on the go

Japanese video game giant Nintendo has announced its new console - the Nintendo Switch, the first major system that can be turned into a portable and taken on the go.

In a three-minute video released on Thursday night (Oct 20), the publisher unveiled the successor to its Wii U home console, putting an end to months of speculation.

In the clip, the Switch, which is scheduled for a release in the United States in March 2017, is first shown as a home console that is plugged into a television. The user then attaches peripherals to the side of a tablet screen embedded in the console's base, then takes the Switch on the go.

Also shown in the clip were various controller configurations, including a more traditional games controller.

Among the games shown to be playable on the Switch include The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and an NBA game, indicating that there will be support from third-party publishers.

Also pictured were a new Mario game, along with Wii U titles like Splatoon, which could mean re-releases of existing games on the new system.

Nintendo has been buoyed by the recent success of Pokemon Go, but its traditional business has taken a hit since the success of Wii console and the DS handheld in the 2000s. Their successors, the Wii U and 3DS, failed to move as many units.

It remains to be seen if the Switch will replace Nintendo's long line of handheld games systems, which stretches back to the iconic Game Boy.

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