Topic: Current Switch 2 line-up not good enough?

I 100% agree here, and I'm pretty much in line with the vast majority of your posts. I've been around gaming a long time. Nintendo has been innovative with almost every hardware release. NES = Controller innovation (we went from Atari controllers to the D Pad). SNES had 6 buttons including L & R. N64 - set the standard for 3D gaming & introduced the analog stick + rumble. Gamecube = Wavebird. To me, the Switch 2 takes all of the innovations, and further refines/perfects them in a modern console that can hang...which is the first time since the GameCube. I look at what they have introduced to gaming not as gimmicks, but innovations that have greatly impacted all of gaming. I used the word "gimmick" because I've seen it thrown around a lot. Without the Wii U, we wouldn't have the Switch, SteamDeck, handhelds that are keeping up with current gen...it's really amazing the massive impact Nintendo has had on all of gaming.

So, this has replaced the Switch U thread as the new endless arguing back and forth thread? Cool good to know.

We should just make an official 'complain about Switch 2' thread.

@FishyS
Alternatively the mods could just close these threads saying they're duplicates and link to Reddit

I don't get the continued complaints about lack of gimmicks. In fact I never understood them in the first place. Nintendo innovate when and where it sees an opportunity to. What they don't do is arbitrarily throw away popular concepts just for the sake of something "different". Different for difference's sake is a garbage model to follow and I'm glad they only change things if and when they see an opportunity to, and never fix something that isnt broken.

When Switch released, they reached the pinnacle of modern console design. It took 8 generations but they finally got there. And there is no going back. Sorry if the hybrid design doesn't suit everybody, but that's life. It suits 150+ million people, and they're never going to abandon it. On the contrary, you will see other platforms eventually evolve into hybrid platforms as well. It's the pinnacle of the evolutionary path. It's where all roads lead, and its where all roads end.

But that doesn't mean innovation is out. The mouse mode, magnetic joycon attachments and default stock rear grip buttons (credit to Steamdeck for first offering default rear grip buttons on a platform though) are far more innovative and evolutionary than anything PS5, XSX or Steam has brought to the table. And if you're not a fan then that's just my case in point for why it would be foolish to abandon a winning concept for some new gimmick. You dont like these, so what makes you so sure you'd like whatever concept replaces the hybrid design?

Even so, if someone doesnt like it, fine. But there's no need to still be repeating that four months after launch. That's called beating a dead horse. We get it. You don't like the hybrid design, and you wish they would have rolled the dice on some brand new concept, even though there's a good chance you might have hated whatever they came up with just as you hate the mouse mode innovation. Cool. Got it.

Well, they didnt do that, they made the console everyone was foaming at the mouth for, and that's that. Nothing is going to change what Switch 2 is. Get on board or get out the way, cause this train is chu-ing.

There ya go.

Yeah, I've been lurking a bit here for the entertainment value admittedly. It's gone now. I don't even have a Switch 2 yet anyway since my PS5 is barely a year old.

@JaxonH Who said anything about throwing away the hybrid model? You don't need to do that to create a gimmick, you can just add something else onto it.

The problem is that the "innovations" you mentioned don't have much potential for new gameplay. Magnetic Joycons and rear grip buttons aren't really new forms of input, those are more for ergonomics and durability than new gameplay. Joycon 2s are almost identical in terms of number and functionality of input with the exception of the Gamechat button (which is also not really a gameplay related function). As for mouse mode? Ehh, that's really the only new gameplay capability and it's a flimsy one. It's not really doing anything that Wii motion controls and DS touch controls couldn't do. The Switch 2 really needed more than that.

As for what they could've done instead? Well there's several options. In fact Nintendo has a few good ideas that they've actually patented but frustratingly seem to just want to sit on and have no desire to make them reality. The big one is detachable screens. Yes, that is also going back to what Nintendo did with DS and Wii U, but there's untapped potential in dual screens and new things to do with it with the Switch's form factor. The Wii U didn't really explore much in the way of screen layering mechanics (where you hold up the Gamepad to the TV and use the Gamepad as a secondary view for aiming/searching) and having a detachable screen in a hybrid form factor would work very well with the local multiplayer (you could give a second player a separate screen in addition to a Joycon) and Gamechat. Then there's the scroll wheel patent, which actually WOULD be a new form of input that would help with menu selection. They also could've gone for more VR/AR features, like I said I believe VR may be the final form of gaming so anything Nintendo could do to progress in that direction would be welcome. There are tons of options that are perfectly feasible with the current level of technology that would've done more to create new gameplay ideas and Nintendo opted to mainly just rehash and keep the Switch 2 99% the same as the Switch 1.

@Bolt_Strike
What would they do with dual screens that they didn’t do on the 3 consoles before that had it?

