Nintendo unveiled their upcoming home system today, Nintendo Switch. It was previously known as NX. Many of the rumors and leaks proved to be true, as it can be played as a home console or taken with you as a portable. Here is the full trailer if you haven’t seen it yet.
The Name
NX is now Nintendo Switch…I’m not sure I like the name. It’s a bit generic sounding, and just one letter off from Twitch. But maybe the name will grow on me. At least it’s a much better name than Wii U. But then again, what isn’t?
At Home or On the Road
Attached to the main console (which looks like a tablet) are two controllers called Joy-Cons. Each one has an analog stick and four buttons. They can be detached and used as separate controllers for some games.
When played at home on a TV, you slide the system into a dock. The Joy-Cons can be attached to a Joy-Con Grip to be used as a single, solid controller as seen here.
That looks like it could be a bit awkward. But fortunately, there is also a Nintendo Switch Pro Controller you can use. That’s more like it. I imagine I’ll be using this most of the time.
The trailer shows people taking their Nintendo Switch with them, and playing together in a variety of locations. You know people are going to lose those Joy-Cons, and you have to wonder if they will stay attached firmly after years of use. I have trouble keeping my New 3DS XL stylus from falling out of my system, and it’s only a year old.
I don’t think I’ll have that problem with Switch personally though, as I will probably keep my system in the dock most of the time.
Touch Screen?
From the trailer, it doesn’t appear that the screen is a touch screen. Nobody is shown using it that way. And indeed, if the console is going to be in the dock much of the time, I don’t even see how it could be a touch screen. Many things possible on Wii U and 3DS won’t be possible on Nintendo Switch if that is the case, though.
Even though I prefer standard controls in general, you can’t deny that the touch screen works great for some things. Can you imagine Super Mario Maker without a touch screen, for example? If there truly is no touch screen feature, that seems a bit surprising. But I’m okay with it.
The Games
We all know about The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. But the Nintendo Switch trailer showed some other games as well, including a new Mario game, a new Splatoon, Mario Kart, Skyrim, and more. Unfortunately, they didn’t provide specifics on these games, such as official titles or release dates. They’re not even 100% confirmed as Switch games yet.
My Thoughts
Since a lot of this information was already leaked, there weren’t really any huge revelations other than the new, official name. I’m glad it’s still on track for a March 2017 release, but I wish we had more information about what games were coming, and when.
There’s still the question of what happens to the 3DS line. Nintendo is referring to Switch as a home gaming system. Does that mean they’ll still be making portable systems beyond 3DS? If so, their software development will still be split. And as this past generation has shown, Nintendo doesn’t seem to be able to fully support two systems at once. At least, not without strong third-party support.
And even though Nintendo may boast about have lots of partners working on Switch games, that doesn’t mean much. Because that support can dry up in a hurry if sales aren’t high enough.
But I am optimistic about Nintendo Switch. If Nintendo puts their full support behind it (which I don’t feel they did with Wii U), I feel it can be a success. I’m definitely looking forward to the system. Bring it on.
