Topic: The Nintendo Switch Thread

Analysts are projecting Switch sells 20+ million units again next year, which seems like a fairly safe bet.

It might be childish of me, but after the massive amount of trolling we saw online when the system was announced, I hope Nintendo drags this gen out a few more years. Release a more powerful Switch revision and seize the best-selling console record from the PS2.

It did seem like every month one more troll would quietly drop off the Switch sales article comments.

Nintendo did a fantastic marketing job with early era Switch. It's really a case study in how to do almost everything right. Even the decisions that had some people on these boards spitting feathers at the time.

Ironically I think marketing-wise they've slipped a little since though - the games selection isn't pitching itself to all segments quite as strongly and the messaging has become weaker. We've seen some "Wii-style" adverts for some games but not all (and not backed up by the big nostalgia hit of giving Switch a port of "Wii Sports"), huge monster hits have been allowed to wither a little a year after launch (particularly thinking of Mario Odyssey, Splatoon 2 and Animal Crossing) and I think the delays to Bayonnetta 3, BoTW 2 and Metroid Prime 4 mean that those games won't hit at the console's high water mark.

I worry (a little) that the audience for "core gamer" games like that might have moved on to the PS5 and XBox Series before those games eventually arrive or that - like Skyward Sword on Wii - that they get compared to contempary games on other consoles that look and run better and they will be slightly underwhelming sales-wise. Ultimately this is the sort of thing that might affect how people look back on the legacy of the Switch long term.

Anybody who is into platformers definitely needs to check out Kaze and the Wild Masks.

Tight platforming, VERY much a spiritual love letter to DKC games, right down to level designs, enemies, and the roll-off-platforms-and-then-jump mechanics. I like that it sticks with solid core mechanics and doesn't try to constantly layer new abilities on you - it stays pretty classic and uncluttered. (Some may not like that, though.)

It is one of those pixelated indies, which I've pretty much had enough of that style, but the gameplay is rock solid and such a comfort game. Challenge is medium, I would say. Most of the regular levels a seasoned player can one-shot while getting everything, but some bonus rooms are cleverly hidden, and the bonus stages (on the actual world screens) can provide some nice challenge.

And it's available on physical!

@StuTwo The trolls were the embodiement of this image:

Gatorboi was the worst, oh my gosh.

I swear that dude was paid salary by a competing platform to troll and sway public opinion against Switch as much as possible, knowing ppl like backing a winning horse. That or they were just the most immature, childish person I've ever seen. And they weren't the only one, but they were the one I remember most consistently.

at launch
"You Nintendo fans just suck on the spigot of manure Nintendo feeds you, always trash games on trash systems with trash fanboys defending it. This flop of a system won't even hit Wii U numbers, just watch"

12 months in
"What an epic fail this console is. Nothing but trash ports and shovelware you idiots eat up because it has the Nintendo name on it. As soon as the loyalist fanboys dry up this system will crash and burn. I predict lifetime sales 30m tops"

24 months in
[Crickets...]

That's not even making mention of the embarrassment seen over at PushSqare. Not so much insulting fans, but the sentiment of, "trash system, worst idea for a console in history, will flop worse than Wii U, it's the countdown to Mario on PS boys! But Vita was the GOAT btw" was pretty much unanimous among anyone that didn't also frequent this site.

Idk what it is about Nintendo that instills such vehement hatred in ppl. I don't think I've ever seen reactions like that, even in the PS/Xbox console war.

@JaxonH I get the feeling a lot of these people on Push Square were incredibly angry that Nintendo hadn’t gone third party yet and were trying to spread doom and gloom in the hopes it would make it happen. Sega going third party I’ve been told is when this all started. Of course there’s massive differences between how and why they had to go third party.

Even now I’ve seen real hatred for Nintendo like when the Switch sales surpass a PlayStation console’s lifetime sales. The goal posts suddenly move or it shouldn’t count because the Switch isn’t a console. It’s incredible.

I want to say I dread Nintendo going third-party (not saying it will ever happen, just the possibility), but I don't even really know what that would look like for the games industry.

On the positive, I guess they would be able to focus ALL of their energy on game development, so maybe the games would be better? But on the other hand, we could probably wave goodbye to a quality handheld option for quite some time. Probably wouldn't get any more quirky stuff like LABO, RingFit, etc.

I just don't know. Like many industries, the games industry is facing a decade of incredible change. What's going to happen with VR and augmented reality? Cloud gaming? Valve's continuing efforts at hardware? The continued growth/acceptance of GamePass and Sony's upcoming similar service?

All just speculation. I think Nintendo is in an awesome spot with the hybrid hardware. I would like to see a true DS-style handheld at some point, though; bring back the two-screen handheld gaming that was so incredible. Sometimes I think all the tech overload will soon push people back to more simple architectures and times. It's happened throughout history, but we will see.

@rallydefault @Link-Hero I think the biggest unknown is what impact subscription services will have on the industry. I don’t live in the US but I remember vividly when Netflix started to really make headway with their subscription service and how everyone was saying they can’t wait to ditch the multitude of channels they pay for in favour of the subscription service Netflix offered. Now everyone has a subscription service and the costs are probably pushing that of having all them channels subscribed to.

