Nintendo Switch

Domingo said:
It wouldn't be as big of a deal if their recent systems weren't such a massive drop-off from the other systems from a technical standpoint. The Wii, WiiU, and now the Switch are literally like playing last gen games on hardware you just bought for the same price as the stronger consoles. That's where the big disconnect is. It isn't apples to apples the same as the other console exclusives. It's not like PS4 owners see Halo 5 and wonder if it's a 360 game. It's an exclusive they might not have access to, but at least it's current gen.
Plus, if you look at the games that Nintendo uses to sell systems (Zelda, Mario, Metroid, Kart, Smash, Animal Crossing, Kirby, etc.), those aren't the games that are even utilizing the "special" features that Nintendo insists they need so much. That why (again) it's hard not to look at those games and wish they were on better hardware, be it Sony's, MS's, or even just the rough parity Nintendo used to care about. Nintendo has long featured quirks and gimmicks, but them basing the whole system around them isn't how they always did it.
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Except the difference now is that the Switch is portable and is running hardware that is easy to port/code for. Sure - It doesn't have the capability of a 100w+ box, but it's a tablet w/ a great controller.

The point is that anyone wanting to play CoD 83: Battle of the mutants of Grenada already has a console/PC to do so.

I agree that the WiiU never had much of a chance because it was ultimately a box in your entertainment center like the two other systems / PC, and it was also running hardware that was completely different from anything else on the market. The Switch resolves both of those issues by being a portable (And thus eventually merging Nintendo's handheld and consoles teams into one piece of hardware), and is also running hardware that can easily be coded for, unlike the WiiU.
 
Mchart said:
People also overlook the fact that Nintendo does in fact have third party support from a couple decent Japanese studios that make some incredible games like Xenoblade. So while Nintendo may not receive generic CoD: 57 The ghosts of Guantanamo Bay, and the latest Mass Effect 69 Gay Love edition - They still have particular third party titles.
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Exactly. I wouldn't begrudge them adding a bit more powerful GPU, but really, I think it will do what they set out to do. I know I'm in the minority on this one, but I really enjoy a lot of indie games too. Granted I can easily get most of them on Steam (and do) but having a nice little handheld to play some of that stuff on will be very nice. I'd have loved to play Hyper Light Drifter on something like the Switch. I play a lot of games on the Wii U and N3DS before I go to sleep at night in bed, and having some high quality games available in a conducive format is nice. I've been playing Breath of the Wild split between the living room TV and my bed when I just can't stop playing before I go to sleep. :D The Wii U pad has been wonderful for that. Nintendo does have high quality 3rd party games just as you've stated. They just aren't the same ones that all the other systems have. Which once again is what sets them apart, and anyone who wants something beyond Call of Madden 2K19 should recognize and enjoy.
 
Nintendo’s entire shtick is selling us sequels to games that have been around since the 80’s, so it’s not like they’re doing anything more noble than EA or Ubi giving the world new Madden, CoD, and AC games.
We’re on roughly the 20th Super Mario Bros. title, the 9th Mario Kart, the 5th Smash brothers, the 15th Kirby, the 17th Pokemon, the 11th Mario Party, the 6th Star Fox, the 19th Zelda, the 15th (or more depending on what you count) Donkey Kong, the 11th Metroid, etc.
That doesn’t even include remakes, compilations, and spin offs. While none have headed into Sonic trashbin territory, they have had some real stinkers in there.

I’m hoping that they make some effort to come up with some more franchises instead of milking those indefinitely. Pikmin is one of the few they’ve even attempted since the N64 days. I dunno if I’d call it particularly notable, either.

If you look at the Switch’s line-up right now, it’s ½ made-up of SNK’s sequel-heavy 1990’s games. One of those other big selling points was a new Street Fighter *2* sequel.
The Switch clearly isn’t just a 3rd home console, but I’m not sure that’s a good thing either.
 
Domingo said:
Nintendo’s entire shtick is selling us sequels to games that have been around since the 80’s, so it’s not like they’re doing anything more noble than EA or Ubi giving the world new Madden, CoD, and AC games.
We’re on roughly the 20th Super Mario Bros. title, the 9th Mario Kart, the 5th Smash brothers, the 15th Kirby, the 17th Pokemon, the 11th Mario Party, the 6th Star Fox, the 19th Zelda, the 15th (or more depending on what you count) Donkey Kong, the 11th Metroid, etc.
That doesn’t even include remakes, compilations, and spin offs. While none have headed into Sonic trashbin territory, they have had some real stinkers in there.

