The Nintendo Switch hype is nearing Half-Life 3 levels, but I still don’t believe Nintendo has received the proper credit for the console tablet they’ve bestowed upon gaming humanity.
The Wii was a mainstream marketing mastermind (seniors were gaming!). The form factor would have made Steve Jobs proud (or pissed for ripping him off). It was underpowered (Mario Galaxy deserved HD damnit!) but it demolished the competition.
The Wii U however, was a mainstream marketing misfire. Nintendo tried to court the 100 million Wii owners while winning back the hardcore audience but failed on both accounts. The tablet felt cheap and half-baked. Portability within eye-sight of the console wasn’t useful enough. It was a misstep towards the future.
The Wii/Wii U success/failure has led to this moment. The Switch is now the ultimate evolution of their blue ocean strategy.
Nintendo went from ‘under-powered consoles’ to ‘greatest hand-held ever’ with one conference. Making gorgeous games on limited hardware didn’t make sense on the Wii U, but on a portable device? The trade-off is more than worth it, and downright genius. Seriously.
Comparing the Nintendo Switch to a PS4, XB1, or PC is now apples to oranges. Nintendo is out of the console business. They now have the greatest gaming tablet instead. A tablet that hooks up to a tv and swaps controllers as simple as 1-2-Switch! Other tablets will have more power, but they’ll never match the first-party games and ease of use.
Sure the launch lineup is thin, but having a proper Mario, evolved Zelda, deluxe Mario Kart, and Splatoon 2 within the first year will make a fabulous case for 2017 Christmas shoppers.
Critics love to count Nintendo out but they’ve revolutionized gaming yet again. Sure they stumble, but the most important creators don’t call them mistakes, they call them lessons.
Nintendo has learned plenty.
24 comments
Well, neat article lol. Nice cheer for Switch.
Got mine pre-o’d
Thanks! We just had a close-up look on the podcast and I’m more sold than ever. Very jealous of your pre-order.
Podcast is here if you’d like to check it out.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIT8HfE8qRc
nintendo seams to still be stuck back in the past with how their games are.those kind of games were fine when i was growing up and i had a nes and snes times have changed and people have grown up but nintendo.
all nintendo cares about is mario and zelda thats it you can only survive on 2 titles for so long as you can see with the wii.if nintendo wont GROW UP and make a console at least as powerful as the xbox one they mite as well be done in the console market.
they still dont stand a chance in japans mobile hand held market.the bulk of nintendos sales will come form usa and eu.sure the switch will get a boost at launch with zelda then it will collect dust for 2 uears until another zelda is launched.
this mite be the end of nintendo due to only having 2 titles for 30 years or however long it has been going on and not even trying to compete with ms and sony.
They dont have to compete with xbox and Sony. At this point, the XBONE is essentially dead. Sony has some good exclusives but still lacks those special exclusives that have near universal appeal.
Nintendo is on their own playing field and noone is competing with THEM. BOTW and Mario Odyssey will both be GOTY contenders, and you can only get them on a Nintendo. The other contender is Red Dead but you can play that on 3 other platforms.
2 games? Ha! Splatoon, Donkey Kong, Smash Bros., Luigi’s Mansion, Starfox, Metroid, Kirby Animal Crossing, Mario Kart, possibly a new Mother game….Nintendo has over a dozen first party exclusive franchises. And you better believe you will see another added during the Switches lifespan. And then you have 3rd party exclusives such as Xenoblade and Bayonetta…
Graphics dont make good games. Chrono Trigger and Ocarina of Time are still considered 2 of the best games ever and have decades old graphics. Graphic design is the only thing that matters, not shaders, polygons and other teraflopping bullshit.
To be honest, you sound like a 15 year old wanna be adult, and every point you tried to make sounds utterly moronic. Also, please learn how to write sometime between all those CoD marathons.
