Topic: Is The Switch 2 Worth It???

OP asks this because OP knows the thread title and low effort post is provocative and will invite argument. And I would note that the only argument in this thread has stemmed from your repeated attempts to poke the hornets nest

Personally I don't have issue with people not buying the Switch 2. I'm not a Nintendo shareholder (well, I guess I technically am very, very, very fractionally through my super but still) so I really couldn't care less. But I do enjoy their software output, I agree with their approach to hardware design with Switch 2 and I broadly like how they're doing a rather soft generational transition

The reason I reply to posts such as yours is not because I'm seeking to "defend Nintendo". I reply to comments such as yours because the arguments you put forth are flimsy. I reply to such posts because unlike some who profess to believe in "freedom of speech" I actually do, perhaps somewhat naively, believe in these principles. To my core. The difference is I actually use the correct meaning of the term freedom of speech, to me freedom of speech is not "respect" for differing opinions. To me freedom of speech is the ability to freely and openly torch differing opinions without fear. Freedom of speech looks more like this

@BonzoBanana
The Valve announcements are certainly interesting. I don't think they really do much to change the market more broadly, outside of maybe pulling the rug out from under Microsoft's strategy, but also frankly I don't really care. I'm a gamer, not an investor. So what's more interesting to me is what it means as an end user

Personally, I've always kinda been interested in getting a second more powerful machine to sit next to Nintendo's hardware. But I've also never wanted to tie myself to yet another store so PS/XB have always seemed a dead-end for me. Outside of briefly considering an XBox One S as a UHD BluRay player. I've also occasionally dabbled with the idea with PCs filling that niche but it's always been a bit of a clunky experience. So the more Valve can do to fill that niche the better. Especially given I already have a deep library of software for PC plus, of course, a decent collection of ROMs and ISOs. If the price is right I am definitely getting a Steam Machine, and if it's not maybe later going DIY with a Steam OS-like distro

I still think Nintendo has a leg-up in the portable space here just from a pure technical perspective. Valve expanding to ARM certainly closes that gap somewhat, and is part of these announcements glossed over by too many people. A future Steam Deck running on ARM or maybe even an official Steam store front for Android or something is an interesting prospect. But without specific platform optimisations and without NVidia it's still going to be a generation behind in terms of real world Performance per W. Also, of course, there's Nintendo's first party output to consider. So there's still certainly place for the Switch 2 here especially in the medium term

But plugged into the wall performance per W doesn't really matter as much. And by all reports the Steam Machine is quiet plus it looks really sleek and small (which matters in that space). Plus there are obviously games outside of Nintendo's exclusives. So in that space it looks pretty compelling. To me. Whether or not it resonates with the market is another question (and one I, again, couldn't care less about)

To me it's definitely been worth it. During the last 5+ months I've been able to play games which would never have ran on the Switch 1 or which run significantly better on the Switch 2: Cyberpunk 2077, Guardians of Azuma, Donkey Kong Bananza, Silksong, Hades II, Age of Imprisonment + the enhanced S2 editions of Breath of the Wild, No Man's Sky, Kirby and the Forgotten Land, and Tears of the Kingdom.

And I know some people would like to point out that half of the games I mentioned are available on Playstation 5 and Steam Deck and PC... Sure they are, but I'm not made on money, so I'm not gonna invest in 2 or 3 different gaming platforms, when I can have all these games on just one console where I can play them in my bed, while commuting, and on the telly. The Switch 2 is not withouth its flaws, but just like its predecessor it's great for people like me who genuinely appreciate a hybrid device and use all of its features regularly.

So the condensed version of these comments is that you should only get a Switch 2 if you have no other alternative playing some of the modern 3rd party software. Kind of sad and very glaring that not much mention is going towards 1st party games, the main reason people buy Nintendo consoles...

@NotASockPuppet To be fair, there is a whole different thread about getting Switch 2 purely for Kirby Air Riders. I think the actual summary is Switch 2 might be worth it if you want a couple of the increasing number of Switch 2 exclusives but that the good third party hybrid support adds a lot of extra worth for people who don't own lots of devices. If you only want one Nintendo game and don't care about modern third party support on a hybrid? Then sure, probably not worth it.

@NotASockPuppet I have a decent laptop to play third party games actually. But I don't, because the handheld play is nice on Switch 2. Like, playing on laptop is annoying to me now after Switch 2 because it's pretty on par with it xD

@NotASockPuppet Scott the Woz did put out a youtube video last spring comparing nintendo console launch titles, and it turns out most console gens had weak launch lineups, or weaker than I ever realized.😆 We were certainly spoiled with Switch 1's launch.

