Topic: The Nintendo Switch Thread

@1UP_MARIO I doubt it. The standard price of GameCube games was €50, I don't see why it would've been any different in Ireland.

@Octane that’s what it was here too in the uk. We had them for 30 to 45 pounds first year of release.

It’s just sad that @ninfan got ripped off.

@1UP_MARIO it was €200 along with about 10 other games made by that fella that makes Mario games. All the rest, about 590 of them were around €50.

@Ninfan Those weren't official prices then. I think you got ripped off.

@Grumblevolcano The difference is that music costs you 99 cents (or nothing for some people) and about 4-5 minutes of your time before you can listen to other things. Xenoblade is costing you $60 and sucks your life away. I would just rather play a new giant RPG if I'm going to spend that much money and time than something I've already played to death before, and I still have my Wii U hooked up if I really want to play it again (I know many people don't). I was just wondering others' thoughts because it doesn't make much sense to me.

@Octane why where did you buy them ?

@Ninfan At any store really. It was €50 at launch.

1 There are only so many great retro games worth playing. There are some absolute standouts and the remaining 95% is just crap most people don’t want to waste their time playing. Everyone loves the classics, and wants to experience them again from time to time.

2 Having great games for the first time on an HD hybrid system is a huge draw. Much more so than just getting them on a system with slightly better frame rate or resolution.

3 After 5-10 years it’s just like any movie- you can barely remember what happened and it feels like a brand new experience if you were to play it again. People remember loving these games, like Xenoblade, soooo much, and want to experience that feeling again. And they know they will because they remember feeling that way the first time they played it. And that competes on the exact same playing field as new games. Because if it’s been 5-10 years it’s going to feel almost just like a new game anyways, except people know they’ll love it, while with new games it can be a gamble.

4 And still yet for others, it’s about posterity. Having all your favorite games on one current system that allows you to enjoy it in HD (many Wii games were 360p or 240p on 3DS, like Xenoblade) any way you see fit, whether it be on the TV or in handheld mode, with Gyro or split joy con, Pro controller or local multiplayer. Or even just the convenience of easy on/off sleep mode.

5 And lastly, many people simply haven’t played the games, or played them somewhat but never finished. And this is an opportunity for them to actually get back and play through the entire game.

These are but a small handful of reasons. There are even more I haven’t mentioned, I’m sure.

edit

6 Added content and improvements. While it’s usually not enough on its own it can be enough to push someone over the edge. Because we don’t live in a black-and-white world where people have 0% interest in replaying a game or 100% interest in replaying a game. Typically their interest falls somewhere in the middle. Take Sonic 2 on Switch, for example. Knuckles content added in (unlike many past releases people may have played), near zero latency, save states, complete button remapping customization, Ring Keep Mode, drop dash from Sonic Mania, and more. It’s the definitive version of the game and, that just compiles with the added value of being on a hybrid system. Which goes to show it’s not just one of these factors at play, it can be several factors are combining together to push a person’s interest over the threshold of deeming a game worthwhile to purchase.

Xenoblade will have the Bionis’ shoulder added into the game, which was planned in the original but never actually implemented in the final product. Graphics have been overhauled, it’s releasing on an HD system and a handheld hybrid system with that, There’s actually dual analog controls for the camera for the first time ever (unless you used the Wii Pro Controller, but that thing was horrible having a 12 inch tether to a Wiimote, or the C-stick on New 3DS which... ya). All of this is cumulative toward the tipping point for the person who decides to replay a game.

@DarthNocturnal
Everybody’s got their numbers 😁

@JaxonH Those are mostly good points, although I would eliminate 5 because like I said of course it makes sense for those who have never played them. That's why I've been excited for all the ports like Skyrim, Witcher, Cuphead, etc., because I've never played them. I think number 4 is the best reason, simple ease of having everything together. The one game I've been tempted to get is Okami even though I already have it on Wii simply for the simplicity of playing it on Switch, and maybe if it ever goes on a good enough sale I will. It's just a matter of priorities, I guess. And I'm thinking mostly of the people for whom number 3 is a moot point because they say Xenoblade is one of their favorite games ever. And most people on here complain about fans of the other systems thinking graphics are everything, so number 2 probably doesn't apply for most Nintendo fans, either (or at least not that much, but I guess it's good as a tipping point if you are on the fence). Anyways, I'm not saying anyone is wrong or anything. It just seems the excitement and desire for it is out of proportion for what it is. I would rather something new, but that's just me.

@Octane I didn't say all gamecube games where €200, I just said them 10 I mentioned.

@Ninfan
Check from playasia for Gamecube games.

@Xyphon22
I think alot of people mistakenly believe Nintendo gamers don't care about graphics, which is the farthest thing from the truth. Everybody cares about graphics, even Nintendo gamers.

