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[HotHamBoy]

You've got a massive library of cheap, quality premium games spanning ever genre. The same indie games on iPad are a fraction of the price of their Switch (and often PC) counterparts.

Many games support MiFi controllers.

You have a wealth of utility apps.

Thousands of art and music creation tools.

Hundreds of streaming services, many with chromecast support.

You can even play Mario on the iPad.

And honestly, as always, that's really all Nintendo can counter-offer: Nintendo games. That's definitely enough for a lot of people, but between what the Switch currently offers for its price and the price of the games, is it a good value proposition if compared to the new iPad pricepoint?

Now I'm sure by this time next year the Switch is going to be looking much stronger, but what about how it looks this year for someone looking to buy a portable, rich gaming device now?

UPDATE:

Good-Great Mobile Games Worth Playing. No Energy timers, no Freemium BS. May contain non-essential IAP (expansions, ad-removal, etc)

Roguelikes
Hoplite
FTL
Rune Keeper
Dungelot: Shattered Lands
Imbroglio
868-Hack
Guild of Dungeoneers
Downwell
Tiny Rogue
Sproggiwood
Tales of a Viking
Dungeons of the Endless
Skyhill
Enyo
Binding of Isaac

Survival/Craft
Don't Starve Pocket Edition
Radiation Island
Minecraft
Terraria
Junk Jack

MOBAs
Vainglory

Platformers and Runners
Icycle
Badland
Badland2
Hopiko
Super Cat Tales
Super Mario Run
Rayman Jungle Run
Rayman Fiesta Run
Rayman Adventures
Bit Trip Runner
Bit Trip Runner 2
Wondercat Adventures
Canabalt
Robot Unicorn Attack
Circa Infinite
Leo's Fortune
Heroki
Blown Away: Secret of the Wind
RETSNOM
Leap Day
Punch Quest
Jet Pack Joyride
God of Blades
Fotanica
Time Surfer
Hellrider
Geometry Dash
Superhook
Spider: Secret of Bryce Manor
Spider: Rite of the Moon
Chameleon Run
Nihilumbra
Steamworld Dig
8-Bit Doves
Retry
Silly Sausage in Meat Land
VVVVVV

High-Score Arcade
Floors
Tomb of the Mask
Pinout
Gravity Hook
Super Hexagon
Stretch Dungeon
Spingun
The Tower
Bad Hotel
Boom Dots
Ridiculous Fishing
Crossy Road
Rodeo Stampede
Pac-Man 256
Pac Man Championship Edition DX
Sparkwave
Impossible Road
Horizon Chase
Pinball Sniper
Horizon Chase - World Tour
Shooty Skies

Pinball
The Pinball Arcade
Zen Pinball (including Marvel, Star Wars, etc)
Zaccaria Pinball
Pro Pinball Ultra Ed. Timeshock
Atomic Pinball
Pinout
Pinball Sniper
Inks

Twin-Stick Shooters
Space Marshalls
Space Mashalls 2
Neon Chrome
Xenowerk

SHMUPS
Operation Dracula
Shooty Skies
Phoenix HD
Phoenix II
Bug Princess
Bug Princess 2/Black Label
Espgaluda
Espgaluda 2
Blazing Star
Raiden Legacy
Time Locker
Sine Mora
Dariusburst SP
Decluster: Into the Bullet Hell
Danmaku Unlimited 2
DoDonPachi Maximum
DoDonPachi Resurrection
Space Invaders: Infinity Gene
Galaga Wars

4x
Planar Conquest

Puzzle
Lara Croft Go
Hitman Go
Deus Ex Go
Framed
Device 6
Monument Valley
Her Story
Papers, Please
Gasketball
Snakebird
Might and Magic Clash of Heroes
The Room 1-3
Blek
Pavilion
Type Shift
Causality

Strategy
Rome: Total War
Doorkickers
Autumn Dynsasty
Warbits
XCOM: Enemy Within
Warhammer 40k Deathwatch: Tyranid Invasion
First Strike
Skulls of the Shogun
Plague Inc
The Banner Saga
The Banner Saga 2
Rymdkapsel
Templar Battleforce
Steamworld Heist
Ticket to Earth