Either way you shake a stick at it it is still a “console hybrid” so to speak. Until they give up that TV connection like functionality through the dock it will stay just that.
I hope for good things for this “system”, but feel that this will all soon fall to the wayside. I personally am not sold on Zelda and Mario alone. Much like I am not a fan of the weird Japanese games that come from Nintendo in general….(Poke’mon garbage and other weird shite….)
All the titles you mentioned you don’t like (Zelda, Mario and Pokémon) are system sellers and will sell Nintendo a lot of consoles. Reading your comment I am not quite sure if Nintendo is the right console for you. 🙂
Exactly.
I can hook my android phone, iPad, macbook, and PC up to my tv, but I wouldn’t call them console hybrids. Heck even the Gameboy Advance hooked up to a tv through the Gamecube.
And those systems/platforms were “made” for those features, or were they designed with those features in mind?? A big difference as to how people use those said features as opposed to being forced in a particular direction.
This system is a Hybrid that will always be torn between itself….. Hopefully not, but that is just how I personally feel about it.
It’s because Nintendo will never be able to compete with Sony’s powerhouse playstation consoles, so they are throwing in the towel. Oh well, more power to Sony!!! I think the switch is failfortune in the making. The big N has been heading down the drain for years, and this is just their last ditch attempt to recover their dreams….
loool… you people simply dont get it…. as long as theirs a lack of third party support this PORTABLE HOME CONSOLE is a dud… past its initial sales it will freeze up with a lack of 3rd party support.. its as simple as that.. i dont understand how you all dont understand something sooo basic!
you’re cancer, all your comments are cancer
loool… you sound like a retard
are you a retard!?
They aren’t out of the console business. Nintendo is actually advertising the Switch as a game console first and a handhed second. They may be out of the 3rd party console business though, as 3rd party developers who are making games for PC, PS4 Pro and Scorpio probably won’t make a lot of their games for the Switch. Nintendo will have to rely on their 3DS developers to support the Switch. The 3DS is a huge success, but the Switch could end up like the Wii U in the end with mostly 1st party games coming to it.
This is where Nintendo starts its slide out of the hardware business. Hate to break it to you but most North Americans won’t bother gaming on the run with the Switch. If they do play mobile games it’ll be on their Smartphones. The Switch is ungainly large and the DS is better suited for the kids.
Time for Nintendo to cut its losses and just focus on the software and sell games on other systems using its IP library.
I have to agree with you. Nintendo is taking a big gamble on people wanting to have a powerful and portable gaming console, but for any place not named Japan, that really isn’t a thing. The truly hardcore will grab their Vitas or 3DS’s when they leave the house, but 99% of normal people just take their phones. It’s ok for most people to be without a videogame for a few hours.
Maybe Nintendo can pull it off, but if given the choice between a Switch and an iPad, the Switch can’t even compete.
The argument that mobile games are better designed for on the go is a sound one. I’ve been trying to catch up on PS1 RPGs like Final Fantasy IX on my Vita and it’s not conducive to whipping out for five minutes.
Playing a level of Mario/Donkey Kong, a race of Mario Kart, or round of Splatoon 2 would be just fine for on the go.
I don’t commute either, but having the ability to play the Switch on any couch while my girlfriend watches horrific Hallmark movies is a situation I will frequently find myself in
Why pay so much for a portable gaming unit? I might as well play Android games on an Nvidia Shield K1 tablet that has quite a hefty processor. Even with a few mods you can stream PS4 games to your Android tablet.
The Shield tablet offers more powerful hardware for the money but I prefer the Switch’s library of AAA Nintendo, third-party indies, and other console games like Steep over Android games that I could play on my phone. The Shield’s ability to stream from a PC sounds good on paper but reviews have cited this is fairly unreliable.
Modding to stream PS4 games or any other crazy idea I’m sure people can hack into it, also sounds good on paper but again, for my needs, I prefer it to work 100% of the time. I bet others will gladly trade that reliability for freedom to mod.
