The
buildup for the “NX” reveal was a long road of countless rumors, leaks, and
whole lot of jokes. I’m not too interested in speculating why it has taken them
so long to final unveil their next big system, though it does concern me a bit
for its launch. I’m glad the info is finally out (well most of it). It wasn’t
too much of a shock considering all the leaks, but I am very impressed by the
reveal.
The
Nintendo Switch seems like it’s my new dream console. For a few years now I’ve
been primarily a handheld system user. This is partially due to some living
condition things that I don’t need to get into, but what has me always reaching
for my 3DS is the privacy of a personal screen and the ability to play it anywhere
in my home. I don’t get out of the house very often, so I don’t really tend to
take the console out with me on my travels, but the portable aspect of the
console is still incredibly useful to me if I can just put in a few hours into
my game of choice from whatever room I choose, even my still laying in my bed.
I love the convenience of handheld systems so much that at times I feel the
only way I can finish certain games is if they happen to be on 3DS. If tried
for a while, but I never finished a Shin Megami Tensei until it found its home
on 3DS, and the first Tales of game that I finished was oddly enough the 3DS
port of Tales of the Abyss. I can put in countless hours into JRPGs easily on
handheld, but I’m still struggling to even really get into a lot of the games I
started on my newly purchased PS4. A lot of my issues with the console gaming
experience might be really specific to certain aspects of my lifestyle, but I
can’t be the only person who just finds the convenience of pulling out your 3DS
from your bag or pocket from anywhere you like a way more appealing console
feature than any sort of 1080p/60 fps or the tech culture’s newest obsessions
4K resolutions and VR.
I’ve
never really understood the voracious appetite people have for newer, more
powerful tech in gaming. People have been saying a lot that we are seeing
diminishing returns on the graphical jump between console generations, but I’ve
been saying that since the Xbox 360’s launch. I do now appreciate this stuff a
bit more these days now that I actually have an HD widescreen tv to play stuff
on (and going back to my old tv is just unbearable), but it’s when we get into stuff
like the jump between 720p to 1080p, 1080p to 4K, demands for 60 fps minimum on
games that really don’t get anything out of that kind of performance is where
these tech fanatics lose me. Maybe I just have to be a tech hungry gamer with a
high end PC build that costs more than a decent car to understand the appeal
because I honestly just don’t see a huge reason to invest hundreds of dollars
just for a resolution bump. The tech power arms race of the “console war” is
just getting worse now with “Pro” and “Scorpio” versions of the new consoles
that a lot of people were just trying to save up to buy the launch editions. I
just bought a PS4 and already the industry wants to move on to the Pro to chase
some seemingly niche 4K craze?? Now I’m paranoid that new games I’m excited
about on PS4 will run like shit because the industry will be developing for the
Pro’s specs, and the regular console version will be an afterthought.
The
weird part is that despite me feeling all paranoid over the Pro and Scorpio
versions of the big boy consoles I still primarily play on my 3DS, which by
comparison might as well be a Razer flip phone. What is weird about the
handheld side of the so called “console war” is that the Vita is killing the
3DS hilariously in power, but its failing miserably anyway. And don’t get me
wrong, I think the Vita is a cool console that I could see myself also playing
a ton if I just had the cash to drop on one, but the Vita’s failure weirdly
enough gives me hope that at least on the consumer end, power doesn’t always
win. There is a place where the “lightweight” console can duke it out with the “heavyweight”
power consoles.
Personally,
I’m a bit confused at the marketing message they are going with for the Switch
as a “home console you can take on the go”. It seems like it’s the exact
opposite. It’s a new generation handheld that can be plugged and upscaled to a
home tv gaming experience. I guess I’m no marketing expert though because
handheld gaming is somewhat looked down upon by the tech hungry industry.
Speculation through leaks (with no official word) puts the Switch around the
same power of an Xbox One, which would sound like a huge game changer from the
handheld perspective, immediately obsolete from the console side. Considering I’m
more of a fan of the handheld side I am very excited. The next wave of Pokémon,
Monster Hunter, Yokai Watch, Fire Emblem, Animal Crossing, etc. are going to
see a dramatic jump in graphical quality while also staying convenient as
handheld games. Though games like Splatoon, 3D Mario, Smash, etc. are sadly not
going to see as dramatic of a jump, but will join the others in being convenient
handheld games now.
Of
course there are some concerns. The Wii U’s failure had 3rd Party
support for the console leave that console to die. While I do think the Wii U
still has an impressive library, it would be very hard if that were your only
modern home console option. The 3DS has some good support, but the dramatic
jump might scare away these partners. There are many technical concerns too
such as battery life, durability, and performance between the handheld and
docked options. For my purposes the former two don’t concern me as much, but I
do have fears very similar to my fears about the PS4 Pro of developers chasing the
more powerful option too hard and the game runs like garbage when in a handheld
mode. Of course the lack of concrete technically information given by Nintendo
doesn’t help matters. We don’t even have a price for the machine, and yet they’re
okay with saying no further info until 2017, a minimum 3 months prior to their
launch? Price is also concerning since I did just purchase a PS4 and I am still
recovering from such a huge console purchase on my small income. There is hope
that if the console is aiming for less power it could end up being a
dramatically cheaper option than its competition though, but we’ll wait and
see.
I
was just thinking the other day on my lunch break at work how wonderful it
would be to have the Switch. Being able to pull out a handheld and have not
just handheld but what would be typically be console exclusive games to play on
my break would be amazing. I was imagining myself getting in a few games of
Pac-Man CE2, getting through a few levels on the latest 3D Mario, or even
messing about in Breath of the Wild during my break. At home I could possibly
get to play games possibly like the latest Dragon Quest, Tales of, Final
Fantasy from the comfort of my bed every morning. The Nintendo Switch is a
dream console, but let’s just hope it can live up to those dreams.
My Price Limit At Launch - $300 or $350 if the launch line up is amazing
Personal New Game Wishlist
Splatoon 2
Wonderful 101
sequel
Bayonetta 3
Pokémon Gen VIII
Pokémon
Generation IV Remake
next Tales of
game
next Final
Fantasy
next Persona/SMT
games
Pikmin 4
new Yokai Watch
new F-Zero
new Metroid Prime
Personal Port Wishlist
Tales of Series
(Symphonia, Zestiria, Berseria)
Nier and Nier
Automata
Final Fantasy
XIII Series
Final Fantasy VII
Remake
SMT/Persona
Series (P5, SMT Nocturne)
Pac-Man
Championship Edition DX & 2
Metroid Prime
series
F-Zero X & GX
3D Mario series