They sort of have the detachable screen thing with the game share between Switch 2 and other Switch models in close proximity.

The scroll wheel thing? Uhhhhhh… ok. I guess that would make menu games more…. immersive? I think that one’s a stretch in terms of new gameplay. Like… a huge stretch.

Also, this video I've been watching from Nin10doland encapsulates the issue pretty well I think (I do find myself agreeing with Nin10doland a lot on their game opinions and taste in games).

There's no big, Switch 2 exclusive right now that the majority of Nintendo fans can get excited for. You'd think that blowing MKW at launch and Bananza in July would mean they have a third big game for the holiday but they didn't, they oddly blew their load on the first 2 months. No big game for the holiday. No big game announced in the September Direct. And there are some major IPs that feel due for new entries. 3D Mario hasn't had a new game in 8 years, Smash hasn't had a new game in 7, Luigi's Mansion in 6, Animal Crossing in 5. And none of these IPs have new games ready to show? Not one of them? I know that game development is getting longer but even with that in mind some of these wait times are getting excessive. It feels like we should have at least one more game from this bunch confirmed than we do.

@Bolt_Strike,

"No big game for the holiday."

Big holiday game is Pokémon Legends Z-A. It will be available on both Switch 1 and 2, so even kids whose parents aren't upgrading to the new console can still get the game for Christmas. Pokémon games are usually the big holiday game since the mainline ones always release in the fall, usually November, just in time for holiday shopping. Z-A may not be for you, and that's okay, but it is the big game for the holiday. I imagine we'll get at least one of those bigger games in the usual February Direct next year 😃. I do agree that a new 3D Mario announcement or something like that would be awesome.

Exits the room before another massive argument starts

@Bolt_Strike
…they have the Kirby and Zelda franchises launching Switch2-exclusive games this holiday season.

This is almost beyond farcical. I don’t even know what you’d call it now.

The Wii was Nintendo's most innovative console, but it was also niche compared to Switch 1 and 2. The Switch 2 in particular offers something all gamers can get into while still maintaining enough of Nintendo's unique flair.

@ShieldHero Z-A is certainly going to sell well, but it's a cross gen game and most likely it's going to sell far better on Switch 1 than Switch 2. What's needed is a big holiday game to sell Switch 2's. You know, an exclusive. As is the primary reasons to buy a Switch 2 are MKW and DK Bananza, those are the major Switch 2 exclusives. It feels like a third releasing in the holiday is needed and we didn't get that.

@Bolt_Strike
Air Riders and Age of Imprisonment.

Age of Calamity sold over 4 million copies. People love those games. It’s going to be a big holiday game.

Air Riders is more… up in the air. But I would say a couple million pretty comfortably.

Z-A isn't selling Switch 2's; it's cheaper and plays perfectly fine on a Switch 1. So yeah it's odd there's no exclusive from Nintendo for the holiday whatsoever. Seems really odd and atypical to boot.

@OmnitronVariant
"It plays perfectly find on a Switch 1."

Wait - we know this? I thought all the demos have been on Switch 2s.

I'm pretty sure the Z-A Switch 2 bundle is going to sell like hot cakes; the pre-orders are already out of stock in some stores. That doesn't mean Z-A won't sell more on Switch 1; I expect it to sell extremely well on both consoles.

For what it's worth, the game looks like it plays much better on Switch 2. Little kids may not care about that distinction, but some of the people who have been complaining about Pokemon graphical imperfections for the last few years may care.

But what I really expect to sell Switch 2s this holiday? Mario Kart. There are an enormous number of people in the 'buy new expensive toys for holidays' crowd that are not in the 'super early adopter day-1' crowd. Mario Kart will likely be the biggest draw for those holiday Switch 2 buyers.

For those who already own a Switch 2 and bought both Bananza and Mario Kart? Kirby, Zelda Warriors, significantly improved Metroid and Pokemon are plenty of options. I certainly don't have enough money to buy all of those games the same year I bought new hardware. There are some good third party Switch 2 games as well.

And how many people are in this group? This seems like a vocal minority TBH.

Kirby and Zelda are niche and Metroid and Pokemon are cross-gen. So really not good options here. By holiday lineup standards, this is mediocre to poor. This lineup really needed an exclusive from one of the IPs I mentioned. Or potentially Splatoon Raiders might've been acceptable, but it's difficult to predict where that will land in popularity and sales due to it being a new spinoff that we currently know nothing about.

We know the resolution and frame rate on Switch 2 are better. We know the images which have been shared look better on Switch 2. But yeah, they have been showing off the better Switch 2 version more so we probably won't hear about all the Switch 1 performance issues until review time. I assume it won't be terrible; Arceus wasn't. But it will pretty unequivocally be better on Switch 2.