I’m hoping that they make some effort to come up with some more franchises instead of milking those indefinitely. Pikmin is one of the few they’ve even attempted since the N64 days. I dunno if I’d call it particularly notable, either.

If you look at the Switch’s line-up right now, it’s ½ made-up of SNK’s sequel-heavy 1990’s games. One of those other big selling points was a new Street Fighter *2* sequel.
The Switch clearly isn’t just a 3rd home console, but I’m not sure that’s a good thing either.
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It's interesting how people keep lambasting the Switch's release lineup and not comparing it equally to the other consoles release lineups. Both the One and PS4 had jack shit at launch as well. Granted, they had sports titles and CoD 17: Ghost Guy, but really the only solid launch title on either the One/PS4 was Black Flag. (And you could get this on your PC with better graphics anyways)

You point out what is going to work in the Switch's favor - Classic releases which are great to play on a portable device, and aren't $60 titles.

And i'll point out that while Nintendo releases sequels constantly in CoD-like fashion - At least their games aren't a mess on release and you know even if you are buying the 8th release of 'New Super Mario Bros' style platformer you're getting a solid title. I really can't say the same for CoD, or any number of other AAA re-hash releases recently.
 
I have mixed feelings about Nintendo's titles. I'm a die-hard Mario Kart and Smash fan and will probably be stuck buying whatever hardware they force on us 'til they go under. Yet I think the Mario franchise has really lost its luster. I don't feel they've improved on a whole (beyond the obvious graphics) lot since Mario 64. The "new" SMB games feel as phoned in as COD to me. Maybe more so since they can just crank those out with some basic mapping tools. COD at least has production on its side. It's the same 'ol thing, but Mario very much is, too. The Pokemon titles aren't much better.

They're luckily a bit choosier with some franchises like Star Fox and Metroid than the Mario ones. IMO, Mario feels a lot like Sonic did in the late 90's.
 
And yet, we all keep buying their games... because they're enjoyable. You're not wrong that they keep releasing sequels, but that's actually the core of what people want from them. Imagine if they released the Switch without Zelda, Mario, Mario Kart, etc. What do you think the reception of that would have been? People bought the Switch because they wanted to play the new Zelda game. (I'm currently playing it on the Wii U and happy, but will also grab a Switch, Zelda, etc. when it's easier to get.) I replay all of the Zelda games pretty regularly too. They're fun, and they are perfect for filling in gaps for other things that I'm waiting for (System Shocks, Prey, Cyberpunk 2077, new Quakes and Dooms, that sort of thing.) Big budget titles for other systems that actually make me drool to get a hold of are few and far between these days. What do I play in between? Nintendo games and indie games. It's not that they're necessarily more fun than other types of games, but they are a different kind of fun, and about as polished as a piece of software can be. They may not be particularly innovative with their game sequels (well sometimes they actually are very much so) but it's that their games are the best, prime examples of the genres they're in that can be had. If you're into those genres even a little bit, then you can't ignore Nintendo.

As far as Sonic goes. He had his time. His games were cool for a bit, but they don't hold up quite as well today. I start up Super Mario World, have a blast and lose track of time. I'll try and play a Sonic game, play through a couple of levels and lose interest. Despite Sonic appealing to the fast moving sprites and scrolling aesthetic which was all the rage at the time, it was always a B game compared to Mario. The mechanics of Mario are refined down to the last bit. Everything is thought of and accounted for. It makes you want to keep playing.

