Here comes the time to try the new way of playing by Nintendo, released on March 3rd. So, Wii U 2.0, 3DS x Wii U or brand new console ?
Since 2013, the question was: what will Nintendo do to get out of its Wii U catastrophic sales. Misunderstand concept - Is it a tablet to sync with my Wii? - Hardware not up to date, poor game lineup since the release till the end, anyway, we were worried.
October 2016 : Nintendo shows off the secret about the NX, the codename for the Switch. Directly, Nintendo makes us understand the concept, but shows a little melancholia about the Wii U : here comes the Wii U concept, but now for real ! More a bed person ? Maybe the couch ? Or the train ? Nevermind, now you can take your console everywhere you want !
Yes, Nintendo was afraid of the Wii U misunderstanding. For that, it took two times to announce properly the new Nintendo Switch. Last october, Nintendo first shows us a 3 minutes video about the Switch concept, nothing more. Than, last january, the firm came back with a big show, to unveil some hardware questions, but to show some of the lineup games, with the official Nintendo Switch price and release date. This will be March 3rd, 299$ for a naked Switch.
Today, the release date is behind us, some echoes show pretty great first sales for the Switch (launch record in France, great sales in the US and Japan). But now, for real, is the Nintendo Switch worth your attention ?
Hardware
To start, we’ll take a look at the hardware, for the most curious or the connoisseurs : the console is loaded with 4 go of RAM LPDDR4, a 16 Wh battery, 802.11 ac Wi-fi, 4.1 Bluetooth. Nvidia partnership obliged, there’s a custom Tegra X1 inside the Switch and not the new Tegra X2 announced last summer. So no Pascal GPU but the old Maxwell. There’s also a micro SD slot, but you can always deal with the 32go (in real 25go) included in the console.
Design
Talking about the design, nothing really revolutionary : finishes are pretty serious, we don’t have the feeling of handling a cheap toy. But there’s a little space between the joycons and the screen while we’re handling the console, nothing really disturbing, except at first. Joycons are available in black or neon blue and red (for the craziest). There is a little pod behind the console (this is also where to put the micro SD card), to make the console stand, be careful not to be too strong with it, it seems weak. There is a jack plug and volume buttons on the top, classical.
Maybe a little heavy, 400 gr, the console does a great job in the hands, even if your long hours on Zelda will break your arms (kidding, you can only play 3 hours without charging). We’ll regret the design of the right joycon, because of the joystick placed at the bottom (the excuse is for the 2 snes controller mode). But habits will make you forget about that. A joygrip is included with the console, sort of plastic thingy that can hold your two joycons to make it like a “classical” controller. It does the job, but sadly you can’t charge your joycons while using this mode. A 30$ version is available separately to take care of this problem. More plastic with two included straps (for the classical controller mode) that ease our way to the top buttons.
The principal function of Nintendo Switch is to switch game modes. To do that, you’ll need the included dock, linked to your TV with an HDMI cable. The “wahou” effect does the job the first times. It is simple to slide in or out your Switch into the dock. The console charge with a USB C cable, but it’s not as tiny as a smartphone charger, be aware for travelling. The dock has 3 USB plugs, two on the outside, one inside.
Screen
For the screen, even if Samsung is about to announce its QHD S8 screen, Nintendo decided to offer - kind of - a 720p screen. Nevermind, once the console turned on, you forget about the definition. Great colors and touchscreen, nothing on the screen is loose, even if there’s more aliasing on the console mode than the TV mode. Talking about TV mode, the games are logically upscaled in 1080p (beware of the FPS drops in Zelda). Far away seems the Wii U gamepad. But be careful when switching the Switch on TV or in hands, because it can scratch your screen.
About the OS/UI, with a clean interface, the console is really fast between menus. It is a pleasure after waiting hours on the Wii U user interface. Sadly, the eShop hasn’t already any music, and that’s a shame. Talking about music, the Switch sound design in the menus is Nintendo-ish, for the best.
Don’t expect anything incredible on the principal screen : besides all your purchased games, there’s the Nintendo news, the silent eShop, the album, joycons and controllers settings, general settings and alimentation parameters.
For the most stylish, there’s theme available in the settings, but for now you’ll only have the choice between the classical white theme or the black one.
Game modes
The Nintendo Switch is… Switchable. Standing, sitting, laying down, we play how we want, where and with who we want. Situation :
Bruno is playing Zelda, peaceful in the living room, when suddenly his wife, Jane, came in the living room with dark eyes : “It’s time for my Oprah !”. Nevermind, Bruno get up, replace his joycons on the console, take it in his hands and continue his adventure on the couch. But again, suddenly, the bell rings. Bruno forget that it’s sunday, and sunday it’s parent-in-law day. Damn it, Bruno got up the stairs and go hide to play… in the guest toilettes. But Jane is not stupid, she knew Bruno would do such a thing. Anyway, last chance is to propose a 1, 2 Switch game in the veranda with the parents.
