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WHY IS THE NINTENDO SWITCH SO LOVED? - by Mr Biffo

27/2/2018

36 Comments

 
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Truth be told, I've not played a lot of games this year thus far. 

Well, not a lot of new games. I've been in a bit of a retro gaming phase of late, primarily to strap myself into the right mindset for Digitiser The Show, but also because most big releases are so darned intimidating.

They loom above me, formidable and imposing. I mean, much as I'd like to say I've climbed the biggest mountain in the world... I can't be arsed to spend months training, and sacrifice my free time. And for what? To say I've done it? What then? All that slog... and what do I have to show for it?

​I'll tell you what: a frostbitten "nipsy".

Retro gaming offers short, sharp, blasts of gaming. To extend the analogy, they're more like visiting a climbing centre, or going up some stairs, than scaling Mount AAAverest. Also, I don't need to have to dig a hole in the snow to do my mucky business.

Oddly, the idea of playing new games has proven more appealing than the reality. I haven't stopped buying them... I just haven't gotten around to playing any. My copy of Monster Hunter World languishes in its shrink-wrap, and I can't see myself unboxing it anytime soon.

Partly, it's also down to the hardware the games come on. I've had my Xbox One and PS4 unplugged for a while, and the wires have become knotted into a mass of black spaghetti, and I need to charge the joypads, but my PS4 joypad has a wobbly connector, and... well... they've been off long enough that I'll have to download massive system updates, and... yes, these are small things, easy to overcome, probably, with a bit of patience, but they just add up a level of faff that stops me from bothering.


Which is why, when I finally broke my drought at the weekend, it was the Switch that I turned to. Yeah, that's right, it's going to be one of those articles. You know: one of the ones where I go on about how great the Switch is. 
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IN THE MOOD FOR DOOM
So, yeah... I've finally gotten around to playing Doom and Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle on the Switch, and - as if I didn't already think it - they've cemented my belief that the Switch is the most appealing console of the current generation.

Doom is a proper revelation. For a start, it silences anybody who thought the Switch didn't have the power to handle a modern first-person shooter. It looks stunning. Yes, there are a few mostly irrelevant graphical concessions here and there, and the on-screen text is irritatingly small, but overall this is the same game. Except: it's now on a handheld, because - lest we forget - the USP of the Switch, and Doom proves it once and for all, is that it's the most powerful handheld console ever.

We've already got Wolfenstein II on the way, but you can bet that publishers are now scrambling to port other triple-A franchises to the Switch. 

Plus, don't forget that we're still in the first generation of Switch games. Breath of the Wild and Mario Odyssey are two of the greatest games ever made, and Doom is one of the best-looking... we can only imagine where the Switch goes from here.

Most importantly, I prefer this version of Doom to the one I played on the PS4 purely because it's portable. You can stick your 4k and HDR. This looks way more than good enough, and I can just pick it up and play it, or take it around with me. It's what I always wanted; a portable, next-gen, FPS.

At the other end of the genre spectrum we get Mario + Rabbids - a game combining two unlikely franchises in a turn-based battle game, which turns out to be unexpectedly deep and involving. And, because it's a Mario game, it's a Switch exclusive. It is brilliant, gorgeous and full of character, and perfectly suited to handheld gaming. It's another damn good argument for owning a Switch if you don't already do.

And - hey - we've not even mentioned the extremely healthy range of excellent indie titles on the Switch eStore, and the imminent arrival of Nintendo's Labo - a range of build-your-own cardboard Switch accessories which feels very well timed.
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SWITCHFINDER GENERAL
The Switch has, at this stage in its life, sold over 14 million consoles in less than a year. That's more than any other games machine ever has ever achieved in the same amount of time.

It has done better than anybody ever expected it to do. More pertinently, it has done it while not being just more of the same, by embracing convenience, and putting accessibility and fun at the forefront.

Right now, the PlayStation and Xbox families are pretty much interchangeable. The only thing that really marks them out from one another is a handful of exclusives on each, and the fact that one has sold way more than the other. Oh, and yeah... PlayStation VR, which is decent enough, but a) Comes with all the issues that get in the way of the mass market embracing virtual reality, and b) Hasn't really offered a killer app to help it be more than just a 
novelty. 