I've had the New Super Mario and Luigi game for the Wii U since launch and had only played about 15 minutes total until a few weeks ago. I wrote it off as kind of being what you were alluding to. Like Sonic from the 90s. Tired. I actually started regretting that I had paid so much for it. Well, I sat down with my daughter and loaded it up a couple weeks back, and we played it for hours and hours. It really hadn't lost any of the magic. I just needed to give it a proper chance. Sure it's a bit easier in some ways than Super Mario World or especially SMB3, but it also throws some serious shit at you once in a while. I rethought my whole view of a modern 2D Mario. 3D Mario is another thing entirely. Galaxy was a bit limited IMO, but the rest are great. (including Galaxy 2)

That's the long way of saying, I disagree about the Sonic thing. :D
 
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I got the New super Mario bros WiiU for free a while back and finally tried it out a couple months ago and it's actually really well designed and quite fun. It's just that it doesn't sound/seem exciting at first glance.. because it's another NSMB game.

They're doing it right with the switch by actually releasing a *new* Mario game as they really haven't done anything new with the franchise since galaxy.
 
Mchart said:
I got the New super Mario bros WiiU for free a while back and finally tried it out a couple months ago and it's actually really well designed and quite fun. It's just that it doesn't sound/seem exciting at first glance.. because it's another NSMB game.

They're doing it right with the switch by actually releasing a *new* Mario game as they really haven't done anything new with the franchise since galaxy.
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Not quite sure what to think of the new Mario game yet, as I haven't really seen much. (haven't really looked either) However, with the success of BotW, maybe they'll be more willing to update some of their franchises now with some new mechanics, and larger changes than they've been willing to in the past. Looks like passing a bit of control over to some of the other people has breathed a bit of life into things. They do this type of thing all the time with hardware, but are a little more conservative when it comes to the software these days. Maybe this will change a bit now.
 
I think a lot of it is that they didn't have the development bandwidth to really make new games since the Wii / DS/3DS. Their first party development for the longest time was cut down the middle and split between two different types of platforms. With the Switch and all teams developing for the same piece of hardware moving forward I think we'll see a new Metroid, etc.
 
Mchart said:
I think a lot of it is that they didn't have the development bandwidth to really make new games since the Wii / DS/3DS. Their first party development for the longest time was cut down the middle and split between two different types of platforms. With the Switch and all teams developing for the same piece of hardware moving forward I think we'll see a new Metroid, etc.
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That would be very nice! And if not, let's get the sequel to Axiom Verge in the lineup of indie games. (I think I actually like AV better than Super Metroid ***ducks***) Though I would absolutely LOVE a modern Metroid game. I'd prefer a 2D one along the lines of New Super Mario. New Super Metroid?!?!? :D I'm sure others would want more of a Prime type of game. Both would be great really.
 
Running Epona off a cliff and accidentally killing her, watching her tumble down a mountain was one of the most traumatic experiences in gaming. I was like "this ain't happening man." It never even occurred to me to reload my save. I ended paying a fairy to bring her back.

I think horses in this game are beyond useless.
 
I don't really get the point of horses beyond the side quests that specifically use them. I guess if you're committed to never using fast travel or if you have a thing for horses that could be different.
 
This is the first console I have purchased in about 11 years. I think the last one was Xbox 360. I barely played it after buying it, because I lost my love for gaming. I started working for the county and work alone, so I needed something to kill time. Since I'm caught up on all my work I looked for about a week and a half at Best Buy, Target, and Gamestop. I was finally able to nab 1 (1 for a friend too) at Best Buy. I couldn't believe they actually had them in stock when I saw them.

So far I have Zelda and Fast RMX. They are both fun games, but I've mainly been playing Zelda. Mario Kart will be my next game. I'm playing this maybe 3-4 hours a day and love it so far. I just hope more stellar titles keep coming out so it can keep me busy. :D
 
Aside from having a portable Mario kart 8, i cant believe I'll be buying the same game again even though i have it on digital download for the Wii U, I'm not that psyched for the portable side. The Ps vita has almost all the indie games already. Loads of fighting games, steamworlds, retro city rampage, axiom verge etc.Cross buy would be nice so i didn't have to buy the same games again. The prices for the Switch games are far too high.
 
I really want to play Zelda but there is no way I will ever buy another Nintendo system(new, would buy used at a great deal) as long has they have the mediocre friend code bs.
 
mclld said:
I really want to play Zelda but there is no way I will ever buy another Nintendo system(new, would buy used at a great deal) as long has they have the mediocre friend code bs.
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Can buy the game and play it on cemu. Recent cemu patch fix most if not all game breaking bugs.
 
