• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Behold Nintendo Switch (March 2017, Hybrid w/ Dock, Detachable Controllers, Nvidia)

Status
Not open for further replies.
But the ps4 and xbone are 300$ right now why would anyone buy a weaker console for a higher price that just makes no sense.

Because they're getting the equivalent of two consoles for the price of one. Buy Wii U, get 3DS free. With double the first party game output of either one individually.
 
Meh... Portable doesn't excite me in the slightest. Kids/wife will like it though.
An interesting point I heard earlier is that this console may try to solve people's problems with handheld gaming, mostly with comfortability. Nintendo highlighted multiple ways for one to enjoy their game on the go
 

Chase17

Member
Reactions to the reveal seem mixed but overall pretty positive.

Now the next test begins....the software unveiling. I pray it's before the end of 2016.

Oh, I really hope so.

But at the same time I could see them doing it in like January. Hopefully the investors meeting hints at a time table for the full reveal of the console.
 

The Ummah

Banned
What are the chances of a Zelda "premium" bundle? Or, any game for that matter. Is it too soon to throw a title in the box at launch?

Not looking for an official answer, of course. Just some other opinions.
 

Lynd7

Member
I stand corrected. My wife thinks it's dumb too lol. She was really hoping for just a regular Nintendo non of this gimmicky stuff the last few have had. But if it has actual games this time maybe she will come around. She is super bummed :(

This really isn't that gimmicky, just leave it plugged in and use the pro controller for a regular sort of system.
 

Hydrus

Member
jfN1wQ2.jpg

Please Nintendo, please please PLEASE!!!!
 
I'd wager you'd have said the same about a handheld releasing without a charger too. As for what was shown in the trailer, well do you expect the controller add on in the box too? And the Pro pad? All featured heavily, and are part of the switch aspect of the console. It was a marketing trailer, taking it as gospel as to what's in the box and deciding there'll be a single SKU because of it is absurd.

I guess we'll have to agree to disagree.

Was the entire marketing concept and campaign of the 3DS designed around the ability to charge the system? Was that a feature/selling point to appeal to consumers? Because that's the comparison you are trying to make. Releasing a handheld only device is not a terrible idea, but if that's the case calling it "SWITCH" and tying the entire reveal video around the idea of "play at home and on the go" would be incredibly stupid.
 

Baki

Member
I don't think this thing retails for under $299. At the same time, can't imagine it being over $349.

This is interesting, because at that range $299-$349, they have to be targeting traditional home console gamers (Nintendo's weak point). Could be very tough.

That said, once they reach $199, this will be very attractive for the 3DS market. Unfortunately, this market is continuing to shrink....

Man. Nintendo is in a tough position (if they want to remain in hardware)...


Now, if they became a pure software company. Man, they'd be most valuable games company in the world.

Games + merchandising = potential $60-100 billion company imo.
 

Manoko

Member
I cannot say that I really understand this product at all. Nintendo is really doubling down on what the Wii U was, but the point of differentiation through untethering the gamepad seems misguided. I simply do not see solutions to the myriad of problems that come with what is being billed as a portable console. Battery life issues are an immense hurdle that I just don't see this overcoming. And even if this device is technically able to go anywhere, nothing about it seems particularly ergonomic. What is supposed to make this design portable? It's not something you can just slide into a backpack or tuck in a pocket. I feel that Nintendo is disregarding the success they had in the portable market, where their products beat out those trying to ape the console experience by being sturdy, having a low entry point, long battery life, and a small frame. It seems like a total miss on the fundamentals of portable gaming. This is not even thinking about the split in game design that exists between handheld titles and console titles. Will every game be broken up into small chunks or have a "save anywhere" feature that make games more digestible while on the go?

Bringing pure power to the handheld sector is something that ultimately bites the portable experience in the behind, but heading in that direction also hinders the Switch as a set top box. The video angles the device as carrying some sort of social element, which makes its impact on the hardware by each handle breaking off into a controller, but to what end? These minimalistic controllers do not look at all comfortable and lack basic functionality that high end games would often require. Hunching over some tiny screen that will find itself often cut in half for split screen just seems so bizarre, especially when the device needs to be set up on a flat surface. Supporting this unlikely use case comes with such a heavy cost, and you wind up with the controller even as a single unit missing a d-pad.