Oh, and c) Resident Evil VII made me feel so nauseous that I've not picked up the headset since.

The Switch is the least powerful console of the current generation. It also appears to be the only one which people seem to love in the way that all the greatest games machines have inspired passion from a hardcore of players.

​The PS4 and Xbox One - and their recently "plussed" versions - are nothing more than a means to an end, dull black boxes stuffed with power which facilitate the games in a never-ending, zero sum, graphical arms race.

Somehow, by being so tactile, by offering exclusives which don't just follow the pack, by now showing that it can, when it wants, compete with the raw power offered by Sony and Microsoft, the Switch is building a connection with its players which goes deeper than just being a games machine.

The ZX Spectrum, the Super NES, the Amiga, the PS1 - these are the stand-out machines of their generations, ones that their owners truly loved, rather than just owned.

It's fast becoming apparent the the Switch will be joining them. 

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36 Comments
Orless
27/2/2018 07:42:42 am

Can't fully trust someone who says they don't love the Switch.

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Matt N
27/2/2018 08:35:51 am

Bloody brilliant article. I've been thinking about getting a Switch, purely because my PS4 is gathering dust and I only tend to play Rocket League on the PC these days - which is also on the Switch. I've been leaning more towards retrogaming these days as well...

On top of that, as a Busy Modern Working Person and grumpy old git, I can't be arsed with many multiplayer offerings these days, which is a shame; I remember the days of games like Quake, TFC and Tribes 2 where you could actually have a laugh without being called "GIGANTIC COCKMANGLER SPAMTASTICAL" or whatever the insults of choice are these days. It's offputting and I swear half the playerbase for your Call of Dutyfields and your BattleWatches are cyborgs.

Anyway. Yes. Switch is highly tempting.

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Mark M
14/3/2018 03:05:10 pm

I totally agree about old school multiplayer. Thing is, it took a fair bit of effort and technical knowhow to get on to the internet back then so the online demographic had an inherent filtering mechanism.

The last online game I enjoyed was City of Heroes in all honesty. I miss MechWarrior 4 on the Zone and TFC. :/

It's all very toxic these days unless you avoid public sessions.

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DEAN
27/2/2018 08:59:00 am

Oh no - I don't like the thing :(

I've had two - one for Zelda and one for Mario and have blown them both out through my blowhole because of the following:

Uncomfortable to use.
compared to DS4 the Joycons just feels shitty and small.

Lack of games.
Yes, the absolute best exclusives money can buy but after that...

USP not for me.
Couldn't give a hoot that it's portable. It's too big to fit in your pocket and too small when there's a TV option.

I'll buy a 3rd one eventually when there's a good enough reason to but I kind of resent that fact - I just wish I could buy any game I wanted on my PS4.

But yeah, I like the Switch least of all - talking hardware.

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Biscuits
27/2/2018 09:53:52 am

I like the Switch, but it feels a bit staid at the moment. A strange complaint for a console, but It just plays games, and nothing else...it feels like a wasted opportunity more than anything else. The UI looks like a hotel television service, it all feels a bit plastic-y and cheap. Some kind of social platform would be nice, I hunger for a Miiverse type affair but I think Nintendo are too scared of all the wang pictures.

The pick up n' play nature of it is a dream and works so well, but I only use it for TV-based playing really.

Controller-wise, I will say this: The Pro Controller is one of the worst I've ever used, but the Joycons are a delight. One in each paw is my preferred method of playing, and going back to the DS4 felt pointlessly constrictive after doing so

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Chris Wyatt
27/2/2018 12:40:55 pm

I love it but I have noticed some design flaws:

- Joycons don't attach securely, so they wobble about a bit.
- The screen can be scratched if you are not careful when you dock it. I did wonder this when I first used it, but someone confirmed ths was a problem, and told me that people have been putting fabric in the dock to prevent this.

Both of these are surprising design flaws from Nintendo.

I was less-than-impressed with the build quality of the 3DS. The D-pad started falling apart within the first month of use! A layer of plastic basically came away, and this was just with normal usage! Absolutely appalling really. Not like the D-pads of the good old Gameboy (which was actually built to last!)

