Moz La Punk
Member
First of all, I hope I don't break any rules by making a topic for my hands-on experience with the Switch. I have no harm in mind, I just want to share my impressions to help Gaffers in finding out the pro's and con's of the Switch. I also thought maybe we could make this the official hands-on impression thread for Gaffers that have played on it? If not, no problem.
I was at the Frankfurt press event yesterday on invitation as I'm a journalist for a few Dutch gamesites. You can view a video with impressions here and here is a written hands-on impression. Here is another hands-on article I wrote for another site. However, that's all in Dutch so most of you won't have use of it, but I know there are some fellow Dutchies here who might want to check it out.
Anyway, I wanted to write out some of my impressions in English so you might get a better picture of what we're dealing with here.
The system
Let me begin with the most positive aspect of the Switch and its games: the system itself. I was truly blown away with how 'mature' and 'techy' the console and different controllers felt. This is by far the most adult feeling console Nintendo has ever made. The Switch itself (the 'handheld'), the Joy-Con and Pro Controller all feel very sleek and all the controllers, even the seperate Joy-Cons that you use as Wiimotes, have a nice weight to them. I especially didn't expect that with the Joy-Con parts, in video's they looked very light and too small, but with the straps on they felt truly perfect in my hands. I don't have the biggest hands in the world at all, pretty regular hands I suppose.
The switching between the television screen and the Switch-screen works fantastic. I tried it out on Zelda: Breath of the Wild and it's pretty much instantly with perhaps a second or max. 2 seconds delay. You just plug in the Joy-Cons on the sides of the Switch, pull it out and the game goes further on the screen. You get a prompt on the screen that you should press L and R to 'confirm' the switch and then hey presto, you just play on.
I actually thought it didn't work that well in the beginning, because I placed the Switch in the dock and it took like 15 seconds before an image appeared on screen. Eventually I learned it was the fault of the tv, because I played long on the Switch-screen, the television screen had gone out so it had the find the signal again. So again, switching between the screen and the television is very, very fast. The dock has this soft stuff in the inside that makes the Switch-screen slide in easily without damaging it.
On the subject of the screen on the Switch, I was blown away by the quality. It looks very good, it's really like playing a Wii U game on the go and it is MILES better than the screen on the Wii U GamePad. Zelda was in 720p and I thiiiink you see a little less detail than on television but truly it doesn't matter cause the screen is smaller, it just looks great. And holding the Switch feels good as well, its like you have a bigger Vita in your hands. It's very thin which surprised me. After playing Zelda for 15 minutes on the thing it got a bit warm on the backside. It didn't bother me at all or anything and it wasn't VERY hot, but you just felt a bit of warmth, which seems logical.
The Games
So I've played most games on the event, I won't talk about all of them as for instance games like Sonic Mania and Street Fighter you pretty much know what to expect.
Of course the most interesting game for gamers is Zelda: Breath of the Wild. It was actually the same demo I've played last year on E3 (although it was on the Wii U there), so it was on the plateau. So that's why I don't really have a lot to tell about the gameplay, you probably know most of it already. I do saw some graphical differences though compared to the Wii U version, although its kinda difficult to judge without having that version running next to it. I think I saw a better framerate, and I definititely saw more details on screens. It's not an earth shattering difference mind you, it's not like the difference between a PS3 and PS4 for instance, but it's nice enough to make the Switch-version of Zelda the version to get imo.
I was very surprised by ARMS. Like most of you, when it got revealed right after 1-2-Switch I kinda shrugged my shoulders thinking the game wouldn't be for me, but I couldn't have been more wrong. When you first start playing you start acting like it's Wii Sports Boxing, because you hold the two Joy-Con controllers in both of your hands just like on the Wii, but after enough games you start to calm down and realise there is a lot of depth and tactics in this game. For instance, by boxing with your arm in a 'bow' so to speak, the arm on screen does the same and that is a way to get by defenses of your opponent. Also the different weapons really change how you play as they all act so differently. I had a lot of fun playing this and I can't wait to try it out more and really sink my teeth in it.
I can't say the same of 1-2-Switch and imo it should be a pack-in or something. There's just... not much in there. There's almost nothing happening on screen and it's really about the interaction between you and your opponent in real life. I had quite a few laughs by drawing my gun, western style, fighting with samurai swords and milking cows (that was kind of a hit because the up and down movement of your wrists made people think of masturbation, lol, people were joking how did this get past Nintendo), so I can't say it's boring, but I just don't see this being any fun after a few drinking nights with friends. Perhaps they'll surprise us with more content in it than expected but for now, I wouldn't pay full price for this game.