So, even if no game is included with the console, the “switchable” system offers directly so much possibilities (even in the most absurd situations). This is where Nintendo hits hard: finishing the Wii U concept of playing where you want with your favorite Nintendo/AAA games.
Thanks to the joycons, you already have two controllers to play with someone, without adding anything on the bill. Not really for big hands, the little next generation wiimotes feel good in the hands. The XYAB buttons are well made, feel great, such as every other button. Joysticks are way better than the 3DS, if comparaison there is, but not as professional as what Microsoft did with the Elite controller for example. Little detail for the directional cross, this time again for the two controller mode, is now like the XYAB buttons. A +(START) and -(SELECT) are on the two joycons.
HD rumble, the next generation of vibration by Nintendo, seems like a nice concept. To explain it, it’s like you can feel little beads moving as you move the controller. But today with only 1, 2 Switch as an ambassador of the concept, it seems too poor to judge the quality of it. Sold for 50$, it’s expensive.
The two joycons are build with a gyroscope, it’s the right joycon that announce the revolution with a infrared camera, able to discern simple forms or even objects. Here again, nothing except 1, 2 Switch offers this kind of demos. We’ll wait to see more experiences like this to judge.
We’ll pass the home button on the right joycon, the left one has, in the same place, a screenshot button. Really reactive, you will be able to share - or spoil - your adventures on Twitter or Facebook. You can modify your screenshots on the album menu. It’s not photoshop, but it works well for adding text on your picture.
Little detour by the pro controller, sold separately for about 70$. Nintendo justifies the price by saying the HD rumble is included in the controller. But as today, there is no way to test this way of next generation vibrations. The pro controller has nothing else special, but it feels good in hands, specially for the big hands tired of the joygrip. Thanks to the designer who thought it will be comfortable to NOT have a LED on the front of the controller (you hear Sony ? Microsoft ?). The battery, as the joycons, will offer hours and hours of gameplay, that’s pretty great.
Games and multiplayer
With a lineup as poor as the little match girl, Nintendo release even though the long awaited Zelda (even if announce on Wii U) and some other amuse-bouche like Bomberman, I am Setsuna, some old NeoGeo games, 1, 2 Switch, Shovel Knight, Snipperclips or Fast RMX. Not to reproduce the Wii U catastrophy, Nintendo decided to spread his big games all over 2017. So, in april we’ll have Mario Kart 8 (superior Wii U version), followed by Arms in Spring, Splatoon 2 in summer and finally the new Mario Odyssey and Xenoblade in holidays 2017, without forgetting that there will be announcement in the next E3 in june.
There’s only one thing you have to remember : if you buy your Switch today, it is only for Zelda Breath of the Wild. So yes, there is a Wii U version, but it doesn’t work as expected (30 FPS is barely maintained). But (specially) in TV mode, the Switch version has some FPS drops issues too, due to the 1080p upscale. Beside this, the other games aren’t very revolutionary or already released on other platforms. 1, 2, Switch isn’t the Wii Sports we were waiting for, despite a great technical demonstration. But there is Snipperclips, sold 20$ only on the eShop. It is a little enigma game, playable alone or up to 4 players, where you have to cut forms from the other player(s). With other competitive game modes like Hockey, Basketball, or Arena, the game will offer a great time, specially with the Nintendo way included in the graphics or sound design.
It could be interesting to talk about the killer app that Zelda is, but no. It is a magical game to discover by yourself, fan or not. It is very rare today to find such an enormous open world, even with little technical issues. Hundreds of ways to play this game, you’ll have for your money to complete it at 100%.
Little note about the future paying multiplayer - The Nintendo Plus/Gold - who will take place at the end of the year for about 20$ annual. This service will offer to play online with other players, but also every month, Nintendo will give classical games to play for a month (after that you’ll need to take out the cash) with special unknown multiplayer features. The vocal chat will be, but with a special smartphone application, available later. You can add friends online already with the first update, but still with the “friend code” way.
How much ?
Before concluding, we’ll take some time to write about the final bill. So, basically, you’ll need a Nintendo Switch - 299$ - a game, let’s say… Zelda Breath of the Wild - 59$ - to start. It’s about 360$, if you want the best comfort, you’ll need to add - 70$ - for a pro controller. And finally, with a little eShop game added, Snipperclips - 20$ -. It is about, for the deluxe pack, 360$ plus 90$, so 450$, but you’ll be ready and you can play locally with a friend. Regarding the PS4 price when released, it was 400$ without any game or second controller.
So ?
In conclusion, Nintendo hits hard with the Switch. Some will stay septic, we are not here to buy a Playstation 4 Pro, but a new console for Nintendo lovers, with the plus to take it anywhere we want, and play it any way we want. With a promise of future great game lineup in the intern just like the external, competition will be good in 2017. Without forgetting unannounced or unavailable features (Netflix, Youtube, Internet navigator) that will make the Switch even more portable, and usable. We can only rejoice about the success of the Nintendo Switch to bring developers good and new ideas and, who knows, putting Nintendo back on its place of king of video games ?