And I don't mean to become some cantankerous old man scoffing at technology, but the presentation of this debut sends uncomfortable messages. Unable to pry yourself away from the game? Now you can bring it with you to the park. The video's repeated contrast between real world events and video games is so off-putting. Is Mario Kart supposed to compare favorably to real life go karts? Is there really a need to play a basketball video game at the basketball court with your friends? Where are people supposed to bring this and how is it social when the cutoff is two players crowded around a device? This device does not really play up a shared experience...it just seems like a very sad way to clutch on to games that were designed to be played in a different environment.

This just seems like a compromise on every front. It is not an efficient and easily portable device. It gives up ground on delivering a traditional console experience. And probably worst of all, this video does not even allude to this really functioning as a tablet, though it is impossible to really imagine Nintendo even being competitive in that space.

You nailed it.
This device makes no sense to me as well, but it seems we're in the minority here.
 

ThisGuy

Member
The Switch has been bothering me ever since the reveal and I couldn't put my finger on why...

However, I think I know why now.

The system has a gimmick, yet the games themselves cannot really take advantage of this gimmick in a unique way. Does anyone else have similar thoughts?
Honestly, I'm excited for the ns. I really am, and will buy it day it one if the games/price is right.

However I expected a gimmick like the Wii. Something to catch me off guard and pull me in with its uniqueness. This is literally what we've expected the entire time, at least what I expected. So there is a disappointment in the sense that I feel the surprise was taken. And also that the 'gimmick' is portability rather than something strange, to me, like the Wii.
 

I Wanna Be The Guy

U-S-A! U-S-A! U-S-A!
What are the chances of a Zelda "premium" bundle? Or, any game for that matter. Is it too soon to throw a title in the box at launch?

Not looking for an official answer, of course. Just some other opinions.
I think a game bundled with the system at launch is a lock. Maybe not Zelda, but something. Maybe a showcase new IP.
 

Naudi

Banned
An interesting point I heard earlier is that this console may try to solve people's problems with handheld gaming, mostly with comfortability. Nintendo highlighted multiple ways for one to enjoy their game on the go

Nothing to do with comfort. I only play games in my living room lol. Certainly not going to carry that thing around, that's for sure and If my neighbors wave me over for a bbq the last thing I'm doing is grabbing my Nintendo lmao.
 

psyfi

Banned
I stand corrected. My wife thinks it's dumb too lol. She was really hoping for just a regular Nintendo non of this gimmicky stuff the last few have had. But if it has actual games this time maybe she will come around. She is super bummed :(
Why does the gimmick mean we can't get good games?
 

Flo_Evans

Member
Nothing to do with comfort. I only play games in my living room lol. Certainly not going to carry that thing around, that's for sure and If my neighbors wave me over for a bbq the last thing I'm doing is grabbing my Nintendo lmao.

I actually do a forza night every other Monday with my neighbor. It would be pretty funny to bring one over and start playing Mario kart :p
 

Naudi

Banned
This really isn't that gimmicky, just leave it plugged in and use the pro controller for a regular sort of system.

Yeah but then I'm paying for this mobile device that isn't ever going to be mobile. It could either be alot cheaper or way better graphics for same price if they did a non mobile option.
 

I Wanna Be The Guy

U-S-A! U-S-A! U-S-A!
I think Zelda will be bundled with EVERY switch console.

How else can they gain marketshare ?
If anything is a system seller it's Zelda. Could happen. But at the same time most people who buy Switch will buy Zelda anyway, so Nintendo may choose not to do that. Bundle it with a showcase new IP and get people to buy Zelda separately on launch. Wii Sports and Twilight Princess.
 

Hydrus

Member
I stand corrected. My wife thinks it's dumb too lol. She was really hoping for just a regular Nintendo non of this gimmicky stuff the last few have had. But if it has actual games this time maybe she will come around. She is super bummed :(

What gimmick? lol. It's two products in one. Forced motion controls, two screens, glasses free 3d and tablet touch screen gameplay are gimmicks. This is the most regular Nintendo hardware we've had since Gamecube.
 
Right now, I'm just waiting on the specs and the launch library. The commercial does a good job. I personally don't like the fact that they went with breakable controller/tablet combo, but the dock and the presence of a traditional and the main controller mitigates that for me.

I have to say, though, Nintendo did their thing with this commercial.
 
It seems like more of the general public is already aware of switch than they were about the Wii U at launch...

THe different name is gonna help them! But the fact that it looks like a tablet is going to be the tough part - clueless parents can easily go "you already have a tablet!"

