I'm just surprised it doesn't fit into the standard dock.. i think selling a switch with no joy cons but the ability to play on tv is worth the $200 price tag. Not trying to dog it too much but you're getting 1/3 of the capability for 2/3 the cost of a standard unit. I really think it's worth $150 with the lack of features but $200 does kinda seem high to me. That's TO ME folks. I'm sure it's worth it for others but im just saying
Edit: it may not be 1/3 of the capability since you can technology play table top mode ( or connect joy con wirelessly) but not having t.v. mode is definitely feeling like 1/2 the capability but not half the cost. I dk.. guess I might be good for the kids.
Sorry for caps, but seriously. This reminds me of the Wii U branding mess-up all over again. Can you imagine the number of people (mostly parents) who are gonna see this for 200 bucks and be like, "Sweet! A Switch for 200 bucks!", buy it, and then get belligerent when it's like SURPRISE I'M CALLED A SWITCH BUT I DON'T DO THE ACTUAL SWITCH THING!
I just don't get it. Why does Nintendo do this to themselves?
Because they need it to have the same name as the main console but the name happens to no longer make sense.
Lol it's like when they stupidly called an art movement "modernism", but then time passed and it was no longer modern.
I agree the ability to dock would have increased value, however, let's put this into perspective.
The 3DS XL sold for $200. And that thing had a 240p screen, 30 second loading times to do anything like eShop or Miiverse, and games couldn't even match GameCube level graphics.
The LiteSwitch, on the other hand, is the exact same price and offers waaaaay more power for the price. Even compared to Vita, its offering way more power for a lower price, and with standard microSD cards (and way better games, more of them, and a truckload of other advantages too numerous to list).
If 3DS can sell 75 million units at the same price point (granted, prices dropped at the end of the gen but same will happen for Switch) just imagine how LiteSwitch will do. It's just way more bang for your buck than a 3DS ever was.
Current gen console-quality games on an HD handheld with a full button set and clickable analogs and gyro, instant and snappy UI with the absolute best games on the market without being scaled down to cheap handheld-grade games with chibi faces... is a lot of value for a $199 handheld, whether it docks or not. 3DS and Vita didnt dock and managed just fine at $200-250 (well, 3DS did, Vita didn't, but that had nothing to do with price). LiteSwitch vs New 3DS XL just highlights how much more you're getting for your money.
"Nintendo Switch" is just the brand name at this point, and I don't know to what the degree the public even consciously connects it to the hybrid functionality. Not including the word "Switch" in the name would confuse the hell out of normal people.
My biggest worry about this is that it will disincentivize them from making the more graphically advanced and large scale games like BotW and Xenoblade 2.
If the Lite is really successful, it will push them more in the direction of handheld-targeting games.
For example, they did comment at one point about Mario Galaxy and saying it would never work on a handheld because you need a bigger screen for that style of game.
Bah, such a disappointing week on the Japanese eShop. I'm eager to see language support for Japanese exclusive physical releases, Dead or School and Oninaki specifically since their releases are next month. Today...nothing, after a third of the "coming soon" section had been refreshed. Perhaps next week then.
And yes, I know Play-Asia has Oninaki listed as multi-language. However, Nin Nin has it listed as Japanese only. So who do I trust? My own eyes, that's who. Japanese eShop confirmation or bust.
Switch Physical Collection - 1,561 games (as of April 18th, 2026)
Switch 2 Physical Collection - 4 games (as of December 8th, 2025)
Nintendo isn’t gonna stop making certain types of games just because one variant of their hardware doesn’t dock.
There’s nothing to “worry” about here. Let’s not make this out to be more than it is. It’s a cheaper model Switch. That’s it. They’re not going to start changing the games they make or any jazz like that. Switch will be at 40 million units sold when LiteSwitch releases, and judging by their demographic survey only 1/3 of gamers play purely in handheld. Yet even if 50% of sales went to the lite, the original model is still going to continue growing at the same exact rate. By the time 10 mil LiteSwitches are on the market, 50+ million normal models will be in consumer hands. They’re not going to change their design philosophy against 50 mil (and still growing) people. When comments were made about Mario Galaxy, their idea of a handheld was a 4 inch 240p screen. Things have changed. Not everything has to have some deeper meaning or consequence. It’s just a cheaper Switch.
