Topic: Nintendo Switch --OT--

@Bentleyma Playing Breath of the Wild on it day one was almost awe-inspiring. While only a modest improvement on the Wii U, it was such a quantum leap as a portable gaming platform, and it really felt like I was seeing into the future first-hand.

Since then, its limitations as a platform have become painfully clear, and Steam Deck is obviously going to waste it in terms of raw specs, but while you get used to it, the hybrid functionality never stops being useful.

I found the dude from the Battle Subway from Unova in Pokémon Legends Arceus. Bizarre. Definitely gives credence to the time travel theory.

@Fragile One Pokémon challenges are brutal! My biggest achievement is beating the League in Pokémon Yellow solely using Pikachu 😂

@nessisonett Did you call it Sparky😉?

I’m going to be picking up Legends next week. Wait for a few bug fixes. I’m excited about the changes and how they keep this formula going forward, but the environments look so bland.
I’ll mostly be playing handheld so I imagine it’s going to be even worse.

Legends honestly looks okay in my opinion. The sky boxes in particular look great. Performance is ok. It's really not that bad at all..

@kyleforrester87 It’s just the textures. The clothing especially is laughable, it would look terrible in the 3DS days with the artefacts on logos and the like. The environments aren’t that bad and the Pokemon themselves look good.

@nessisonett I really don't think its that terrible lol. Of course, it's not great but I don't hate it.

Really hoping that Nintendo announces a new Mario Kart during this month's supposed Nintendo Direct. Been playing MK8D again with friends and it's great fun but I want a new entry. We haven't seen a new game in the series in almost a decade now.

I was thinking about replacing my knackered Joycons, does anyone recommend a cheaper alternative? I quite like the look of the Hori split pro pad thingy.

Happy to go as cheap as possible and lose features like motion control/vibration in the process.

@kyleforrester87 Split Pad Pro is great for handheld mode if you want something with big buttons and sticks. The D-Pad is also really solid. Granted, it makes the Switch gigantic, but I assume you're more concerned about comfort.

It also has programmable paddles on the back and a turbo button, which is useful for games with repetitive button inputs.

No gyro sucks, though. Especially for games like Pokemon Legends: Arceus, Splatoon, and BotW. For those, unless you're aiming purely with sticks like a caveman, I recommend joycons with an attachable grip for comfort.

@Ralizah do they rattle around on the console a lot? There is some wiggle on the standard joycons but are they less solid than that?

@kyleforrester87 I don't really shake my device around, but they feel solid to me when attached. I've never thought: "Geez, wish these were tighter."

Comparing them, I think they're tighter than my old joycons when slotted into the tablet.

@Ralizah cool thanks, I think I’ll order them then

@Ralizah I ordered, I’m coming for you if it sucks

@kyleforrester87 Which one? When I got my SPP years ago, only the Daemon x Machina model was available, but now they're available in a lot of cute designs.

@Ralizah I just went for classic black to match my heart.

Looking forward to being able to play in handheld mode again though to be honest - Pokémon in bed will be fun and then I can push on with my Baldurs Gate 2 save.

Do they impact the battery much? I understand they don’t have their own batteries. I guess it’s not so bad without the rumble etc.

Nintendo Direct inbound tomorrow.

@kyleforrester87 I've never noticed them eating battery life to a significant degree, and, yeah, without motors/gyro/etc. I feel like their power efficiency is probably pretty good.

This is really depressing and/or distressing that I forgot the SPP even existed, but now that I see you talking about it I have this vague recollection that I think I actually bought it and then never actually used it, and have no idea where it actually is. Or I could be making that up and only imagined I'd bought it. Send help.

@NEStalgia Early onset dementia is rough, man.