Topic: The Nintendo Switch Rumor and Speculation Thread

@NeonPizza
Yea, the N64 games especially I can feel the lag on NSO.

Retro gaming does get expensive, so for now I'm just a DS/Gameboy collector because I already owned those consoles back from when I was a kid and then a teenager. Tons of amazing games you can get for 20-30 bucks as long as you aren't going CIB.

I have a really awesome retro game store (like the kind you can see on Youtube) about 40 minutes from my house. They have everything, it's such a fun place, and I do plan on getting into SNES collecting within the next year or so, depending on what Nintendo is doing with the Switch 2.

@rallydefault
Curious what your thoughts are on those GB(C) screen mods that have become a bit more accessible. Was something I looked at for a bit but ultimately decided that GB emulation is good enough. If I was going to spend ~$100AU or so on a bit of GB nostalgia I was better off just getting a portable emulation box that worked well with GB. And if I'm going to play on my original GB or GBC I'll do it on the original screen

.......... those OLED GBC mods are tempting though

@skywake
Funny you ask, because I did buy a GBC last year and was considering going with an updated screen.

So, in America at least, if you go through Ebay you're generally looking at about twice the price if you wanna get a modded screen. So, like 180 bucks instead of 90ish. If you get a screen kit and do it yourself, you can save maybe 20 bucks. That's for the backlit LCD stuff and some of the OLED. They even have touch-capable OLED screens that will run a little more.

For me, and again I know I seem absolutely bonkers, I decided to go with entirely original hardware. And it really wasn't about the money at all. (I think anybody who gets into retro stuff but wants to pinch pennies is just asking for trouble, but that's another discussion.) I really do value playing games the way they were originally envisioned and made to be played. So, I bought a totally original lime-green GBC for like 60 bucks. I even opened it up and replaced the capacitors myself after it was having some power-down issues in the middle of playing a game.

My Gameboy is the very same one I had as a kid, and I haven't modded it at all. It's still going strong 30 years later, pretty crazy.

I just think some of this modding stuff is losing the point of retro gaming... like, at what point does the GB(C) become something else entirely when you've completely modded the screen, changed the shell (many times to a non-OEM shell that changes the feel of the entire machine), and sometimes even added/modified the buttons? At that point, I would argue you're no longer looking for the retro experience itself, you're looking for a portable way to play the old portable games. And there's nothing wrong with that, but like you said you were considering, I would just recommend going with one of the newer 3rd-party emulation boxes as those things are going to do what you want without the annoyances of the original hardware.

Sorry for the long response, but from my experience, what you REALLY need to consider is: the cost of games. I don't know how those emulation boxes work exactly (and I don't truly want to know in terms of legality lol), but if you do go with an original GB or even one with just the screen modded, you need to factor in having to pony up the cash to buy every single game that you want to play.

@NeonPizza
I agree with most of that, and you have an interesting tip of trying something new (which I do want to do with some of the SNES stuff).

Now, I'm not saying I've unlocked the secret to life or anything, but I will say this for my own experience thus far: I don't buy anything for my collection that I don't plan on playing to completion at least once. I absolutely refuse to buy anything just to display it on a shelf or something. I don't buy anything sealed, and when I buy CIB it's only because the price is reasonable. I don't mind paying 60 dollars for a Gamebody game from the 90s because, honestly, I'm going to get as much time and fun out of it as most of the 60-dollar games I buy today. Case-in-point, I just finished my second playthrough of Super Mario Land 2: Six Golden Coins yesterday, and I've been going back for a few minutes here and there to get the secret levels. I play through my copy of Super Mario Land probably once a month (gosh I love that game, I've probably beaten it dozens and dozens of times), and I have a copy of Metal Gear for GBC that I come back to almost every year.

I think it is strictly impossible to recapture lost memories because you can never fully replicate your life from that moment in time, but these old games still give me tons of joy, and they bring me back to a time when a game could be fun and rewarding to play for 15 minutes.

So, for now, my collection is manageable and relatively small. I'm not in a race to fill shelves, and I don't show it off to people outside of really close friends and family. I'm just gonna continue taking it at my own pace and only making purchases when I want to play something. (I'm on a leisurely hunt at the moment for a copy of Darkwing Duck for Gameboy - prices are a little high at the moment.)

The one I got shipped with a microSD card full of ROMs so there's that. For what it's worth I removed it and added my own set of ROMs. And I use a rule of only adding ROMs for games I have on cartridge, bought on VC, have on the SNES mini or are on NSO which I'm subscribed to. Although I did make an exception for Mother 3, X and the Neo Geo Pocket Colour.....

