Behold Nintendo Switch (March 2017, Hybrid w/ Dock, Detachable Controllers, Nvidia)

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There's also the inevitability that the Switch will be compared to general use tablets, even though it's essentially a "gaming tablet." If you could ensure that it would have a lot of the same functionality (Netflix, Hulu, Amazon video, Youtube, etc.) as normal tablets for a much lower price, then it's very possible that it could eat away a bit at the tablet market.

Great point. That would be terrific, especially if the Switch is affordable. I could see in some markets that if Switch costs less than a midrange iPad, it can have success in that market in a way Surface didn't.
 
I imagine it will be day one, but how does within 3 months after launch sound? Fair?


Ideally it would be when they announce the features of the system though I think that makes most sense. I'm sure they'll say 3rd party apps in or not when they do the blowout reveal of the console.

If they say none now but some in future maybe, then we can wait 3 months from launch... I guess.
 
You 'll subscribe to Neflix for at least 6 months.

Nah I can't watch Netflix in my location. Also don't watch movies in the first place lol. I'll be playin then games.

I understand where you're coming from, but by that same logic there was no point adding Netflix to Wii U or 3DS. I think tablet-less (who vastly outnumber smartphone-less) people will like it as an extra-large way to watch Netflix on the go. Wii U for some reason has gotten more and more apps of this kind over its time on the market, so I expect companies will be only more eager to put their apps on a device that has much wider market interest than Wii U has had.

Also, I think there's a component at play wherein Nintendo doesn't want to look like the only gaming system that doesn't also offer these apps. They don't want consumers to say, "hmm, Nintendo had Netflix on their previous gaming systems but not their new and supposedly improved one...maybe this doesn't portend well for how seriously they plan to support the system" (and other similar lines of thought).

I see what you are saying in the second paragraph, but I also see them having the ability to really sell this as a games machine. Their message with the reveal trailer was on point and I think they are gonna continue to knock it out of the park with their messaging going forward. If they can get across that this is a games machine and it will have the games that you wanna play, then lack of other distractions will not be as important. Reggie can explain that you've already got a million devices that show Netflix , but Nintendo wants you to play Switch.
 
"Since Wii"? You mean the one time? The time when they were coming off a commercial success and thought they had room to negotiate with fans.

I should have said Wii/DS as I lump those together. People should have bought them once and that's that. They may have used the argument that "its different architecture" but that doesn't cut it these days.

You do know Virtual Console titles moved from the Wii to Wii U for free, right?
It cost money
 
Hmm, how come not?

Crazy PS4 moved 2m in 2 weeks, 4.2 in 5 weeks. During the Holiday "next generation" (lol yea right) hype bonanza period. X1 did 3 million in the same timeframe (5 weeks).

Dumb analyst says 2m shipped is only good if Switch launches end of March and bad if it launches early March. That just sounds all sorts of ridiculous to me, expectations wise.

Don't know what a Nabbit is. Off to bing it then I'll be right back.

Edit: Oh... sure why not lol.

If I win the bet then I'll make you an avatar that says "Vern was right about Switch."

1 month ok?

How do you not know who Nabbit is while in a thread about a new Nintendo console?

It cost money

Exactly! 0,00 EUR/USD/GBP/Yen/etc
 
Crazy PS4 moved 2m in 2 weeks, 4.2 in 5 weeks. During the Holiday "next generation" (lol yea right) hype bonanza period. X1 did 3 million in the same timeframe (5 weeks).

Dumb analyst says 2m shipped is only good if Switch launches end of March and bad if it launches early March. That just sounds all sorts of ridiculous to me, expectations wise.

2 million at launch is really fairly conservative, even outside the holiday season. Any new hardware will have a large chunk of first-day adopters, especially gaming (and even more especially NINTENDO) hardware. The sales might drop off quite quickly after launch, but hopefully pick up at the holidays. But I'd say 2 million for 2-3 weeks in March is fairly reasonable.

EDIT: I should note I'm assuming a price between $199 and $249 for the above.
 
What they need to do is just use a standard emulator for these games and make them cross play on all platforms.