Tower Defense
Kingdom Rush
Kingdom Rush Frontiers
Kingdom Rush Origins
Anamoly 2
Dungeons of the Endless
Plants vs Zombes
Crystal Siege
Warcher Defenders


Western-style RPG/Dungeon Crawler
Ember
Legend of Grimrock
Baldur's Gate
Baldur's Gate 2
Icewind Dale
Titan Quest HD
Crashlands
Bastion
Transistor
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic

Japanese-Style RPG
Final Fantasy Tactics War of the Lions
Final Fantasy I-VII
Adventures of Mana
The World Ends With You
Fearless Fantasy
Stephen Universe: Attack the Light
Teen Titans: Teeny Titans

Rhythm
Deemo
Cytus
Geometry Dash

Light Simulation/Strategy
Game Dev Story
Mega Mall Story
Pocket Arcade Story
Anime Studio Story
Dungeon Village
Punch Club
Reigns
Sid Mier's Pirates!
Organ Trail - Director's Cut
Rollercoaster Tycoon 3

Pen-N-Paper/Gamebook RPGs
Pathfinder Adventures
Sorcery! 1-4
King of Dragon Pass
Galactic Keep
Loot and Legends
Lords of Water Deep
Talisman
Fallen London
Joe Denver's Lone Wolf
The Warlock of Firetop Mountain

Adventure Games
Oxenfree
Year Walk
Dropsy
Grim Fandango HD
Lumino City

Action/Combat/Fighting
Severed
The Executive
Implosion: Never Lose Hope
Fatal Fight
Deep Dungeons of Doom
Infinity Blade III
Epoch 2
Shark Eaters: Rise of the Dolphins

Match Three
Tiny Town
100000
You Must Build A Boat
Hero Emblems
Gems of War
Puzzle Quest 2
Magic: The Gathering Puzzle Quest
Dungeon Raid
Swap Sword
Beglitched
Threes
Blow Up!
Muertitos (The Little Dead)
2048
Mujo
Super Monsters Ate My Condo
Gravity Blocks X

Board Games
Tokaido
Potion Express
Mysterium
Agricola
Catan
Scotland Yard
Elder Sign Omens
Ghost Stories
Pandemic
Forbidden Island
Forbidden Desert
Stone Age
Dominant Species
Ticket to Ride
Galaxy Trucker
Splendor
Neuroshima Hex
Tsuro
Twilight Struggle
Magnifico
Puerto Reico
Small World 2
Suburbia
Eclipse (also 4x)
Yggdrasil
Noir
Carcassonne
Damn Town
Tigris and Euphrates
Horror Vacui 2
Reiner Knizia's Modern Art
Reiner Knizia's Samurai
Reiner Knizia's Mafia
Reiner Knizia's Money
Land 6
Mideci
Totems
Le Havre
Castles of Mad King Ludwig
Kahuna
Caylus
Chesh
War of the Roses - Rosenkonig

Collectible Card Games
Solforge
Hearthstone
Pokemon
Magic the Gathering
Shadowverse
Earthcore
Shadow Era

Deckbuilding/Complete Card Games
Star Realms
Dominion
Ascension
Summoner Wars
Decromancer
Solitairica
Card Crawl
Card Thief
Xeno Shyft
Paperback
Yomi
Sentinals of the Multiverse
San Juan
Wizard Clash
Bang! HD
Dead Man's Draw
Coup
Boss Monster
Cabals
Food Fight
Penny Arcade The Game
Tanto Cuore
Sage Solitair
Politaire
Swords and Poker
Cthulhu Realms

 

[BronzeWolf]

Value is subjective.

I don't give a crap ass about mobile games.

 

[Royce McCutcheon]

Are these even comparable?

 

[Hedgey]

Does the iPad have The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild?


...

 

[Kuro]

There's enough of the traditional handheld market to support switch.

 

[StrongBlackVine]

If I had to choose I would buy the tablet. Simply more useful/necessary. The only thing the Switch can do right now is play games.

