Topic: The Nintendo Switch Thread

The really stupid thing there is that a portable only SKU doesn't make any sense. Because if we used our brains we'd realise that a portable only Switch would basically be the Switch as it is. I mean what does that SKU not have that the Switch does other than the dock? Is selling the Switch without the dock really going to change what the Switch is? If you really want a portable only SKU put your dock on eBay.

At least with a home console only Switch you're selling an entirely different product. It seems a bit stupid to me if they were to go through all that R&D and then just ignore it entirely. But they could do it and it would be cheaper. No Screen, no battery and you could add in a 2.5" HDD for good measure. Though my gut feeling is that such a SKU would sit on the shelf given you're effectively killing the Switch's major point of difference. You'd also make it incompatible with any touch screen games.

@skywake I reckon the next SKU for Switch will be a phone version. At the moment you have to plug your phone in for thje voice app, but a mobile phone / home console hybrid might make sense. Who knows where this 20 year NVidia partnership could go, but it is unlikely to just go down the path of raw horse power. It would open up some amazing AR opportunites which Reggie recently suggested. (Of course, it would be mega expensive so likely bought via a subscription from a phone company lol)

@GrailUK
Well I was just saying that a home console SKU makes more sense than a portable SKU but that doesn't mean I think either is sensible. And a "phone" SKU to me seems a little bit too NGage to work. Remember that the Vita launched with and not long after discontinued a 3G SKU. I think people have already voted with their wallets enough times on that idea.

That's not to say that I don't think some revision down the road couldn't happen. I just think that if we were to get one it's more likely going to be something along the lines of a "New Switch" or a "Switch Pro".

I really wish docking the Switch wouldn't automatically turn it on 100% of the time. Sometimes I'm playing in portable mode and just want to dock it to charge it for the night, not have to turn on the TV, switch the HDMI cable, and find the controller just to turn it off.

@Haru17 This is why I bought a 2nd charger, so I have 1 charger for playing in docked mode and 1 charger for charging up the console when I'm not using it.

If you put it in standby mode first it doesn't.....

This seems to be the prevailing attitude around here - 'Something similar was tried before and didn't take off, so it won't work'.

Does my head in. Nintendo tried the Virtual Boy once, but it doesn't mean VR won't establish. Tech changes and cultural changes mean once 'bad' ideas can and do become good ideas further down the line.

In 20 years time, provided some catastrophic economic collapse doesn't occur, we will have seen a successful portable device combining smartphone functionality and 'core' gaming will have happened. Don't know when or who will do it, but it's inevitable.

Ugh, this is very bad!

We're not talking about an idea that is bad because the technology isn't there and I don't know how culture is stopping people buying more phones. It's just an idea that misunderstands both devices.

A smartphone is at its core a device of utility, it's a Swiss army knife of communication. If it loses its charge you're effectively cut-off from the world. If it doesn't have a full app library consumers will ignore it. Even worse for a newcomer there are already two well established players who's ecosystems people are already invested in. Basically the ideal smartphone is a multi-purpose, reliable, compact device with a huge battery

By comparison a console is a very single task orientated entertainment device. They're devices that by design push the CPU/GPU hard and therefore chew through your battery. They also heavily restrict what can run in the background in order to maximise performance for the game itself. They're devices that have super locked down app stores in an effort to avoid the piracy of software. So their app stores by design can't have everything. And ontop of all that they need a comfortable grip and full array of buttons and triggers which adds bulk.

The only way a "gaming phone" makes sense is if it's just a regular console with mobile connectivity. The issue there is that if you have a smartphone you can tether your console to your smartphone. A 4G enabled portable console is a solution to a problem that doesn't exist. A Nintendo-phone would be a downgrade.

I wake up and the same fight over what it is, isnt and all that is raging on. Come on guys. Really?

@JaxonH the click noise only happens when attaching the JoyCon to the system not when docking the system

@Grumblevolcano I think XC2 wont be there because its XC2 + UK. This a place where I could play XCX and be asked "What is that K-pop trash" by everyone around me. XC isnt a hit over here and probably never will be so they are wiser to tailor what they show to who.

Why is it bad?

@BLP_Software Interesting. You'd think that The Netherlands would have the same kind of attitude, but funnily enough Fire Emblem: Awakening was on the top of the 3DS charts when it launched for quite some time. I personally don't much like how they've designed Pyra and that Hikari character, but that's a personal thing. I've seen enough complaining over like-wise looking characters to last me 10 lifetimes.

For those interested, Nintendo has opened a Skyrim teaser site: http://skyrim.nintendo.com/

Interesting to note that it's Nintendo opening it, and not Bethesda.

Edit: I also am not going to give another response the previous argument, since it's quite clear people are getting annoyed over it.

@Therad Because (imho) achievements are useless trash that fill the system and bothers those (like myself) who don't care about it with useless and pointless in game messages and data shoved down your throath that you cannot avoid by any means even if you find it stupid and pointless.
@UmniKnight I can't wait for this game!!!

@BLP_Software XCX was at EGX 2015 though.

The way I read it it wasn't really an argument over what the Switch was and wasn't. If it was it shouldn't have been. The more interesting question is whether or not the Switch concept itself is where all of the consoles are headed. I was trying to argue that Nintendo have been rocketing towards this concept for decades. IMO the only surprising thing about the Switch is that it happened as soon as it did.

Sure Nintendo were the first but even so, who cares whether it's a home console or a portable. Ultimately as technology continues to shrink just about everything will become portable. So why should there even be a distinction between the two?

@skywake Because people themselves won't always be portable, and if there was no value in a big screen experience, then there'd only be a couple of people to own a PS4/Xbox One. Try sitting primarily at home for 7+ years due to circumstances, you'll appreciate a good screen then, ohh yes.

I've been thinking before about BOTW and how it's maybe a precursor and almost a test on Nintendo's part to see if people are interested in Achievements.

Some of those are achievements in their own way and require serious effort. I wonder if Nintendo are monitoring how many people got Hestu's Gift. It does nothing, looks like a turd, takes a monumental amount of time and effort to get when in reality you really only need about just over half of the seeds to unlock all the weapon and shield slots. It would be nice to share achievements like this more widely. I posted that image on Miiverse but that'll end soon and perhaps they're working on a more intuitive way of sharing them and rewarding players for their efforts.

@UmniKnight Just because it's portable doesn't mean it can't be connected to your TV...