When you buy into a console, assuming you don’t sell it, you are in that ecosystem for the generation. Streaming subscription services is going to be very difficult to keep people in their ecosystem when everyone eventually goes that route. Though maybe Nintendo won’t and will just make you pay per game still, kinda like Stadia. But I think Sony is definitely going to go the subscription direction.

I dunno maybe I’m totally wrong. I’m just shooting thoughts from my head. I should be paid to say these things like an analyst.

Well, there's no indication that MS is going to stop selling games as well as putting them on GamePass, @FragRed .... Also, games don't stay on that forever! So, if Sony did something similar, that still wouldn't mean they stop letting people buy as many games as they want as well
Just like Netflix hasn't really got rid of all other ways to watch TV or films & isn't looking likely to do so

By my logic, Game Pass = scam.
I will not support that business practice.

@FragRed I thought it started when Nintendo gave up on the "most powerful console" battle so pretty much a case of people wanting Nintendo games on a console that isn't weak for its time?

Though in the end what they don't realize is that power is a double edged sword. Switch is the only current system to have a consistent 1st party lineup even through COVID. Xbox can't seem to have a decent 1st party lineup without resorting to an acquisition power grab, PS has been having Wii U esque game droughts at times meanwhile Nintendo always seems to have a good quality 1st party game incoming within a month or two of the last one.

@Grumblevolcano
It's not even about that, it's about the value offered by a hybrid handheld, which for many is more than worth the tradeoff in power.

For those who don't share those values, it may seem perplexing why anyone would prefer playing on a less powerful system with less impressive visuals and performance. But for those who do share those values, the answer is obvious. The freedom to play games however, wherever and whenever provides more entertainment value than the graphics do.

Once Switch 2 releases, that graphical disparity will shrink quite a bit though.

I upgraded to the OLED a month ago, and I noticed today, that the home screen Sort Games by Most Played feature doesn't relect total hours played, it appears to sort the games by how much they've been played on the OLED.

The hours logged on my user page are still correct, that time tally is still accurate.

@FragRed I never get that "the cost of them all is equal to the old price' argument for streaming services. Like, yeah, of course it is, but with streaming services I can pick 1 or 2 to subscribe to at a time, then switch the next month. There's no reason to have them all at once. And if you do, well, nothing has changed. So it's still better all around.

@FragRed
Yea, definitely. I'm not a subscription guy when it comes to the TV stuff. Someone who has Netflix, Disney+ bundle or Amazon, and one other (HBO, Paramount, Discovery, whatever) is already at the price of a mid-tier cable package where I live. I guess it just comes down to what you want to watch, which I suppose translates pretty well to gaming or anything, really. But yea, you can juggle them every month to try and keep your costs down, but I'd bet for most people it comes out to a wash more often than not.

I just don't like those subscriptions. You don't actually own anything, you need an internet connection to watch anything (for most of them), and for some like Netflix, movies and shows can and are taken away at some points. Prices are always increasing, too. And I know it doesn't apply to most people, but it's possible to JUST have a cable connection (or even an antenna) and not pay for internet. With the sub stuff, you HAVE to pay for internet and then the subs. Probably not a boon for majority of people, but it may apply to some folks who really don't need a highspeed internet connection in their home and can use their phone's data or even set up a hotspot using their phone's plan.

I think it goes to the idea of ownership changing in general, though. For entertainment like games, movies, and music, consumers have voted with their wallets that they don't mind not actually owning the content.

@link3710
Indeed.

Cable TV was like $50/mo. Netflix started at around $8/mo. Everyone switched.

Nowadays, full 4k Netflix package is $20, and many also have Amazon Prime and Disney+. The total cost per month is probably close to $35 now for all 3, but we're getting way more content for our money, and without all the commercials, and tons of original content. So in the end, even if we end up paying the same, we're getting many multiples of value more than we were previously.

@rallydefault It’s worse for us in the U.K. We get very little of what you get in the U.S but pay the equivalent price, for Netflix at least. With Disney+ it’s actually got all of 20th Century part of it, because Hulu doesn’t exist over here.

@JaxonH Woah, $50 a month? Most packages around me were around $120-200 a month before I quit. I usually still only spend like... max $20 a month (I don't bother with 4k streaming, just basic packages).

Admittedly, actually having competition (since... well... there was only one provider in our area) has definitely made them drop their prices.

Just use a VPN which you can get for free. It will change your address to show you're in America and you can use the same login to access them. I've done it before for both for Netflix and Disney+.

@link3710
I pay between 100-120 bucks to Comcast for a mid-tier cable package, phone, and mid-tier internet. I get something like 150ish channels including the ESPN channels (which seems to be one of the big cut-offs between package levels). And the internet is plenty fast. I've never noticed it, really. I don't even have the phone line hooked up, but it's part of the package. And this is after the 2-year promotional price.

I figure it's a good value. If I wanted Amazon, Netflix, and Disney, that would be 50 bucks with taxes and stuff included. Then add a decent internet speed at around 50-70 bucks with taxes and fees, you're talking the same kind of money. It's really down to what shows I want. I watch mostly live sports, so most of the streaming services offer me very little.