Also Cave Story because Cave Story

Is that technically within what Nintendo would consider reasonable use? Probably not. But the way I see it I'm giving them significantly more money through NSO+ than I would be through a secondhand game store (i.e. nothing). Plus the main benefit is the form factor and, well, the existence of Pokemon

If Nintendo made a Switch Micro that had NSO I'd probably use that instead

@skywake
Oh man, I think Nintendo is leaving sooooooooooo much money on the table by not making a GBC "mini" loaded with dozens of games, all fully on the up and up. They could even let you hook it up to the internet to download more stuff for 10 bucks a pop or something. They would sell millions of the things. Millions.

The more reputable handheld makers don't include pirated games. Retroid handhelds come with a bunch of emulators installed, but you've got to supply the games, BIOS files, encryption keys, and so on. Aya Neo, AYN Odin, and GPD devices don't even come with emulators, just a bare Android or Windows install.

So far as an official handheld from Nintendo goes, there's not much of a gap in the market between the Game & Watch, at the collectable novelty end, and the Switch Lite which, after all, already gives you access to a good chunk of the GBC library if you've got an NSO subscription.

I can see them making further Game & Watches, which may include some GBC games, but probably not a dedicated device.

I'd been thinking of some kind of NSO only retro device as well, but I'd imagined it as a GBA SP clamshell design. I can imagine Nintendo would be interested if they thought it would either grow, or support renewal of NSO subs. I can't imagine they'd bother with a device that just had a few dozen games like that NES or SNES minis. That concept seems a bit 'last decade' now. I do think there is a gap in the market for it between Game and Watch (~£50 GBP) and Switch Lite (still £199 GBP). Or maybe that's just because the Lite is overpriced in the UK?

I can see the Lite dropping to 100 bucks by the Holidays.

I mean, it’s not confirmation of widespread 4k support but I mean…

@NarwhalKing
Beat me to it. Not enough here to assume it's actually catering for Switch 2 but there's a fair bit of smoke there. I mean if you were to code a game on Switch to cater for the capabilities of Switch 2 the resolution the display is running at would be a decent way to do it. And it'd also mean handheld mode on Switch 2 runs at "docked settings"

TTYD 4k no way

I love how TTYD looks on Switch, so making it look even better would be exciting! I’m content with TTYD how it is, but I won’t say no to more if this actually hinted at something!

Someone has also already made a mod for it that allows it to run at 60fps. Which to me suggests that the game is written in such a way that it's flexible with the framerate, which doesn't sound like much but it's not something that's always guaranteed. Plenty of games when you try to run at higher framerates than the original hardware supported it'll break stuff like cutscenes....

Yet more weight to the idea that TTYD possibly supports a "Switch 2 mode" out of the box

Seems pretty cut and dry.

Nintendo would have been well aware someone was going to find that, so I also view this as a relatively subtle advertisement for Switch 2. Pretty cool!

Sorry but... I know this is decompiled so it's not really readable but....
I have to do this for my own sanity....

v8 = *(_QWORD *)(a1 + 12384);
if ( *(_DWORD *)(a1+12424) == 3840 && *(_DWORD *)(a1+12428) == 2160)
{
v9 = 2160LL;
v10 = 3840LL;
return;
}
if (*v2)
{
v9 = 1080LL;
v10 = 1920LL;
return;
}

v9 = 720LL;
v10 = 1280LL;
return;

Oh boy. Midori, everyone’s favorite SEGA and Atlus leaker is claiming to have two Mario game’s codenames. Those being SPRed (in development), and more interestingly, SilverStar, which “was a project”. RedStar was Odyssey’s code name, so take of all those what you will.

Personally, I am kinda concerned hearing the words “was a project” next to a codename that is pretty similar to Odyssey. If it’s possible DLC or a direct sequel that just couldn’t get off the ground internally, I would be extremely disappointed we never got more odyssey.

As for Midori, this might be the end for them if it’s legit. Leaking Nintendo is always flying to close to the sun for leakers like this.

@NarwhalKing Games get cancelled all the time. Nothing to be concerned about lol. Besides, 'was' could also mean it's finished and Nintendo are sitting on it waiting for it's position in the road map.

@GrailUK I know the opinion on Odyssey has become more divisive over time, but for me personally, I really really hope it’s not cancelled. It’s my third favorite game of all time and I’d be beyond happy to see Mario stick with the format and formula it did. Even if it wasn’t called Odyssey 2, if it kept the same structure of kingdoms and captures, I would be so happy.

@NarwhalKing I trust Nintendo, so if they have a different idea for the next 3D Mariogame, I'm sure it will be for a good reason

SPRed is likely the next Mainline Mario game.

SilverStar was likely a canceled side game based off of Mario Odyssey.

-

Also I’m all for a TTYD upgrade. Playing the game right now and it looks great (definitely some of the best graphics on Switch), but looking even better is also welcome!