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Now that it's been out a while, are you playing Switch in the form you expected to?

PetrCobra

Member
It's not very ergonomic as a handheld so I mostly use it with a monitor, sometimes in tabletop mode in a pub. If 3DS had the option of TV + Pro controllers I'd use that all the time I think.
 
I thought I'd use it docked most of the time. Turns out I was wrong. I've used it as a handheld 95% of the time. I never liked portable games in the past, but the size and quality of the Switch screen has helped me get over that.
 

Currygan

at last, for christ's sake
definitely not. I was expecting it to never leave the dock, I been playing consoles on a tv since 1990 after all, yet I'm 98% in portable mode now. It's just too awesome and comfortable
 

Surfside

Banned
I have primarily bought it as a handheld, but also played it a lot in TV mode. I would say the split is 60% handheld and 30% TV. The remaining 10% i used in Tabletop mode. Whenever my nieces would come over to visit, we would play Just Dance, while the others watched TV.

Despite using percentages, this is just an approximation :p
 

KooopaKid

Banned
All kinds of form, Breath of the Wild was in handheld mode, Splatoon 2 in TV mode with the grip add-on, Picross S in handheld mode, I expect to play Mario Odyssey in TV mode with separate joy-cons. Love it.
 

EricB

Member
I mostly play the Switch in handheld mode since I primarily play games on my commute, which was my intention upon purchasing it.

I guess I'm nevertheless a bit surprised by just how little I've used it docked since I got it, which has been basically not at all until my Wii U bit the bullet a couple of weeks ago. With the Wii U gone, I decided to make my Switch the new living room console and I've been playing it significantly more overall.
I just wish there was a game as good for playing with young kids as Super Mario 3D World.
 
It's the best handheld I have owned. I played a little bit in table top mode. Only used it on a TV once, and as I currently don't own a TV I don't see this changing.
 

Skiesofwonder

Walruses, camels, bears, rabbits, tigers and badgers.
I figured I would be playing evenly in handheld and docked mode. It's more like 40% docked, 10% handheld, 50% tabletop (with a stand).

It's kinda crazy thinking back to the reveal when I viewed tabletop mode as a novelty at best, but now here I am spending the bulk of my Switch time in that very mode. It's just so easy to plop the Switch in a stand on the side table (for couch or bed) and play, holding the joys-cons in each hand by my side with a podcast or TV show on in the background. Indie games in particular lend themselves so well for this type of play.

ARMs, Splatoon 2, and BOTW make up a large portion of my current play time in docked mode. I prefer to play all three with motion controls on, and TV play lends itself better for that preference. Also, local co-op and multiplayer on my switch is mostly done in docked mode. I think the switch screen is way too small to be crowding multiple people around, though it's nice to have the option when on vacation.

On another note, Splatoon 2 is the only game I prefer the Pro controller over split joy-cons for. Yes, I feel like BOTW plays better with split joy-cons.
 

ZZMitch

Member
No actually, at the beginning I used it mostly docked. But now I am almost exclusively handheld since I have had to start taking ~1 he bus rides 4 times a week for work.

Playing Mario + Rabbids on the bus makes the ride feel like 15 minutes.
 
Handheld is great for indies. I played Zelda 70% docked but I’d say the rest were mostly undocked.
Any big single player game would likely be docked too
 
D

Deleted member 125677

Unconfirmed Member
Sure! docked local multiplayer, or single player if I have the apt for myself. The kids have been playing quite a bit of flip-stand multiplayer (mk8 and now fifa a lot) when we're traveling, and I've been playing lots of handheld mode both on the go and on the couch.
 

Jack Videogames

Gold Member
I got it as a home console but expecting high handheld usage because my TV is usually dominated by my kids.

I was too right: I use it exclusively as a handheld.
 

DonShula

Member
95% docked. I like the flexibility but I never wanted a handheld. I just want to play all of Nintendo’s games on my TV.

