Report: Nintendo's fear of imitators kept NX out of E3

Nintendo didn't showcase its upcoming new hardware, currently known as the NX, at this year's E3 due to concerns about imitators, according to comments made at the company's recent shareholders' meeting. An attendee tweeting live from the presentation last night (later translated by Twitter user Cheesemeister3k) relayed creative fellow Shigeru Miyamoto's explanation about the NX's no-show, along with his thoughts on virtual reality and other developments.

"Normally we would've shown the NX at E3, but we didn't," Miyamoto said, according to the translation. "We're worried about imitators if we release info too early."

That's in keeping with an earlier conversation Miyamoto had with the Associated Press about Nintendo's more low-key E3 2016 affair. In an article from last week, the veteran game designer said that the NX is focused around a specific idea — one which he chose not to elaborate on.

"That's why we can't share anything at this point, and I don't want to comment on the other companies," he told the publication. "If it was just a matter of following advancements in technology, things would be coming out a lot quicker."

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Everything we know about Nintendo NX

Nintendo has stayed tight-lipped on what the NX, purportedly its next home console, will be capable of. There's very little that has actually been confirmed about the system, although reports have pointed to it using "industry-leading chips." There are also suggestions that it will share certain elements with the company's handhelds, and that its controller will be a complete departure from those of past consoles.

Less mysterious is the company's interest, or lack thereof, in virtual reality technology. The subject came up several times during the shareholders meeting, as it has at previous presentations and at E3 2015, when we spoke to Nintendo of America chief Reggie Fils-Aime about the burgeoning field. Miyamoto reiterated that Nintendo has its hands on VR, but echoed Fils-Aime's comments from last year as to why it has yet to embrace the tech.

"Long play sessions are an issue," he said during the meeting. "We want to release something that can be played for long periods, carries value, and is affordable. We want parents to feel at ease."

It's expected that we'll learn more about what Nintendo's planning for its future as the year goes on. That includes additional mobile game plans, as well as theme park attraction progress, feature film project updates, possible quality of life device news and more.