This is what Nintendo should have always been doing -- the Sony method.

In any case, it's hard to say whether they'll re-charge VC customers. Anything you bought on Wii U or 3DS is on your NNID which is certainly gonna be incorporated into Switch. Those purchases are going to be on your account. On the other hand, the Switch is new hardware which means Nintendo would have to re-develop and re-test all its emulator jackets again. That costs money.
 
Ideally it would be when they announce the features of the system though I think that makes most sense. I'm sure they'll say 3rd party apps in or not when they do the blowout reveal of the console.

If they say none now but some in future maybe, then we can wait 3 months from launch... I guess.

Happy to go with whatever you prefer. Nabbit will be glad to hop in to your avatar cube whenever it's time. ;)

I see what you are saying in the second paragraph, but I also see them having the ability to really sell this as a games machine. Their message with the reveal trailer was on point and I think they are gonna continue to knock it out of the park with their messaging going forward. If they can get across that this is a games machine and it will have the games that you wanna play, then lack of other distractions will not be as important. Reggie can explain that you've already got a million devices that show Netflix , but Nintendo wants you to play Switch.

Thanks. I completely agree that the success of the Switch overall definitely is contingent on its success as a gaming system first and foremost. That kind of statement doesn't sound like how Reggie or Nintendo usually spin things. They'd probably be more likely to say "wait and see," but I could be wrong of course. I feel like their PR is usually as positive a spin as possible. They do seem to like having these apps in, though. Like with 3DS, how useful is Netflix there? I can't imagine very for most players in the US at least. I figure it's more successful in Japan as an app for 3DS, but here I assume most kids with Netflix have plenty of other options. I guess I just imagine Nintendo will position Switch as "gaming first, but you can definitely do all this other tablet stuff, too." (Especially if they include a touchscreen as rumored, though, OTOH I definitely don't want the messaging to go too far off-point into straight up tablet territory because games need to be the primary focus or people will have less reason not to stick with their known commodities.) We shall see though. It'll be interesting either way.
 
Happy to go with whatever you prefer. Nabbit will be glad to hop in to your avatar cube whenever it's time. ;)



Thanks. I completely agree that the success of the Switch overall definitely is contingent on its success as a gaming system first and foremost. That kind of statement doesn't sound like how Reggie or Nintendo usually spin things. They'd probably be more likely to say "wait and see," but I could be wrong of course. I feel like their PR is usually as positive a spin as possible. They do seem to like having these apps in, though. Like with 3DS, how useful is Netflix there? I can't imagine very for most players in the US at least. I figure it's more successful in Japan as an app for 3DS, but here I assume most kids with Netflix have plenty of other options. I guess I just imagine Nintendo will position Switch as "gaming first, but you can definitely do all this other tablet stuff, too." (Especially if they include a touchscreen as rumored, though, OTOH I definitely don't want the messaging to go too far off-point into straight up tablet territory because games need to be the primary focus or people will have less reason not to stick with their known commodities.) We shall see though. It'll be interesting either way.

I don't think adding those apps made either device more successful though, and I think Nintendo is well aware of that. We will see 😜
 
2 million at launch is really fairly conservative, even outside the holiday season. Any new hardware will have a large chunk of first-day adopters, especially gaming (and even more especially NINTENDO) hardware. The sales might drop off quite quickly after launch, but hopefully pick up at the holidays. But I'd say 2 million for 2-3 weeks in March is fairly reasonable.

EDIT: I should note I'm assuming a price between $199 and $249 for the above.

DSLite and Wii are their only console launches cracking that multi-million number or coming even close.

You know the name of every random fourth string side character Nintendo ever made? Congrats I guess.

Pls. Nabbit steals the show every time he appears.
 
Crazy PS4 moved 2m in 2 weeks, 4.2 in 5 weeks. During the Holiday "next generation" (lol yea right) hype bonanza period. X1 did 3 million in the same timeframe (5 weeks).

Dumb analyst says 2m shipped is only good if Switch launches end of March and bad if it launches early March. That just sounds all sorts of ridiculous to me, expectations wise.