Spiney O’Sullivan
27/2/2018 01:12:43 pm

The original GameBoy is a quality piece of consumer electronics. Mine (from about 1990) works to this day, as does my GameBoy Colo(u)r. It’s also probably my favourite Nintendo console ever, which I suspect is part of why I like the Switch so much, and why I barely ever play it docked. Mario Odyssey on the Switch in handheld mode really reminded me how we’ve come since Mario Land was as advanced as handheld gaming got.

Say what you like about Nintendo’s hit and miss track record with home consoles (I certainly do. Just the other day on here, in fact...), but barring a few slight missteps (the GBA screen and the pointless foray into portable 3D with the 3DS) they’ve pretty much always excelled at making handhelds that, while maybe not as advanced as they could be, are excellent, have a great range of games (often better supported than their home systems), and have ridiculous battery life (which a handheld lives and dies by).

Chris Wyatt
27/2/2018 01:31:10 pm

Don't get me wrong. I love the 3DS and Switch, but have found the odd design flaw here in there in both products, which does give the impression that they weren't tested properly.

The D-pad issue with the 3DS is perhaps not present in the original 3DS. I have a limited edition Zelda one, so it's perhaps a cheap skin that they just stick on top of the existing 3DS's as they roll out the factory. Actually, it's rubbed away to the point where it's comfortable again (rather than bits hanging off), so it's not quite as bad as it was! But, quite annoying when you're the sort of person who obsesses with keeping things mint! Especially when they're limited edition!

My original Gameboy and Gameboy Color are also both still working perfectly fine. My Gameboy Color would be mint, but I briefly let someone play it, and he scratched the screen within seconds! It was pretty much after that point that I decided never to lend people anything, because time and time again, people have let me down, even people I thought I could trust. The twat didn't even apologise.

Anyway, I might try buffing it out at some point :).

Not Switched On
27/2/2018 09:33:59 am

There's literally only one game (or series of games) I have any interest in on the Switch: Bayonetta. I love the first one and I want to play the other two, but I don't want to buy a console I'll otherwise never use just for that. I can't afford to.

I have no interest in Mario games, Zelda games, cardboard add-ons or any of that nonsense. It simply does not appeal to me in the slightest. I've never enjoyed Nintendo's games. When I had a Gamecube, my favourite games were Resident Evil 4 and killer7. When I owned a Wii, my favourite games were things like No More Heroes and MadWorld. I use a DS Lite to play Etrian Odyssey. I never bothered getting a WiiU and I won't buy a Switch because what's the point for me, personally?

Oh, and I owned and truly loved a Commodore 64. Maybe that explains everything else.

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Paul
27/2/2018 09:53:02 am

The target for the two main consoles is photographic reality. The more grunt they can throw i the box, the more things they can do with the graphics card. Eventually, the aim will be to have games that look no different to a film or TV series. Right now, Trevor in Grand Theft Auto kind of looks like Stephen Ogg, but I bet the aim will be for you to not be able to tell the difference between him portrayed digitally in GTA, and him in The Walking Dead.

That’s where it looks like it’s going. It sells TVs. It sells consoles. I expect this is a generation away, maybe two.

In the meantime, it seems that Nintendo is quite happy to ignore that particular rabbit hole, and go for the audience who would more likely buy board games to play with the whole family (if their adverts are anything go by). I just live the idea that I could play a game on the TV, pick up the console and carry on playing the same game elsewhere.

I’d love a Switch. I just don’t have the means to get one right this moment.

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Nick
27/2/2018 09:54:34 am

The one thing I love more than any other... One button sleep mode! Better than the PS4 because that takes two or three buttons and I don't fully trust it to work any more.

Who new that was all I ever wanted. Long cut scene. Sleep. Large RPG battle. Sleep. It's made the Switch a proper pick up and play machine for me.

I know, innovation, exclusives, Nintendo magic, yeah. But sleep! Now there's a thing.

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Spiney O’Sullivan
27/2/2018 11:51:51 am

The sleep button is probably my favourite thing about the system too. It means you can just jump in and out for ten minutes’ play in a way you can’t on any other system (barring the Vita, I guess).

