An 'insider source' of Japanese newspaper Nikkei has claimed that Nintendo could be planning to give its next-generation console - codenamed 'NX' - an Android-based operating system.

Nintendo has historically built its own operating systems for each of its systems, and basing the OS of NX around Google's open-source platform would signal a sea change in design philosophy.

The report claims that the rationale of such a decision is a radical plan to gain third-party support by tapping into what is probably the widest development ecosystem in gaming today. Indeed, there aren't many developers out there today who are not primed for Android development in some capacity, with even large console players like Capcom, Sega, Konami, and EA all having made big migrations towards the (currently) mobile-based software environment.

Even advanced gaming engines like the Unreal Engine 4 are officially supported on the Android platform whilst not on Wii U.

If the report turned out to be true, an NX OS based on Android would in all likelihood be heavily modified, but the crucial intention would be to remove the barriers for third-parties to port their library of games onto a familiar and well-documented platform.

However, as Eurogamer points out, a key nuance of the Nikkei report is that it is being "considered" as a possibility at this stage.

Nintendo president Satoru Iwata first spoke about 'NX' back in March, describing it as a dedicated gaming system, but one that would utilize a "brand new concept".