Ah, I see. Thank you. I can see where Skittzo0413 is coming from, too, though. So I guess I just am not knowledgeable about these kinds of figures enough to do much beyond nod and semi-understand. I guess all I really care about is that the product is successful and we can get one day one.

This is what Nintendo should have always been doing -- the Sony method.

In any case, it's hard to say whether they'll re-charge VC customers. Anything you bought on Wii U or 3DS is on your NNID which is certainly gonna be incorporated into Switch. Those purchases are going to be on your account. On the other hand, the Switch is new hardware which means Nintendo would have to re-develop and re-test all its emulator jackets again. That costs money.

FWIW, I think I vaguely recollect something about how Nintendo was making Wii U VC architecture with the intention of folding the tech into future systems. I believe someone on GAF mentioned the way SNES VC for N3DS is made indicates they could do the same thing with it. So hopefully they'll be able to easily have tons of VC day/month one. I think a third console drip-feed would be a huge mistake, personally.

You know the name of every random fourth string side character Nintendo ever made? Congrats I guess.

I'll take that congrats if he doesn't. I'd say I can probably get to the fourth string by memory. :D

I don't think adding those apps made either device more successful though, and I think Nintendo is well aware of that. We will see ��

I'm not sure they did make them more successful, I agree. I think they help the overall appeal of the product, though, at least for something like Wii U or Switch (as to 3DS, I'd say it primarily would help only in some markets). At this point I imagine most with Netflix have it where/when they want it, so I agree it wouldn't make a big difference to Switch, but I'll still contend it will be in and that they'd be concerned about it looking "lesser" without it.

DSLite and Wii are their only console launches cracking that multi-million number or coming even close.

Thought Wii U sold multi-million in its launch period? Apologies in advance if I'm misunderstanding.

http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/01/30/nintendo-financials-reveal-wii-u-sales
 
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I'm not sure they did make them more successful, I agree. I think they help the overall appeal of the product, though, at least for something like Wii U or Switch (as to 3DS, I'd say it primarily would help only in some markets). At this point I imagine most with Netflix have it where/when they want it, so I agree it wouldn't make a big difference to Switch, but I'll still contend it will be in and that they'd be concerned about it looking "lesser" without it.

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So you are saying that people are illogical? I suppose I agree... but that's not a good reason for Nintendo to include that stuff.

I'm obviously the only one here that thinks the way I do, so I'm probably wrong, but I think that's the direction Nintendo is going.

Excited about my first ever gaf bet lol. Can't wait til the full reveal.
 
Don't you guys remember? When the Pikmin were carrying all the stuff from the Wii to the Wii U and suddenly Olimar stops them and asks for our credit card number or he will kill 1 pikmin every 5 minutes and drop all our shit? (his words)

It was awful, no wonder everyone repressed it.
 
So you are saying that people are illogical? I suppose I agree... but that's not a good reason for Nintendo to include that stuff.

I'm obviously the only one here that thinks the way I do, so I'm probably wrong, but I think that's the direction Nintendo is going.

Excited about my first ever gaf bet lol. Can't wait til the full reveal.

Hmm, illogical...I guess I'm saying that, but only in the sense that it's only *sort of* illogical of people to be disappointed in Switch for not having Netflix functionality they don't necessarily care about, because it is logical to expect it in a tablet device and a Nintendo product at that point. So, semi-logical, let's say. I think it's my first GAF bet too! I'm psyched. :)
 
Now a more interesting bet would be whether the BBC pulls their thumb out their arse and gives us iPlayer day one or will it take them 84 years to deliver it only to remove the service 84 minutes later.
 
Hmm, illogical...I guess I'm saying that, but only in the sense that it's only *sort of* illogical of people to be disappointed in Switch for not having Netflix functionality they don't necessarily care about, because it is logical to expect it in a tablet device and a Nintendo product at that point. So, semi-logical, let's say. I think it's my first GAF bet too! I'm psyched. :)

It's illogical because as you said people that use those apps already have at least one device that can play those apps.