No TV to turn on, no system bootup (admittedly, my own fault for unplugging my PS4 at night, but I try to contribute less to the attrition of our planet’s dwindling resources for no reason) or waiting for the game to start up again every time (looking at you, profoundly disappointing iOS Squeenix JRPG ports), just into the game immediately, and out even more easily than you’re in. I don’t have as much time for gaming lately, but the Switch dominates my gaming time because of it.

The lineup is still quite disappointing, but the ease of play means that the few games I own have been played more than most of the pile of PS4 games that I really shouldn’t have bothered buying until I was actually ready to play them (but you know, 3 for 2 on preowned games at Game...).

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Switchophancy
27/2/2018 10:41:45 am

'Shittier, but hey, it's portable' is not a selling point for anyone without kids I fear

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Spiney O’Sullivan
27/2/2018 11:41:39 am

That was the Gameboy’s USP, and it did pretty well.

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Chris Wyatt
27/2/2018 12:44:05 pm

Selling point for me!

Also I don't have a TV right now, and even if I did I don't have the room for it (I live in a shitty box room in a shitty house share), so being able to play it in bed or at my brother's house when I stayed over last week, is very welcome indeed.

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Mr Biffo
27/2/2018 04:25:26 pm

Selling point for me too!

Dangerous_Dave
3/3/2018 05:00:37 pm

It wasn't a selling point for me, initially. I do however have great appreciation for it now. Ended up selling my PS4 to fund more Switch games in the end as I couldn't justify keeping it solely as a Bluray player.

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Mark
27/2/2018 11:41:45 am

I have a PS4 but I’m fed up of the micro transactions and add on content I paid for the game once don’t wanna spend more on something that doesn’t add anything to the experience. This was my main reason for buying a switch yes it has dlc and other stuff but as in Zeldas case it adds to the overall experience. Also the switch has made my other consoles feel odd as in I can’t just pick them up and carry on gaming at work or commuting. I have been putting off buying doom for a while but finally bought it at weekend it’s great and people have commented saying I didn’t know you could get stuff like that on switch they thought it was just for Mario and Mario Kart just goes to show how one game can change peoples perception of a console here’s hoping for a COD game don’t even need the campaign for me just some online multiplayer would be great

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Biscuits
27/2/2018 12:22:08 pm

I'm so excited for Dark Souls on Switch I can barely sleep. When is it out? 3 months from now? PORTABLE DARK SOULS!! We truly don't deserve something so great. I'm fully expecting it to have horrendous performance issues or something

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Hans Tryst
27/2/2018 01:14:00 pm

My (now) Hungarian step son bought a switch soon after its European release

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Spiney O’Sullivan
27/2/2018 06:16:51 pm

Even if they were sold out here, getting Hungarian citizenship seems quite a big step just to get a Switch.

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Hans
28/2/2018 08:15:02 am

He(step son) hasn't actually become a Hungarian citizen,he fell in love with a Hungarian lady(16 years his senior) and has now adopted a full Hungarian lifestyle,he has learned the language(and if you know anything about langues it's very tricky),changed his name,completely changed his wardrobe,supports Hungary in all sporting events/Eurovision. Myself and his mother don't see that much of him at all anymore(not because he is living in Hungary,he's actually never been, he still lives in Hastings, he only communicates in Hungarian). My step daughter saw him over Christmas and she learned a bit of Hungarian to keep in touch, she told us (in English) about his switch.

Nick
28/2/2018 10:08:04 am

Brexit must have hit him hard. Send him our love.

Szeretetünk elküldése!

Meatballs-me-branch-me-do
27/2/2018 03:32:48 pm

Missus and I saw absolutely nothing to recommend about the Switch apart from Nintendo wanting us to rebuy all our old Wii games, once they get around to porting them over. To that end, we bought a factory refurb WiiU so the handful of newish games that interested us could be had (BOTW, Nintendoland) but otherwise we kept everything else for the handful of times a year we have friends and family over who fancy a game, or when the mood takes us to actually have a game.

Otherwise, I have my PC and she has her phone and the games we actually like on them.