Thing is, these games with the couple of other third party games on launch (ARMS isn't even a launch game as far as I know), are quite scarce for a launch. I do like what I saw for the rest of the year. For instance Mario Kart 8 Deluxe played like a dream, it was the Wii U-game with a bit more detail and it played very nice on the screen of the Switch, it felt good to have this game on a 'handheld', but it also depends on if they will add more cups imo. Well I'll get it anyway, but I could imagine not all Wii U-owners are looking forward to pay full price for a battle mode and a new Splatoon-track. We'll see. Speaking of Splatoon, the second game was a lot of fun, but again I saw almost no difference with the Wii U version, apart from that it has of course new weapons and arena's. At least there should be no fear that the game won't work without GamePad, because id played like a charm.
There were a few other games playable like Street Figher, Sonic Mania, the remaster of Fast Racing Neo and Bomberman, but most of the games for later in the year weren't there, like Super Mario Odyssey, Xenoblade Chronicles 2, the various Square Enix rpg's.
My conclusion for now
I had a lot of fun and as a Nintendo-fan and someone who plays pretty much on all consoles, I will absolutely get the system on launch if there are enough units and my pre-order works as intended. But I'm a special case compared to most consumers, so through the eyes of a normal consumer it's difficult to really make a descision right now. Thing is, the system itself is fantastic. The 'lack' of power (compared to direct competition) doesn't bother me so much in that the games look great, I find it far more important that the system and the ways to control all look and feel great, luxury, techy and 'finished'. Where the Wii U felt like a giant toy, this feels like a real piece of hardware. So props to Nintendo far that.
However, I find the games line-up still lacking, as most of you do. Don't get me wrong, it's no joke getting perhaps one of the best Zelda-games in recent years on launch and Mario Kart the month after, with a new 3D Mario platformer in the same year, and Splatoon for the sales (especially in Japan). That is a strong first party line-up. But we all know Nintendo needs more games as third parties are quite lacking. Its way too early to tell how third parties will treat the Switch but if you look at the launch line up and the rest of 2017, it isn't incredibly promising, especially for western third parties. Japan seems to be quite warmer to the system though, so that has me excited.
So in short: very excited for the potential of the system and the look and feel of it, still undecided if the games line-up will be enough. Nintendo-games in the first year are good, but we need more. This is make or break time for Nintendo and I expect them to fire on all cilinders, so c'mon Ninty, show us what you've got!
If you folks have any questions I will try to answer them. Thanks for reading!
I was at the Frankfurt press event yesterday on invitation as I'm a journalist for a few Dutch gamesites. You can view a video with impressions here and here is a written hands-on impression. Here is another hands-on article I wrote for another site. However, that's all in Dutch so most of you won't have use of it, but I know there are some fellow Dutchies here who might want to check it out.
Anyway, I wanted to write out some of my impressions in English so you might get a better picture of what we're dealing with here.
The system
Let me begin with the most positive aspect of the Switch and its games: the system itself. I was truly blown away with how 'mature' and 'techy' the console and different controllers felt. This is by far the most adult feeling console Nintendo has ever made. The Switch itself (the 'handheld'), the Joy-Con and Pro Controller all feel very sleek and all the controllers, even the seperate Joy-Cons that you use as Wiimotes, have a nice weight to them. I especially didn't expect that with the Joy-Con parts, in video's they looked very light and too small, but with the straps on they felt truly perfect in my hands. I don't have the biggest hands in the world at all, pretty regular hands I suppose.
The switching between the television screen and the Switch-screen works fantastic. I tried it out on Zelda: Breath of the Wild and it's pretty much instantly with perhaps a second or max. 2 seconds delay. You just plug in the Joy-Cons on the sides of the Switch, pull it out and the game goes further on the screen. You get a prompt on the screen that you should press L and R to 'confirm' the switch and then hey presto, you just play on.
I actually thought it didn't work that well in the beginning, because I placed the Switch in the dock and it took like 15 seconds before an image appeared on screen. Eventually I learned it was the fault of the tv, because I played long on the Switch-screen, the television screen had gone out so it had the find the signal again. So again, switching between the screen and the television is very, very fast. The dock has this soft stuff in the inside that makes the Switch-screen slide in easily without damaging it.
On the subject of the screen on the Switch, I was blown away by the quality. It looks very good, it's really like playing a Wii U game on the go and it is MILES better than the screen on the Wii U GamePad. Zelda was in 720p and I thiiiink you see a little less detail than on television but truly it doesn't matter cause the screen is smaller, it just looks great. And holding the Switch feels good as well, its like you have a bigger Vita in your hands. It's very thin which surprised me. After playing Zelda for 15 minutes on the thing it got a bit warm on the backside. It didn't bother me at all or anything and it wasn't VERY hot, but you just felt a bit of warmth, which seems logical.