Salty that new Metroid isn’t on Switch. It’s time for the 3DS... to end.
 

Plainsong

Member
I bought it primarily to use as a home console but the longer I've had it I'm actually surprised that I play it so much on the go. I'm playing more indie games than ever. Probably 50/50 docked/un-docked.
 

OCD Guy

Member
The dock is still in the box, never touched it. Switch is just the next Nintendo handheld to me.

Same here. I love looking at the Switch as a powerful handheld (which it certainly is) as opposed to a weak console.

Doom will be a pefect example of when that really makes sense for me. If I was using the Switch connected to a tv then buying Doom just wouldn't make sense, as someone that owns the other consoles it would make more sense to pay less money to get a better looking version.
 

PeterGAF

Banned
I expected to use it as a pretty even mix in both forms and I do. I use it at my TV by default but I usually bring it with me when I go out and play it when I have some down time in handheld mode. I also bring it with me to bed when I want to play something before going to sleep.
 
Handheld in bed while watching something on Netflix or Hulu. I think I may have used docked like 4 times? I expected to use handheld more anyway.
 

kiguel182

Member
90 per cent handheld. I'm way more comfortable playing that way at home vs using the TV.

EDIT: Docked is used mainly for co-op stuff yeah. The flexibility is just fantastic.
 

JJH

Member
Always docked as expected, but I've been playing with the joycons separate which I feel is more comfortable.
 

Paasei

Member
I've used the dock mode only once, just to try it out really. After that I've only used it in hand held mode. Playing Zelda and MK8 on it, as those are the only games I currently have for it.

Very excited for Mario Odyssey next week.
 

d+pad

Member
Not really. I expected to play it both docked and in handheld mode, but so far I've *only* played it in handheld mode. My dock has even been set up--it's still in the box, in fact XD
 

nampad

Member
Bought it as an handheld and am playing it as an handheld.

Have to say that the battery life is pretty bad though when I play Zelda, only getting like 2,5-3 hours. Fortunately, I mainly play at home so a power outlet is close most of the time.
 

MechaX

Member
I bought it as an early opportunity purchase a month back because I didn't want to go through the hassle of getting it in the holidays.

I haven't played it much now, but I borrowed BotW from a friend and it'll probably be the only thing I play once Xenoblade 2 hits.
 

dukie85

Member
I bought it to play mostly docked, but I find myself doing very little of that at all. In fact, since launch, it's probably only been played docked maybe 10 or so times. Handheld mode just feels so damn good.
 

elmalloc

Member
I expected to use it as a handheld <5% of the time and that's what I've done. Now I do have a case and transport it easily from house to house. This is not something easily done with PS4/XBOX due to size, takes about 5 seconds to pack (just put the switch in the case with the extra dock) and 10 seconds to set up.

Allows me to play Zelda anywhere basically. I don't like handheld mode as much, difficult to read text and I find TV/projector frame interpolation helps games like Zelda that run choppy otherwise.
 

Nosgotham

Junior Member
I've used the dock mode only once, just to try it out really. After that I've only used it in hand held mode. Playing Zelda and MK8 on it, as those are the only games I currently have for it.

Very excited for Mario Odyssey next week.

no eShop titles at all???
 
Yes, I have not and will not ever play it out of the dock. I bought a console that will hopefully play games that would normally be on handhelds. I don’t really use it though, Zelda and MK8 only so far. Bought Fire Emblem yesterday, might try that today. Mario will be played for sure though.
 
I'd say 80% docked vs 20% handheld for me.

But I haven't travelled much since its release so I expect that ratio to change quite a bit in the near future.
 

elmalloc

Member
I actually find the controller handheld slightly uncomfortable, I've mainly used the switch pro controller or whatever for Zelda. Granted even after 130 hours I'm still sometimes randomly pressing buttons in order to bring up menus since it basically uses all the buttons on the controller and somehow it's not intuitive lol.
 
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