We had a go on a Switch at a Nintendo store and didn’t feel it at all. 1 2 Switch was cack and Mario Kart 8 was the WiiU version with a few extras and just as many blue shells.

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Chris Wyatt
27/2/2018 05:14:28 pm

It's a good time to buy Wii U. People are selling the games are cheap, and it's still almost current gen.

If I didn't have a Switch already I might have considered getting a Wii U.

The Switch is still young though. There will be more games to come. I am actually looking forward to more Wii U ports myself, because I skipped the Wii U (couldn't afford one at the time).

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Robobob
27/2/2018 07:54:21 pm

"and... well... they've been off long enough that I'll have to download massive system updates"

Pretty much in the same place. I want to turn on my console for a half hour blast. I don't want to have to download 20Gb of stuff that I can't even tell the difference once it's been installed.

"playing Doom and Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle"

For a moment I read that as them all being in the same game, which would be the weirdest cross-over-slash-love-triangle ever. Still, I do kind of want to see it now...

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Mrtankthreat
27/2/2018 08:52:31 pm

Have to say I'm not convinced by the Switch at all. Or any of the current consoles really. The only reason to chose a console over a gaming PC is the exclusives and of all three consoles only Bloodborne could persuade me to invest.

In fact I'm currently more inclined to pick up a Wii U if I could get a cheap enough one. I've been watching tons of amazingly creative levels of Mario Maker on YouTube and I'd love to give that game a try. I dismissed it when it first came out as I'm not into the creation side myself but having an almost limitless supply of Mario levels to play would suit me down to the ground. A sequel (and not just another remake) on the Switch might just win me over.

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Mariio
28/2/2018 11:09:39 am

You can already access many far more powerful and easier to use Mario creator tools using your PC

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Mrtankthreat
28/2/2018 02:49:13 pm

I don't want to do the creating myself though. I do want to try those super hard Kaizo ROM hacks but the one time I tried to download one I got a virus warning. I found a more easily accessible one once but it wouldn't let me map controls to a controller. Those games are hard enough without having to use a keyboard.

Chris Wyatt
28/2/2018 04:57:53 pm

You can't get virus's from ROMs. Well, I wouldn't say it was possible, but the ROM would have to exploit a specific vulnerability in a specific emulator. I doubt such a virus even exists. Basically you can be 99.999% sure it's not a virus, provided it has the right file extension and you don't try to execute it.

That would be a false positive. They are usually called something like Trojan.Win32.Generic. You are particularly likely to get them with obscure files that haven't been blacklisted by your virus software. You just need to manually blacklist them yourself (should be something in your virus scanners settings for this).

Chris Wyatt
28/2/2018 04:58:49 pm

*viruses
*wouldn't say it **wasn't** possible

Wish you could edit comments on this thing.

Starbuck
27/2/2018 11:46:51 pm

Absolutely love the Switch. Hard to describe without pictures, but HD Rumble across both hands subtly brings immersion whilst not removing the videogame connection as VR can. And taking it on holiday was a revelation... (Plus agreement: Doom in still stunning!)

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haha what?
28/2/2018 10:14:23 am

the much-touted 'HD Rumble' is a joke, I have to [play with a joycon in each hand to feel anything at all, and then it's soft and ineffectual. Are you genuinely comparing it favourably to VR in terms of immersion? It's like a weaker rumble you notice once every 4 hours

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Chris Wyatt
28/2/2018 02:12:23 pm

I've never been able to take the rumble feature on consoles seriously, ever since I got a Microsoft Sidewinder Force Feedback Pro many years back. Playing that with Need For Speed II SE was an amazing experience, and setting it on full whack was a bit of a work-out too, especially for my puny 12 year old arms.

A lot of people missed out on a proper Force Feedback experience. I'd really love to see it make a comeback.

Verdant Bork
27/2/2018 11:59:13 pm

Text in modern games could stand to be bigger across the board, but absolutely on Switch versions.

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Nick
28/2/2018 12:11:20 am

I'm tempted to buy Doom for the Switch. I've deleted the install from the PS4 because of the pathological desire to use all of my HD space. l wouldn't mind replaying it but can't face the download.

Maybe all these patches are part of a conspiracy to get me to double dip on the game.

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