 

[Joco]

Totally depends on the type of games you want to play. I mean, you aren't going to get Breath of the Wild on iPad (at least anytime soon).

 

[psyfi]

I've never seen the point of tablets, personally. But I bought a Switch day one. Different strokes.

 

[Sir_Crocodile]

The switch will let you play games that actually use the full power of the system with games made with button controls in mind and not as an afterthought to touch controls.

Far lower chance of IAP ruining the games too.

 

[pretty done]

Value is subjective.

I don't give a crap ass about mobile games.

Pretty much. I don't own a Switch or a tablet, but I own a device or devices that do everything a tablet can. There's no other device that replicates the Switch.

 

[HotHamBoy]

Are these even comparable?

I think they are when you consider you can play games like

Binding of Isaac
Rome Total War
XCOM Enemy Within
Titan Quest
Papers, Please
FTL
Legend of Grimrock
Dungeons of the Endless
Desktop Dungeons
Banner Saga 1 & 2
Etc

 

[Smooth Operator]

If I had to choose I would buy the tablet. Simply more useful/necessary.

Yup. I'll never use my Switch as much as my tablet, choice would be really easy for me.

 

[SinCityAssassin]

You do realize what KIND of Mario game is available on an iPad, right?

Cause it sure as hell ain't fucking Odyssey.

 

[spekkeh]

Samsung Galaxy Tab is 250. Where's your Apple god now.

 

[Crayon]

For someone who doesn't like videogames, I'd recommend the Ipad. If they like videogames with all the button pressing and stuff I'd say go for the switch.

 

[weekev]

If you buy a Switch you are unlikely to buy it for what it has now but what it will offer in future. iPad has some good games available but is quantity over quality. Buying a Switch means you know in a few months you will have Zelda, Mario Kart, Arms and Splatoon which is more than i could ever want from iPad.

 

[shotgunbob04]

The two are just so far apart from each other in my eyes.

The controller options on the Switch combined with Nintendo first-party games such as Breath of the Wild are way more appealing to me. But that's because I already have all my productivity devices covered, and want the Switch solely for its gaming purposes.

But for many people, an iPad with much, much cheaper games + the ability to use it for education, work, other forms of entertainment, etc. is probably a better value.

 

[Striek]

I mean if you want a multi-function device you are not getting a Switch. Theres zero point comparing them.

 

[Royce McCutcheon]

The two are just so far apart from each other in my eyes.

The controller options on the Switch combined with Nintendo first-party games such as Breath of the Wild are way more appealing to me.

But for many people, an iPad with much, much cheaper games + the ability to use it for education, work, other forms of entertainment, etc. is probably a better value.

I get that, but why not just compare actual tablets lol.

 

[RexNovis]

This is easy:

Do you want to play Zelda Breath of the Wild? Buy a Nintendo Switch

Do you want to do literally anything else with your tablet? Buy an Ipad.

There. Enigma solved.

 

[Herb Alpert]

I don't think it can be compared. Personally I wouldn't exchange a Nintendo library with what appstore offers.

And OP reads like comparative advertisement lol. Or a stealth "Nintendo should go third party" thread.

 

[Alchemy]

The iPad is more useful as a media consumption device but won't offer the same core gaming experiences as the Switch.

The end.

 

[Permanently A]

I don't think the Switch is currently good value so I'm not buying it. I would love to play Zelda right now of course, but beyond that there isn't anything so I'm content to wait for the hardware revision as well as more and cheaper games in the future.

 

[HotHamBoy]

This is easy:

Do you want to play Zelda Breath of the Wild? Buy a Nintendo Switch

Do you want to do literally anything else with your tablet? Buy an Ipad.

There. Enigma solved.

What if you already have a Wii U?

 

[Lingitiz]

The fuck is this thread.

 

[TLZ]

If I had to choose I would buy the tablet. Simply more useful/necessary. The only thing the Switch can do right now is play a few games.