When Nintendo gamers downplay graphics, they don't mean to say graphics don't matter at all, only that they are overvalued and should not be the defining selling point of a game over gameplay. Furthermore, most remasters on other systems are only graphical updates and nothing else, but more importantly, they are often graphical updates for games that were already HD in the first place. That's a much less appealing selling point than graphical improvements for games like Xenoblade where it's a jump from the SD, Wii graphics era to modern HD era. Or for Switch ports that were on PS3 (like Metro Redux) that are getting the same graphical improvements PS4 got, that's not the defining selling point on Switch. The hybrid advantage is the defining selling point, with graphics just sweetening the pot.

Nintendo gamers love graphics. It's definitely a contributing selling point. They're just not worth sacrificing the hybrid advantage for to gain a marginal jump over an already-HD Switch version, at least in most cases (exceptions like high downgrade ports aside). Or in many cases, they're not even worth sacrificing gyro over, or the convenience of the Switch ecosystem.

So it's not that people don't appreciate graphics, they just don't outweigh all these other aspects that matter more. But if you have all that and then add great graphics on top, then you've got a real banger.

Ordered a replacement shell for my Pro controller and my SO's backplate. I love how customizable the Switch is, both officially and otherwise. Now all I need is a properly sized SD card to store all the digital games I've ended up buying.

@Xyphon22 There's a plethora of reasons that range between people, but for me, in some cases, it's nice to have a complete collection on one system. Like, I rebought the Mega Man collections and will the Zero/ZX collections as then I will have pretty near the entire series on my current console to easily play at any time. Otherwise owning the originals entails having multiple consoles (or even the later collections that weren't all released on the same system).
Or it could be having a classic game on a better console. I wasn't a fan of the Wii and the Wii U is super clunky and not great to use (in my opinion), so having the entire Xenoblade series on a console I love would be great.

@Ninfan Which games? Viewtiful Joe was certainly not €200.

@Xyphon22

For me it's down to 3 things, some are the same as what Jaxon said:

1) It's an incredibly unique game and you just can't get that same experience elsewhere, so your only choice is to replay the same thing. Something like Portal/Portal 2 fits in here.

2) It's a massive open-ended game where several playthroughs can mean several entirely different experiences. In Breath of the Wild for example, I deliberately did half the shrines in my first playthrough and then did the other half in my second playthrough (along with the DLC). That really was like playing 2 different games.

3) It's been so long since you played something that you can't remember the details, and so especially if it's coming with a visual upgrade, it can easily feel like a new game to you. Something like the Spyro Trilogy for example, I hadn't played for 20 years. I remembered almost nothing about the levels. All I remembered was that they were incredibly good games.

It's definitely not just down to the quality of the game though. There are plenty of games that I think are brilliant but would never play again. Something like Uncharted 2 for example, is an unbelievable game, but at the same time, it's incredibly linear so every playthrough would be exactly the same AND it's been replicated in pretty much the same level of quality in Uncharted 3,4 and Lost Legacy.

Thank you, if only more people understood that. I'm perfectly capable of appreciating good graphics (I do have a top end gaming PC), but if the game they're on isn't good then graphics can only do so much. Like, there's always the few rare exceptions that are worth playing despite being mostly pretty to look at, the Avatars of gaming if you will, but generally speaking it's not my top priority.

Though, that's why Witcher 3 having PC / Switch cross-saves is such a selling point for me, I get the best of both worlds with no sacrifices (well other than costing more...)

@Xyphon22 Personally, there's a few reasons for me:
1. I was forced to sell old hardware by my parents as a kid. So having VC access to titles I'd lost is great.
2. There's a ton of amazing older games I've never played. For example, last year I started the Devil May Cry series, and the year before the Doom series finally. Not to mention finally playing Okami for the first time on Switch.
3. Xenoblade in particular is interesting because I never was able to finish (not even close) the original despite how much I loved it (I was actually still occassionally playing up to the announcement of the Definitive Edition). As a portable title I could actually finish it. While that was an option with the 3DS version, the graphics cuts were too harsh for me to pick it up.

@link3710
Right.

Graphics only really carry a lot of weight when the alternative is significantly downgraded (such as with games that were on 240p-360p systems beforehand). And cutting edge AAA games on Switch also fit that bill, but even so, it’s often still not enough to make me want to play elsewhere, because the hybrid advantage + gyro outweighs it.

The Witcher 3 offers the hybrid advantage which in and of itself was enough to sell me on it despite already owning it. But now that we can get not just hybrid portable play, but also the best graphics money can buy through cross saves, that’s a winning combination of the highest order. The fact so many people appreciated the latest update which improved visual fidelity on the handheld just goes to show that graphics are always a selling point... they’re just one selling point among many others, and not the be-all-end-all deciding factor.

@link3710 @JaxonH Yeah, that's why I said that the graphics upgrade could be a good tipping point for people on the fence about re-buying a game, but I don't see it being the main reason for most Nintendo gamers. For me, personally, I don't care and am perfectly fine with my SD Wii version, but others may differ. And obviously if you never finished or even played it at all before than this doesn't apply. I rebought Ni no Kuni on Switch even though I had it on PS3 because I never play my PS3 and only got about halfway through it years ago. But even then I waited for a good sale, and by selling my PS3 version it only cost about $10.