I dont know what cemu is but I am guessing some kind of emulator. I dont have a powerful pc that can runs games
 
Just got my Switch. It's really nice actually. Zelda is awesome, as is Fast RMX, and Voez (don't laugh, I am an anime fan).

I find the controller to be more comfortable than than the XB/PS but the reversed A/B/X/Y buttons are mega-confusing.
 
I really wish there would be some updates on wider groups of entertainment / network / utility applications for the Switch. They launched without even basic, parity-to-other-consoles friends/account messaging (and I'm no fan of the Friend Code system in any iteration really) and promised "oh yeah we'll get right on that, that stuff will be coming soon", but I've not seen much development. Likewise, the stuff I really want to see announced sometime soon is what kind of non-game apps they'll be offering/supporting. The Switch could be a great general use tablet and the Dock makes media-center use a no brainer, but without apps it isn't going to happen. For instance, if they brought Kodi to the Switch it would be a fantastic use of the Dock, allowing media viewing/listening on the go or at home; the same would be true of Plex and Emby (though if I recall these have both Kodi plugins and stand alone apps) Likewise, Netflix, Amazon,Hulu, Crunchyroll, YouTube, Twitch (which should include both viewing and broadcasting ideally), etc.. could also add to the media use benefit. On the tablet utility side there is lots of potential, but I think adding a quality e-reader app like FBReader, CoolReader etc.. and be sure either that app, or a separate one could handle PDF and comic/image reading formats too. Pair this with a competent and full featured browser, and it becomes a worthy tablet /docked TV device that also has some unique games and a great set of peripherals.

Its time to see some motion in this direction from Nintendo because Breath of the Wild is great, but for the cost of the system it needs to do more than have a couple of neat titles....and for that matter, it is so capable of being a great multiuse device if Nintendo only takes advantage of features all ready available!
 
vegeta535 said:
Can buy the game and play it on cemu. Recent cemu patch fix most if not all game breaking bugs.
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In my experience it's still very buggy and crashy. It's fun to mess around with for a bit but for a serious playthrough you are going to want to wait X months, or buy a Switch.
 
MavericK said:
In my experience it's still very buggy and crashy. It's fun to mess around with for a bit but for a serious playthrough you are going to want to wait X months, or buy a Switch.
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The only issue I had so far was camera locking up and can't see what I'm doing inside shrines. Falling off a ledge or reloading fixes it tho.
 
I ended up trading the Wii U in for one at cex as judging by the amount of second hand ones they have in stock everyone bought one with Zelda, played the shit out of it then sold the lot at a good price. I didn't buy Zelda (not a fan of Zelda games. I just bought some digital downloads. Snake pass, shifty, metal slug and fast rmx. I love the switch but i prefer the vita for on the go. It'll be better when Mario kart 8 is out even though that game will have set me back over £100 as it's not cross buy with the Wii U which sucks. My Son and i love Fast Rmx on multiplayer only on the big tv screen though. The consoles a keeper but it's a bit meh ATM until there are more big hitting games. They need to stop charging premium prices for indie games as well.
 
bought daughter one for bday march 26th. It has been turned on 3 times...so far.
 
Nintendo pushed out the 2.2 firmware yesterday. It's another one of those updates that simply claims "to offer a more pleasant experience," so I assume it's just a bug fix of some sort.
 
Domingo said:
Nintendo pushed out the 2.2 firmware yesterday. It's another one of those updates that simply claims "to offer a more pleasant experience," so I assume it's just a bug fix of some sort.
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Maybe some floral wallpaper, some soft, middle-of-the-road background music in the menus, and a general toning down of the angry beaver/woodchuck thing in Animal Crossing?


I think it's getting close to time for me to pick one of these up. I think I've waited just about long enough. Maybe the next batch that goes out or something. My kids are really starting to bug me about playing BotW on the Wii U, so I can just move over to the Switch to play. Too bad one probably can't copy save-data between the two... Oh well. I haven't made it THAT far into the game yet anyway. Just been grinding hearts and stamina-bits.
 
Domingo said:
Nintendo pushed out the 2.2 firmware yesterday. It's another one of those updates that simply claims "to offer a more pleasant experience," so I assume it's just a bug fix of some sort.
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Generally it's just to try to screw with flashcart / CFW hackers.
 