Yeah most launches are not great, and most year 1s are not the Switch. I feel like with most successful systems, the early games might as well not exist after a few years, they've been so forgotten, barring an exception or two. Who on Earth cared about the Xbox 360 before Gears of War and Oblivion? Why? What was PS1 before Crash Bandicoot? Do you remember, does anyone? Has anyone played a first year 3rd party game on N64 other than that one Star Wars game? (which isn't even the Star Wars game most people reading this would think of, I assume)

Wii and Switch basically screwed over their previous system of having games to improve their year 1s, that sums up how rare it is. Compare that to 3DS and Wii U. Wii U kind of had an excuse of Nintendo failing to be able to get HD games out quick enough, 3DS was nearly dead in the water because all the best handheld games that year, until the end of that year, were all on DS instead. (Layton 4, Pokemon B/W, Ghost Trick, Radiant Historia, Okamiden etc)

Your comment implies that the majority of people happy with Switch 2 in this thread are mostly satisfied because of 3rd-Party ports. That made me double-take massively, so much so that I went through the whole thread because I could hardly believe it. And yeah: no one is really saying that. A few people mentioned some 3rd party games they liked IN ADDITION to great 1st party games. No clue where you're coming from with this.

The "there isn't immediately a deep library of exclusives" bit is seriously disconnected from what platform launches are always like. And I would argue the Switch 2 has more to offer in terms of content for being this early

People like to dismiss cross-gen releases, Switch 2 editions, performance updates and multiplatform releases. Mostly because they have come to a view and they are bending the definition of releases to confirm their view. But as an end user, as an actual person not a sales numbers or market research bit or whatever. I had a Wii U, the Switch when it launched offered me FAR less than the Switch 2 does and with significantly more cost and friction

Yes, BotW was a generational game. But I could have purchased it on the Wii U rather than buy the Switch on day 1. And the Switch 2 has DK and Prime 4 which, I would argue, hit bigger in combination. We had to wait until Odyssey for the second monumental Switch release. Which was well after launch. Is Mario Kart World as good as 8? Maybe not. But also, I already had played Mario Kart 8 to death on the Wii U before it released on Switch

Is the Switch 2 worth it now? I mean, if you want that deep library of exclusives then maybe not. But I would also argue that NO console is or has ever been worth it this early by that measure. So really the question should be on how it fares relatively speaking. And I would say it does pretty well

@UpsideDownRowlet You went through the entire thread just so you could "own me"? Well, it's your time wasted not mine...

@NotASockPuppet It takes 2 minutes pal, and I was not trying to "own you" lol. I was simply trying to see if there was any merit to your point, which there clearly wasn't. I'm sorry if you lack the maturity to tell the difference between a critique of your post and a personal attack on you, but at the end of the day, that's on you. Just a word of advice: don't speak for other people, especially when you can't even be bothered to read what they say.

@UpsideDownRowlet Or maybe you can just chill out? I swear people still take video games and crappy forum talk too seriously...

We're on page 4.....

@skywake Yes, thank you for your enlightening observation.

One wonders why those who seek to create drama are the most fragile when people disagree. Something to that I think. Anyways, to respond directly to this post:

From my perspective, as one of the people who has commented in the thread who thinks it is worth it. Three points about my situation that disagree with this assertion:
1. I have a Steam Deck and a decent PC. I have other means to play modern third party titles
2. I have to this point purchased no multiplatform titles for Nintendo's hardware (Switch or Switch 2) since the release of the Switch 2. I would have purchased Hades 2 but I already had it on Steam. I would have got Mina the Hollower but it was delayed
3. The third party titles on the Switch 2 thus far, excluding some of the smaller titles which fit well within the Switch 2's capabilities (think indies and the like) do not really factor into what I like about the Switch or the Switch 2. Even remotely

The Switch 2 is appealing because it's very capable for how compact and portable. And then additionally because of how soft the generational transition from the Switch has been and how low friction it is to swap between play modes. It's all the things I liked about the Switch, just with hardware from this decade

Maybe for the funny haha's, and not taking anything seriously in throw away forums?

Y'all have too much time and money on your hands, but how you all waste them is your business.

@NotASockPuppet
I mean, you are also on this forum making posts. Pots and Kettles and all that jazz. And in terms of expense what are we talking about? Let's be real, it's not like the other platforms are cheaper

Also let's just sit back and bask in the irony of someone who made a post saying "let's summarise the thread" both failing to accurately summarise the thread and then proceed to suggest that other people have too much time on their hands

@NotASockPuppet That's at least two posts in a short space of time where you belittle this forum. Reflect on that and what you're doing here, because I'm not sure anyone's getting much positive out of it currently, other than a growing Ignore list.

For me, I own consoles just for the physical editions. I like the install & play factor. PC does not offer that to this extend (except GOG, where I can make myself kind of physical edition of a flash drive).

Currently the Switch 2 does not offer me enough of this. If I want to play digital only games on a handheld I will just play them on my Steam Deck.

I hope, next year there will be more games that are as normal editions (not GKC). Then the Switch 2 will be worth it to me