Listen I’ve preordered mine but you are singing praises for a console thats not out yet and we don’t know if its going to be successful. The tablet portability part of it doesn’t work because it last about 2 and a half hours so if think about it unless you add a external battery pack you won’t be going far. It’s pretty much a stay at home handheld much like the Wii-U before it.
I’m a huge Nintendo fan which is why I’m buying this but I believe the second version of this console probably be the one to get. People also seems to already be having hardware issues with this console. So lets wait and see what happens
2.5 hours at max brightness, volume, and WiFi. Matthew Hayes came on our podcast with his pre-launch Switch (lucky bastard) and said with brightness lowered, headphones, and no WiFi he estimated closer to 4 hours. I think that’s perfectly acceptable for a commute to and from work/school. A plane/bus/train will also likely have a power outlet, and there’s always an affordable power bank to keep it going.
I agree with you that many parents will probably lean towards a simple tablet that feels more durable, costs less, and has 99 cent apps instead of $60 USD games. Gamer parents however will probably love getting their older kids a portable Nintendo machine to grow up with.
Wow. This is actually a very interesting perspective. Nintendo are playing on their strengths and, in essence, leaving the console market. Consumers, even, felt this was the best move for Nintendo and it’s happening. Nintendo are leaving the console market and challenging portable units. They’re going to take on Mobile. I’ll buy into that marketing. So what of Microsoft? Personally, I think Microsoft needs to do the same but instead challenge the PC market. Microsoft needs to let go of the hardware business and return to their roots. Focus on Games For Windows and try and find peace with Sony and Nintendo with that. I think consumers will go along with that and buy into that marketing as Microsoft goes back to building huge PC cases and taking gamers back to the desk, the keyboard, and the mouse. So what about Sony? Nintendo should now he setting out to take on Samsung, HTC, Apple, and ZTE and tell them, hey! This is my domain and Stomp out the crap we have to play on Smartphones replacing it with quality software the mobile market needs. Google Play has nothing that’s good. Nintendo needs to bring back, or rather continue with the Game Boy, DS, and Advance business model. Let’s face it, Microsoft can’t manufacture or design hardware for crap. Their speciality is software. Make Gaming for Windows the best digital playground around. Take on Origin and Steam and really work on Windows and optimizing it for PC gamers. Sony will come and play with that, they’re already allowing developers to develop exclusively for PS4 and then port to PC. That needs to be Microsofts area. Sony? They bought out their Cloud based gaming for a reason. Let Sonys R&D team finally go back to work to create amazing console experiences and let their first-party teams do what they do best, making great games. Sony has mastered the console gaming arena. Microsoft can’t compete with Sonys development teams and Nintendo can’t compete with Sonys power. Let Sony continue to run the console world and stream over Smart TVs.
When you look at it this way, the competition isn’t as fierce but gamers get what they want. Microsoft offers the best PC gaming and operating experience , Sony provides the ultimate console experience, and Nintendo provides the best handheld. Basically, instead of warring with each other, they’re dividing and conquering covering all three bases, and Microsoft doesn’t have to worry so much about hardware. Oculus will take care of the VR side with PC.
Finally, the Vita was pretty amazing and these days seems to hold a similar reputation to the Dreamcast, so, careful with the best handheld ever, but for the three to come to a peace treaty and divide and conquer playing on their individual strengths, that does it, or am I wrong?
I agree with you in the sense that I’d like to see Sony and Microsoft have a bit more of an identity. I have great memories of my first Xbox, Xbox Live, and powerful PC games like KOTOR and Morrowind that you couldn’t get on the PS2.
Most importantly, I like having Microsoft and Sony compete and keep each other honest. A monopoly in a creative field is terrible for consumers, we need them fighting to offer the most features for the least amount of money.
The Switch obviously can’t be crowned the best, but it’s certainly the most powerful and easy to use.