FTFY

 

[perorist]

Literally in a situation where I have neither at the moment and want both eventually. Definitely going with the iPad first (most likely by next month) and will wait for a revision or at least all of the launch manufacturing issues to be ironed out to go for the switch.

As for Zelda, I already finished it on Wii U.

 

[Sir_Crocodile]

What if you already have a Wii U?

What if you already have an older ipad?

 

[theangrypirate]

Get the tablet. Switch is only good for Nintendo games and right there is only Zelda.

 

[OrbitalBeard]

They may look similar, but these two devices honestly are very, very different. Like, I actually think it's tough to even compare them. Even in a year or two when the Switch has a lot more going for it.

 

[BoxManLocke]

I have an old ass iPad Air.

I'd gladly give it to someone who'd lend me a Switch for like a week just to play BotW (I only have the game).

 

[TLZ]

Are these even comparable?

It's a tablet with mobile internals, so sure.

 

[Chindogg]

Wasn't the OP one of the guys shitting up every Switch launch thread?

I don't understand the purpose of this hypothetical thread. If you want a media device get the iPad. If you hate mobile or want to play Breath of The Wild get a Switch.

 

[snoopeasystreet]

As it currently stands, the iPad is a better games console than the Switch is a multimedia device.

I'm loving the Switch but if I could have one in my bag for a flight or whatever, I'd probably choose the iPad. The Switch undoubtedly has a much higher ceiling as a game device though.

 

[weekev]

What if you already have a Wii U?

Trade it in for a Switch cos if you have a WiiU your gonna be likely to want what the Switch will offer further down the line.

 

[psyfi]

What if you already have a Wii U?

That's a totally separate topic.

 

[HotHamBoy]

Trade it in for a Switch cos if you have a WiiU your gonna be likely to want what the Switch will offer further down the line.

Will the Switch offer Bayonetta 2?

 

[sinonobu]

I never found Ipad useful so Switch for me

 

[GinoFelino]

Silly thread.

In any case, you're probably better off getting an iPad Air 2 on the cheap. The new iPad has a poor screen.

 

[finalflame]

Can I play Zelda on the iPad? No? Then it doesn't matter.

What an odd, odd comparison this is.

 

[ggx2ac]

And honestly, as always, that's really all Nintendo can counter-offer: Nintendo games.

The Switch has the convenience of local multiplayer right out of the box which provides interactive social gaming with games like 1,2 Switch, Bomberman, Snipperclips, Just Dance 2017 and games to be released in the future like Mario Kart 8 and Splatoon 2.

Can an iPad do anything like that?

 

[Lemrik]

What if you already have a Wii U?

Still buy a Switch for the upcoming high-qualitiy Nintendo games.

I don´t get why people compare it with a tablet...it´s rectangular and has a screen, that´s it.

 

[IlGialloMondadori]

Wasn't the OP one of the guys shitting up every Switch launch thread?

Yes, as well as a few threads about how he won't buy a switch.

I have an iPad. I read comics on it. That's it. I do everything else on my laptop. I'll play portable games on my switch .

 

[Vuze]

Not exactly sure what's the point of this thread but if somebody was forcing me to get either of them at this point in time it would obviously be the iPad as well. Has a good selection of quality games, can also be played on the big screen and offers tons of standard and advanced features the Switch lacks.

 

[hamchan]

Don't really know the point of this thread but, well yeah, if you don't have either then an iPad is clearly the more feature filled and high value purchase. If I was a parent then this would be an easy purchasing decision.

 

[degoose]

This is obviously trolling. The devices uses are completely different and mobile games are no way comparable to fully fledged console games.I also hate apple devices so switch for me anyway

 

[GDGF]

I have a Galaxy phone Galaxy tablet and a Switch.

Because I have a large phone I don't use my tablet much.

So Switch.

 

[CronoShot]

Next thread:

"PS4 Pro vs $439 OnePlus 3T: Value Proposition"

Makes just about as much sense to compare the two.

 

[cw_sasuke]

This thread is fun...but you could have gotten your point better across if it wasnt this obvious.

Most games you listed are already on Smartphones and everyone own one...so well.

 

[PROh1bited]

What a lame thread