Topic: Nintendo Switch --OT--

@KratosMD: I get your point, and I too think that Nintendo's hardware can be questionable at times. However, I don't think that Nintendo can survive as a third party publisher. What's left of Sega? A similar thing will happen to Nintendo. Mario and Zelda will survive for sure, but pretty much every other franchise will slowly die off, making the idea of going third party a moot point to begin with. They need their own consoles to sell their games I think.

That being said, I don't think the Switch itself is the issue. The pricing is, the lack of launch games, lack of third party support, paid online services, etc. Things that could've been prevented or fixed, but that simply didn't happen. That's not a Switch problem, that's a Nintendo problem. And a Nintendo problem won't be solved by going third party.

Do you guys think it's too late for them to make just a straight up, no gimmicks game system like they used to? I understand they feel they have to do a gimmick so they can stay relevant, but why not try standard console with the capabilities of the PS4 and XB1? Can they not afford it?

A gaming landscape without Nintendo consoles is admittedly an interesting thought. I'd have to think it over more though before I really make a statement on it.

@DerMeister: Nintendo is a smaller company than Microsoft or Sony, so in a way there's something to be said about lacking resources in that regard. I wouldn't be surprised if they can't afford to take losses on all products, have huge marketing promotions and such. Don't know the specifics though. On the other hand, they have billions of Wii moneys stored away somewhere.

@DerMeister: They'd get slaughtered in my opinion. PS4 and Xbox One are way too ingrained, and there's no room in the market for a third chair IMO.

Ask yourself this: could you imagine a Call of Duty commercial opening and closing with Nintendo bumpers? Battlefield? Grand Theft Auto? Assassin's Creed?

Until the answer's yes to those, then Nintendo needs to forge its own path, because they just can't hang with Sony and Microsoft in that market.

@DerMeister: The problem is times have changed. Most young adults now that are into gaming and have the disposal income are Sony and Microsoft babies, they know Nintendo as the Nintendo during the N64, Gamecube and beyond era where Nintendo wasn't the juggernaut it was during the 8 and 16 bit era. Thus Nintendo isn't in high regards with them and as Sammy said they would be looked upon as the third wheel. Even if they would make a "normal" game system do you think people who have owned a PS or Xbox all their gaming life would sudden (no pun intended) switch to Nintendo? Probably not.

So, this is a another big negative for me if they want to charge people to play online.

http://www.ign.com/articles/2017/01/13/nintendo-switch-online...

@WanderingBullet: I figured as much with the way they worded it.

@Tasuki: Do you think that they'll eventually (maybe in 2018) make certain actual Switch games free to play instead of just NES or SNES games?

@Octane I remember hearing about Nintendo losing profits, so maybe that is a big reason. Investing in a better system may not pay off for them. Though now that I type that, it's a bit weird to me that they'd rather bank on the Switch, which isn't a conventional gaming device.

@get2sammyb Agreed. Those four titles bring quite a haul of cash wherever they go, and they have no association with Nintendo what so ever. It proves just how bad the lack of 3rd party games has been for them. Because of that, they really can't gain headway in the console market.

@Tasuki Tis a fair point. I can vouch that my generation aren't familiar with Nintendo at their best, and the ones that are either grew up with a hand-me-down SNES or are hardcore gamers like us. I seriously know maybe five people my age that have played Pre-Gamecube Nintendo games. That's a shame in of itself, but it shows how far Ninty has fallen these days. The "kiddy game" stigma doesn't help either.

@WanderingBullet: Maybe if they see that their "rental" program isn't working. Of course I would say yes because MS and Sony do that, but lately it seems that whatever they do Nintendo is obligated to do the opposite. Maybe next Gen they will do that.

After the Switch event I'm confident we are gonna be playing Mario on PS4 by 2018 at the latest

The Switch presentation was ok, but I won't get it day one. That Mario game looks pretty awesome though. I'll probably get the Switch when that game comes out.

They've confirmed it now. No voice chat. You have to do all your matchmaking and communication through a separate app on your phone.

Edit: And just in case you're interested, here's Nintendo's reasoning behind not having voice chat in the Switch, with a little bonus explanation as to why they're not using Street Pass just for fun.

Or they could offer both options and let the players choose, you know, that would be convenient...

On retrospect, I think the issue is that this console is doing too much. I think the mobile/home console idea was actually a nice little niche - Sony/MS aren't going to intrude and the Switch could happily sit next to either a PS4 or XB1 on a tv stand. I think developers could make money back on porting releases across to an almost mobile platform. Plus, Nintendo first party games are, on the whole, excellent additions as opposed to competitors for Sony/MS games. If they could have kept the price low, I could have seen it doing good and steady business - enough to keep publishers onboard. I can see a lot of family's being interested - a game platform that can keep kids quiet at home AND in the car? Cheaper than a new PS4 or XB1? Family friendly titles? All really good unique selling points.

That is what I thought the point of the Switch was. However, the presentation was showing complicated features that you just know aren't going to be supported by many developers. Movement controllers? Online MP via a WIFI network? Split controls? Pay to play online? Mobile apps to support it? The price was not cheap and extras to get all the features do cost more.