The Games
So I've played most games on the event, I won't talk about all of them as for instance games like Sonic Mania and Street Fighter you pretty much know what to expect.
Of course the most interesting game for gamers is Zelda: Breath of the Wild. It was actually the same demo I've played last year on E3 (although it was on the Wii U there), so it was on the plateau. So that's why I don't really have a lot to tell about the gameplay, you probably know most of it already. I do saw some graphical differences though compared to the Wii U version, although its kinda difficult to judge without having that version running next to it. I think I saw a better framerate, and I definititely saw more details on screens. It's not an earth shattering difference mind you, it's not like the difference between a PS3 and PS4 for instance, but it's nice enough to make the Switch-version of Zelda the version to get imo.
I was very surprised by ARMS. Like most of you, when it got revealed right after 1-2-Switch I kinda shrugged my shoulders thinking the game wouldn't be for me, but I couldn't have been more wrong. When you first start playing you start acting like it's Wii Sports Boxing, because you hold the two Joy-Con controllers in both of your hands just like on the Wii, but after enough games you start to calm down and realise there is a lot of depth and tactics in this game. For instance, by boxing with your arm in a 'bow' so to speak, the arm on screen does the same and that is a way to get by defenses of your opponent. Also the different weapons really change how you play as they all act so differently. I had a lot of fun playing this and I can't wait to try it out more and really sink my teeth in it.
I can't say the same of 1-2-Switch and imo it should be a pack-in or something. There's just... not much in there. There's almost nothing happening on screen and it's really about the interaction between you and your opponent in real life. I had quite a few laughs by drawing my gun, western style, fighting with samurai swords and milking cows (that was kind of a hit because the up and down movement of your wrists made people think of masturbation, lol, people were joking how did this get past Nintendo), so I can't say it's boring, but I just don't see this being any fun after a few drinking nights with friends. Perhaps they'll surprise us with more content in it than expected but for now, I wouldn't pay full price for this game.
Thing is, these games with the couple of other third party games on launch (ARMS isn't even a launch game as far as I know), are quite scarce for a launch. I do like what I saw for the rest of the year. For instance Mario Kart 8 Deluxe played like a dream, it was the Wii U-game with a bit more detail and it played very nice on the screen of the Switch, it felt good to have this game on a 'handheld', but it also depends on if they will add more cups imo. Well I'll get it anyway, but I could imagine not all Wii U-owners are looking forward to pay full price for a battle mode and a new Splatoon-track. We'll see. Speaking of Splatoon, the second game was a lot of fun, but again I saw almost no difference with the Wii U version, apart from that it has of course new weapons and arena's. At least there should be no fear that the game won't work without GamePad, because id played like a charm.
There were a few other games playable like Street Figher, Sonic Mania, the remaster of Fast Racing Neo and Bomberman, but most of the games for later in the year weren't there, like Super Mario Odyssey, Xenoblade Chronicles 2, the various Square Enix rpg's.
My conclusion for now
I had a lot of fun and as a Nintendo-fan and someone who plays pretty much on all consoles, I will absolutely get the system on launch if there are enough units and my pre-order works as intended. But I'm a special case compared to most consumers, so through the eyes of a normal consumer it's difficult to really make a descision right now. Thing is, the system itself is fantastic. The 'lack' of power (compared to direct competition) doesn't bother me so much in that the games look great, I find it far more important that the system and the ways to control all look and feel great, luxury, techy and 'finished'. Where the Wii U felt like a giant toy, this feels like a real piece of hardware. So props to Nintendo far that.
However, I find the games line-up still lacking, as most of you do. Don't get me wrong, it's no joke getting perhaps one of the best Zelda-games in recent years on launch and Mario Kart the month after, with a new 3D Mario platformer in the same year, and Splatoon for the sales (especially in Japan). That is a strong first party line-up. But we all know Nintendo needs more games as third parties are quite lacking. Its way too early to tell how third parties will treat the Switch but if you look at the launch line up and the rest of 2017, it isn't incredibly promising, especially for western third parties. Japan seems to be quite warmer to the system though, so that has me excited.
So in short: very excited for the potential of the system and the look and feel of it, still undecided if the games line-up will be enough. Nintendo-games in the first year are good, but we need more. This is make or break time for Nintendo and I expect them to fire on all cilinders, so c'mon Ninty, show us what you've got!
If you folks have any questions I will try to answer them. Thanks for reading!