Hopefully they have a better marketing team on this aspect than Wii U.
 
The entire concept of the product, right down to the name, is based on the ability to "Switch" between home and portable. They are intertwined and that's clearly the message Nintendo is trying to hammer home. Releasing a day 1 SKU that removes that ability is the best way to create confusion and mixed messaging, and undermine the entire concept.

I agree it's risky, but then so is releasing (what could be viewed as) a portable device whose price is elevated because of a peripheral that your sizeable handheld market don't really want to pay for.

I think the initial marketing trailer is being taken too literally as the entirety of their approach. Despite the tagline, if there's a way to grab more handheld gamers then I think they'll take it.
 

psyfi

Banned
If Nintendo insists this is a home console first and foremost, let's all please give them major shit if they don't include the ergonomic grip with the machine.
 

Naudi

Banned
Why does the gimmick mean we can't get good games?

I just want a non gimmicky option that's cheaper lol. Or what I really want is a powerful Nintendo system. Sick of their games looking so shitty compared to Sony/Microsoft, or more importantly not getting any multiplats cause its underpowered. I think being worried about good games is a valid concern with Nintendo.
 

DooMAGE

Member
Yeah but then I'm paying for this mobile device that isn't ever going to be mobile. It could either be alot cheaper or way better graphics for same price if they did a non mobile option.

So it's nothing about the gimmicky you are talking about. Make your mind dude.
 
So we have seen the switch. it is what we all figured for the most part. my bet there is still one more big secret. Nintendo has been hinting they had to wait so they wouldn't be copied. I'm betting there is one more key point to this thing (the gimick)
 
I agree it's risky, but then so is releasing (what could be viewed as) a portable device whose price is elevated because of a peripheral that your sizeable handheld market don't really want to pay for.

I think the initial marketing trailer is being taken too literally as the entirety of their approach. Despite the tagline, if there's a way to grab more handheld gamers then I think they'll take it.

What you're saying may very well happen.....at the end of 2018.

By that point, the 3DS will be dead and a "Switch Slim" sans the dock (but available as an optional accessory) would make a ton of sense. By then, Nintendo could also start releasing more "bite sized" games to grab the portable-only crowd.

A SKU without the dock is not happening next year though, that's for sure.
 

The Ummah

Banned
I think a game bundled with the system at launch is a lock. Maybe not Zelda, but something. Maybe a showcase new IP.

That makes sense. Put a new game into everybody's hands that will show off the hardware, or a new multiplayer title to start people off with a base game to link the systems or split the controllers.

I'm just enjoying speculating right now, they have my interest early. These next few months up until launch will be critical for them to build and maintain momentum until rollout.

Edit: As if February/March wasn't stacked enough, my wallet is gonna fuck me up!
 
I agree it's risky, but then so is releasing (what could be viewed as) a portable device whose price is elevated because of a peripheral that your sizeable handheld market don't really want to pay for.

I think the initial marketing trailer is being taken too literally as the entirety of their approach. Despite the tagline, if there's a way to grab more handheld gamers then I think they'll take it.

Too literally? The system is LITERALLY called the Nintendo Switch. It's like if the Wii was called the "Nintendo Waggle" and you proposed they release a SKU without a Wii mote.

Yes it's risky, but in the position that Nintendo are in, with the Wii U being a dismal failure and the 3DS market being anything but a guarantee, they had to take a risk.
 

pariah164

Member
If the console is the portable part... I may not need a TV to run it. This changes my perspective on it, if I can just use the dock for charging.
 

Naudi

Banned
So it's nothing about the gimmicky you are talking about. Make your mind dude.

What? The mobile thing is gimmicky to me. So yeah take that out and release a damn home console lol. Why is that so hard to do. This looks like a mobile device that comes with a shitty controller to use on your TV.
 
It seems like more of the general public is already aware of switch than they were about the Wii U at launch...

they are. info has leaked like crazy this time around. it's kind of surprising anyone is disappointed by the reveal now but wasn't before or even months prior when we already knew everything about the NX.

that might be one reason why reaction has been so positive, the critics checked out a long time ago.
 

ciD_Vain

Member
I think Zelda will be bundled with EVERY switch console.

How else can they gain marketshare ?
I don't think it will be. Zelda sells on its own. May as well capitalize on that. It'll probably be bundled with a game yet to be revealed that will be meant to show off its unique features.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top Bottom