I love Nintendo - the Wii U and 3DS are the only Nintendo consoles I haven't owned and I liked the concept but I will just need to wait till prices drop.

For around the £200 mark, you can buy a 3DS XL or Vita. Both of these offer portability of course and the Vita links up with your PS and can benefit with free games via IGC. Neither of these though offer the same power or potential that the Switch does. Pricing it that low would affect sales of the 3DS no doubt. You can buy an Xbox One or PS4 for the same money but then lose out on the portability and flexibility - something that doesn't bother me personally. In a 'family' situation, you are not limited to playing at home and only if no-one else wants to use the TV. If the parents decide you are having to go with them somewhere but you wanted to at least reach the next level/checkpoint etc, you can simply just take the console out of the dock and continue. As an adult, maybe you want to play in bed or if the other half/kids are watching TV, you can still play. Maybe for a lot though, this isn't an issue or something that crops up.

Cost wise its not that much more than the WiiU and yet offers more in a lot of ways so whilst I do think it seems expensive compared to Sony/MS consoles, its not that expensive compared to a regular handheld or even Nintendo's current home console. I do wonder whether or not it will be successful but again that depends on how you define success or more importantly how Nintendo will define success. We know that PS4 is selling far more consoles than Xbox One but the Xbox One isn't a failure either - its still sold more units than the XB360 managed in the same time frame. I bet if you asked MS if they would take the sales figures it has had before launching, they would. Compared to the PS4 it may seem a failure but I still think both can be considered a success. Maybe the WiiU was a success for Nintendo, maybe they see it as a failure. We don't know whether or not they expected or counted on more sales in its lifetime. Its like a Kickstarter asking for a £1m - if they get £10m its a success, if they get £1.5m its still a success. If they get £500k its a failure. Maybe Nintendo only hoped to reach 10m people with the WiiU and therefore was a success to them - even though both the XB1 and PS4 outsold it. If they hoped to reach the same sales figures as the Wii though, its a big failure.

Most devices/products etc have a starting price. However, most products will tend to find their 'right' price over time - a price that sells. Most new products do start 'expensive' because its not just the cost of the components (which will drop over time generally) but the cost of all the years of research and development, the cost of patents, the cost of dev kits, cost of advertising, shows, demo/review units etc etc. Its not just the hardware though that can bring in an income to offset that as game sales will help which is another reason why prices will drop. Nintendo may have to drop the price down and forego some of replacing the R&D costs via the console and get it back via the games instead.

Someone spoke about Nintendo quitting as a 'console' manufacturer. I don't necessarily think they should. In someways though the Switch is a sign that they are not looking to compete as a Home console maker. In terms of sales, MS and Sony can only dream of selling as many consoles as Nintendo have if you look at their Handheld sales. In many ways, this is the evolution of the handheld and keeping a foot (or toe) in the home console market too. Its more a handheld that can be docked to a TV and a lot of the talk was about portable and table-top gaming with the added bonus of docking it to play on a big screen in a 'home' console fashion. I don't think Nintendo want to market it this way because of the effect it may have on its 3DS XL but that's essentially what it is. A device to take on tablets/mobiles with the added bonus of replacing the WiiU when at home.

Sorry if all ready posted.

Accessories prices are ridiculous.

http://www.ign.com/articles/2017/01/13/official-nintendo-swit...

Nintendo Switch Pro Controller — $69.99
Joy-Con Controller Sets — $79.99
Individual L/R Joy-Con Controllers — $49.99
Joy-Con Charging Grip — $29.99
Nintendo Switch Dock Set — $89.99
Joy-Con Wheel (Set of 2) — $19.99

@KratosMD: Yeah, I agree. It's true for all companies. In a way I agree with people that PC is looking like a better platform every time something like this happens. It's as if the console manufacturers want some kind of monopoly on how we enjoy games. ''This is the way you're going to enjoy it''. I would love to see what happens if one of them starts to become more versatile and allow for a multitude of options instead of what they think is best.

The worst part is definitely the fact that Nintendo is asking us to pay for their online servers this time around, and they still require you to use your own network for voice chat. What kind of backwards thinking is that? People always told me that the reason for the lack of voice chat on Wii U was the free servers, would be too expensive otherwise. Now you need to pay and they're telling you to use alternative means to use voice chat. So weird, don't understand it at all..

@Splat: Pro Controller should've been $50 or $60 at most, and those Joy-Cons should've been 30 a piece and 50 for both. At that price I'd be willing to pick up another set, but no way I'm going to pay $70 or $80 for a second controller. The one that baffles me most is the dock; $90!? For what? A plastic shell that has a USB-C to HMDI 1.4 and AC cable splitter? That's all? Maybe it's not surprising considering they're selling plastic wheels for the Joy-Cons for $20.

@BAMozzy: You can buy an oled vita for £90, real life humans need a grip £10, the a 32gb memory card £70. So your not far wrong. £170 a fully prepped vita. Difference is the library of acclaimed games for a pittance.

@themcnoisy: You can buy an OLED Vita for £90 but that's not the current latest version. The latest one though is a lot more expensive. You can also buy cheaper DSXL's too but I was comparing the price with the latest versions.