Thinking about it now, I think we're better off just sharing a Switch. It would be nice to have it separately, I just think it'll probably not be worth the money. Eh.
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I don’t think the Switch Pro will be dock mode only, (for Nintendo at least) the handheld market is always more successful for them, than their dedicated consoles of that respective generation.
I reckon the Lite will get a typical rush of early sales, topped up by Pokémon and Animal Crossing releasing, and then the sales will stall, resulting in a price cut by June 2020. $200 is too close to the Switch price, and you're not getting detachable controllers, a dock, an option to dock, LABO support, integrated HD Rumble. And the Lite is not even much more portable - detach the joy cons from a regular Switch and the tablet is no bigger (maybe even a bit smaller) than the Lite, and detaching the controllers is probably preferable if pocketing anyway.
The Lite will find a market at $200, but not a very sustainable one I reckon.
You guys had me at blood and semen.
What better way to celebrate than firing something out of the pipe?
I think you underestimate the appeal of a $200 handheld, and overestimate the appeal of things like docking and detachable controllers to a person who isnt yet sold on a system that docks and has detachable controllers. And even for people who are sold, they still might not want to spend more than $200.
I know its hard to envision why people would want to get a handheld from the pov of someone who doesnt, but if there's one thing history has shown us, it's that there's a MASSIVE handheld audience out there, and many of them have not bought a Switch yet.
And LABO moved like a million units at most per release. Respectable for sure, but not something thats going to persuade people against getting a handheld who want a handheld. HD Rumble is neat but again, not something thats going to persuade someone to pay $100 more whose primary interest is handheld mode, or whose primary concern is cost.
And that's just the thing. To say LiteSwitch will fall off is to say nobody wants handhelds anymore, and every person on the planet would rather have a hybrid. Its simply not true. I like hybrid, we all like hybrid, but I assure you, there's plenty who would rather pay less and just get a smaller handheld.
And I think it's a little silly to argue against that given the 30 year handheld market and even Nintendo's demographics data showing 1 in 3 Switch owners only play handheld, and that's from biased data given people had no other choice but to buy in at $300 if they only wanted handheld. That percentage will skew higher when people are offered a lower cost choice. I'm quite sure sales will spike at launch and for Pokemon Animal Crossing, but I'm not seeing a permanent price cut until the next revision drops. There's too much demand out there.
I mean sure. We can say Nintendo WONT stop making games for TV Mode because of a new SKU that doesn't feature it.
But they also stopped making games with 3D on the 3DS line when it became clear usage data showed less slider use on 3DS systems and high sales of 2DS systems.
So if a normal Switch sees more handheld use and the Lite predictably sells well...history has a precedent.
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I reckon the Lite will get a typical rush of early sales, topped up by Pokémon and Animal Crossing releasing, and then the sales will stall, resulting in a price cut by June 2020. $200 is too close to the Switch price, and you're not getting detachable controllers, a dock, an option to dock, LABO support, integrated HD Rumble. And the Lite is not even much more portable - detach the joy cons from a regular Switch and the tablet is no bigger (maybe even a bit smaller) than the Lite, and detaching the controllers is probably preferable if pocketing anyway.
The Lite will find a market at $200, but not a very sustainable one I reckon.
I wouldn't count on a price cut before 2021. We will see it cheaper in some stores, and we will see bundles, but the MSRP will be 199 for the foreseeable future.
The tablet part of the standard switch is smaller. The width of the lite is an inch smaller, and the height is half an inch smaller. So it is a bit smaller, but still nowhere near the size and portability of the 3ds. But it isn't an issue, since most people play at home.
But yes, stuff like no labo/Mario party/coop support is why I think it is a bad family/kid version. The handheld is for solitary gamers, not families.
@Knuckles-Fajita Fortunately, there is a difference. 3D probably took resources to implement. A 1080p mode should already exist, assuming the game gets downgraded anyway to get it to run properly. So it wouldn't take a lot of effort to put in a TV mode, considering it kinda exists already anyway with every game developed.
Question.
Who have ever played Dragon Quest Builders 2 (Switch) Japan version ?
I want to know about frame rate progress when there are too many blocks and objects around.
From i watched from Youtube, i saw frame rate dropped from 30 fps to around 20 fps.
Even the PS4 version did struggle too from 60 fps to 30fps.
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