We're only a day from Mario Kart. I'm surprised there's still no option to pre-buy the game from the Nintendo store. If it's anything like Zelda was, the store is going to be slammed tonight.
This will also be the first real test of Nintendo's online infrastructure for the Switch.
 
Domingo said:
We're only a day from Mario Kart. I'm surprised there's still no option to pre-buy the game from the Nintendo store. If it's anything like Zelda was, the store is going to be slammed tonight.
This will also be the first real test of Nintendo's online infrastructure for the Switch.
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Meh, i'll just go to target and buy a physical copy. Less to download, and if i get tired of it i can sell it on eBay.
 
The download didn't take too long. It started right at 10PM (for me) and it was done in about 45 minutes. That's about 3x as long as Steam would have been, but it's still pretty quick.
I only had about 10 minutes to play it, but it's definitely Mario Kart 8. Everything (option-wise) seems unlocked up-front, but the various karts and parts still have to be unlocked by winning various races and getting trophies.
I have my Switch with me at work, so I'll hopefully be able to blow through most of the 50CC races at lunch.
 
Damn, was hoping my Switch itch could be waited until Holiday 2017 to be scratched, but the upgraded battle mode for MK8 Deluxe looks crazy good.
 
I downloaded it here in the UK. I had the Wii U version with both expansions. Just blown £50 to buy it again for the Switch. It looks and runs amazing. I get the feeling ill get bored of it quickly though as I played it loads in the Wii U. Not enough new content for me for the price. There should be loads of new tracks and characters etc. My Son will love it though.
 
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I tend to think they released roughly the same game because so many people skipped the WiiU version. Outside of the pure chaos factor, it's about as good they're going to get with current technology.
I do wish WiiU owners got it at a discount, though. Thanks to Nintendo's oddly disconnected accounts/stores I at least understand why they didn't.

I put in some time on my lunch break and it's definitely more of the same. The 2-powerups thing seems well implemented, though. I assumed it would cause a logjam of powerups in the middle of a crowd, but it also limits itself by only having double boxes in certain spots. If everyone rushes for them, you risk missing out completely. It can potentially also offer the person in 1st a chance to finally block 2 attacks. I wish they weren't so liberal with dishing out coins to 1st place, though. They're essentially worthless if you already have 10, so I'd rather have literally anything else.
 
Domingo said:
I don't really get the point of horses beyond the side quests that specifically use them. I guess if you're committed to never using fast travel or if you have a thing for horses that could be different.
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Im surprised how few people know that you can call a horse from any stable, even when it's on the other side of the world.

However if you're like me during my initial playthrough, and discovered nearly 35% of the map without encountering a 2nd stable yet.... yea..
 
Inu said:
Im surprised how few people know that you can call a horse from any stable, even when it's on the other side of the world.

However if you're like me during my initial playthrough, and discovered nearly 35% of the map without encountering a 2nd stable yet.... yea..
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Wait. What?

So you're saying I can summon my horse to any stable on the map? Even if I left it in the middle of the desert? (Sorry, Frank). I'd check this now, but I won't be able to get to my Switch till later tonight.
 
Krixon said:
Wait. What?

So you're saying I can summon my horse to any stable on the map? Even if I left it in the middle of the desert? (Sorry, Frank). I'd check this now, but I won't be able to get to my Switch till later tonight.
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That is correct. Take your horse wherever, leave them wherever, and then go to any stable to get your horse back. The horse must be registered of course.
 
The problem with horses is that the game is so heavy on climbing and uneven surface elements that they're still mostly a waste of time. By the time you call your horse, get on, and gallop a little you're ready to get off again. Either that or you're forced to take the long way around to avoid obstacles. There are a few areas where they aren't bad (the desert heading to the ninja areas) but they're few and far between. When I was looking to travel decent distances quickly I typically just parachuted from a tower or high mountain.

Unrelated, who else is loving Mario Kart 8 Deluxe? The slight graphical boost is very welcome and the game looks fantastic as a portable. With Zelda I always felt things got very tough to see (pixelated) beyond what was right in front of you. Mario Kart's view distance is fantastic. It's easily the best looking portable game I've ever seen if you count it as such.
 
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