Nintendo unveils handheld Switch console

Nintendo has unveiled its first major console since 2012 - a handheld device that can also connect to a bigger screen.

Switch, which looks like a tablet and has controllers attached to its sides, combines a handheld system and a console for the first time, and allows gamers to play at home or on the go.

The Japanese gaming giant has unveiled the new system with a preview trailer on its website.

In a statement, Nintendo said the device would allow users to play "the same title wherever, whenever and with whomever they choose", and that the system offered "unprecedented new video game play styles".

Switch is the first major gaming system released by Nintendo since the Wii U in 2012.

The company had been struggling to keep up with rivals Sony (Swiss: SONC.SW - news) and Microsoft (Euronext: MSF.NX - news) and their popular PlayStation 4 and Xbox One consoles.

However, its fortunes have started to turn around already this year following the runaway success of mobile game Pokemon Go and the announcement of a Super Mario game for mobile users to be launched by Apple (Swiss: AAPL-EUR.SW - news) .

Shares (Berlin: DI6.BE - news) have risen by 70% since July but fell 7% on the new product launch with investors underwhelmed.

Amir Anvarzadeh, head of Japanese equity sales at BGC Partners (NYSE: BGCA - news) , said: "It's a disappointing console.

"It doesn't enhance the gaming experience when you have a smartphone in your pocket."

The new console will go on sale in March next year, but Nintendo is yet to reveal the price or a full games line-up.

However, a new instalment in the Legend Of Zelda series, called Breath Of Wind, has already been announced for the Switch.