As the Switch’s launch day creeps closer, the excitement will mount to crazy levels, blowing away the intense cynicism we see now about: a barebones lineup, motion/audio gaming, and online that’s either confusing or just downright insulting.
The online portion of the presentation started out just fine. A paid service was new for Nintendo, but right in line with the industry standard. I was excited to pay a monthly fee if it meant the infrastructure was getting a serious investment. My excitement took a nose dive however when the rest of the online details tumbled out.
I’ll admit I don’t have the final details, as Nintendo hasn’t given them yet, but what I’ve heard so far sounds downright insulting and misguided.
Requiring a smart device for online functionality is insult #1. Does Nintendo know that some people in the world won’t have one? Perhaps they share a phone or tablet with their family or partner.
The original Xbox handled online play and voice chat on their console way back in 2002! It’s the bare minimum expected.
I’d love to hear a clever reason why Nintendo requires a second device, but until they provide one, I’ll have to assume they chose infra-red sensors, HD rumble, and amiibo readers on their ridiculously expensive Joycons instead of a headphone jack.
Insult #2 is Nintendo’s laughable “free” game offering each month. Sony and Microsoft offer several titles each month in exchange for subscribing to their service. Those games are yours to keep for as long as you stay subscribed. The quality and age varies greatly, but it remains a sign of good will.
Nintendo – although they sit on a goldmine of classic games that anyone’s grandmother could easily emulate – have decided that just one game a month, and only for that month, will be free.
That’s it. Play Snow Brothers for a month and if you want any more? You better pay up sucka! If you’ve been paying for Snow Brothers since the Wii then that’s just too bad. Apparently the upkeep on ancient roms less than 1 megabyte in size isn’t worth it to Nintendo.
Also, has Nintendo heard of Netflix? I would gladly pay again to play these classic games if a simple subscription of $9.99 gave me access to NES/SNES games. Netflix and the Mini NES are VERY popular with consumers, how does Nintendo not automatically combine them?
Same old Nintendo for better or worse
Nintendo has been tone-deaf for years, but they do make great games. The Wii and Wii U made many obvious mistakes but still provided some of the best gaming experiences of their respective generation. I won’t be too insulted by the ridiculous online business model while playing Breath of the Wild and Mario Odyssey. I probably won’t be playing while commuting, but I loved the Wii U’s ability to play almost anywhere in the house while the main television was being used for terrible romantic dramas. The Switch will make that even easier.
Nintendo just needs a few more quality games to pump the excitement back up to pre-presentation levels. A great looking Metroid, Donkey Kong, or interesting new IP will go a long way to giving gamers something to do after Zelda and Mario. I just worry it’ll be too late.
10 comments
Play Wii U anywhere is the house. It only has like a 10-15ft distance. I went to my bathroom which was only about 12ft away and my Wii U portable controller went completely out saying I was to far from the main console. I can take my XBox One controller upstair and still control the game downstair in my den. lol!! Nintendo is a joke. Sure the JoyCon is very innovative, but it’s too damn small. Have you tried playing Punch Out on the Wii with the Wii Remotes sideways. My fingers and hands got so cramped, I had to stop playing.
I’m hoping there will be third party controllers for the Switch. Maybe bigger ones, that don’t break into two pieces to attach to the sides of the tablet.
It would be great if Hyperkin or Mad Catz made a Switch controller that looked sort of like an Xbox controller. Something just for when the Switch is used in console mode.
Different from the pro controller?
Just learned about the pro controller today. I’m happy to see Nintendo has something better than the joycons for use in console mode.
Finally someone who gets it. I’m not entirely against paying for online, but I am if it doesn’t include basic features like game lobbies and voice chat as standard. If you need to use your phone to do these things, Nintendo shouldn’t be charging for online.
Don’t even care about the “free” game every month. I would happily not get the free game if they included lobbies and voice chat into their service without the need for a phone.
That’s great, because there is no free game. Nintendo should be charging for online to raise the standards of their terrible infrustracture.
its quite simple. Don’t like the product then don’t pay for it. There are plenty of other devices out there to spend money on – but whining that you have to pay for a product is ridiculous. Especially when these changes are being made to improve a service.
They haven’t confirmed it either way. Until they confirm the console does support lobbies and voice chat without a phone, I’m completely entitled to my opinion.
Also, note the quotations I put around “free”.
it was definitely confirmed exclusively that you will need a phone or a tablet for the online service. this has been confirmed by reggie himself and other sources.
“I’ll admit I don’t have the final details, as Nintendo hasn’t given them yet, but…”
Don’t jump on the phantom train to complain about all the things that ‘might be’. It’s one thing to investigate – another to push a ‘publish’ button just because you can.
People complained about Nintendo’s online infrastructure – they’re putting plans in place to improve it. That will cost so it’s absolutely expected that will incur a fee on a console platform, more so as Sony and Microsoft charge too.
Until that subscription is in play I’ll adopt a wait and see approach as Nintendo haven’t divulged any information yet. Just an outline. It’s interesting to see Reggie’s comments on the App be completely misinterpreted as sites feaverisly post negative and inaccurate false info articles on using the phone to voice chat.
Im a big Nintendo fan and want them to kick ass but they haven’t given enough info about the upcoming service and have a terrible track record in that area so far. My confidence that their online will be better than what we’ve seen is low but I’d love nothing more for them to prove the doubters wrong.