It's like you are already full but you want more food because your brother is still eating.

I don't think Nintendo would fear looking like a lesser system if they can sell the games device message that I'm counting on. They can say they are better, they are giving you something to play and they don't need to pad out their offering with other stuff. Of course they'll have to be careful how they present that message without stepping on toes of companies like Netflix, in case they do need them on down the line.

Now a more interesting bet would be whether the BBC pulls their thumb out their arse and gives us iPlayer day one or will it take them 84 years to deliver it only to remove the service 84 minutes later.

I think that would fall under the previous bet category unless Nintendo bought the BBC.
 
My guess for VC is that you will be able to transfer your Wii U VC purchases to the Switch for free, but you will have to pay a small fee if you want to upgrade them with whatever new features they offer (i.e. scanline filter, multiple save states, pixel perfect option, etc.)
 
It just occurred to me that I hope I can pair a Wii U Pro controller with this thing, the secret best controller.

I wonder if we could pair WiiMotes with this thing. They do have Bluetooth after all. That way we could also use the new NES mini controllers.

So many controllers.
 
I wonder if we could pair WiiMotes with this thing. They do have Bluetooth after all. That way we could also use the new NES mini controllers.

So many controllers.

I selfishly hope not, just because I just boxed up all my remotes/nunchuks/sensor bars and put them in a closet...
 
But everyone already has their phone with them and streams shit there. I beleive it'll be straight gaming as much as possible. Position it as a hardcore, streamlined machine. Been thinking about it a lot, that's just my feeling. Get as far away from all in one box and other devices as they can.

The example you gave is exactly why I think they need 3rd party apps and software on the Switch. The Switch won't be a "hardcore" machine based on the specs we can assume it will have. Their market will be people who may play games more casually and are less likely to sit in front of a TV for hours on end.

When you're talking about mobility, I absolutely think the idea of a multi-use device absolutely comes into play. Smartphones and tablets did a lot to replace multiple devices at once. If the Switch offers just gaming capabilities, I don't see many people besides hardcore Nintendo fans making an effort to bring it with them.
 
The example you gave is exactly why I think they need 3rd party apps and software on the Switch. The Switch won't be a "hardcore" machine based on the specs we can assume it will have. Their market will be people who may play games more casually and are less likely to sit in front of a TV for hours on end.

When you're talking about mobility, I absolutely think the idea of a multi-use device absolutely comes into play. Smartphones and tablets did a lot to replace multiple devices at once. If the Switch offers just gaming capabilities, I don't see many people besides hardcore Nintendo fans making an effort to bring it with them.

They also want you to simply USE the thing. If you end up using it to watch a movie via streaming, you might then pop back into your home plaza (you can bet a "version" of the Wara Wara Plaza [free ads] will be there again), see a cool post and check out a game you didn't know about before and buy it. Or play a game after finishing a movie since you're already on the device anyway.

Active users, yo. The promised land!
 
The example you gave is exactly why I think they need 3rd party apps and software on the Switch. The Switch won't be a "hardcore" machine based on the specs we can assume it will have. Their market will be people who may play games more casually and are less likely to sit in front of a TV for hours on end.

When you're talking about mobility, I absolutely think the idea of a multi-use device absolutely comes into play. Smartphones and tablets did a lot to replace multiple devices at once. If the Switch offers just gaming capabilities, I don't see many people besides hardcore Nintendo fans making an effort to bring it with them.

I think hardcore games machine means something different to you vs me and Nintendo (if I'm right about this anyway). I'm saying hardcore in the sense that it does one thing, it plays games. Has nothing to do with the message board arms race. Graphics are good enough for most people and have been for years. Hard to believe to us on GAF but most people don't give two shits about specs. If it has games, high quality with wide appeal, then it's a hardcore games machine. If it only plays games, regardless of specs, and has some good serious gamer software, then Nintendos message can easily be that this is the hardcore machine for gamers.

At the same time they can market it to more casual crowds with blue ocean software which I'm sure they are hoping for, they are probably doing their best to have at least one or two hits like Wii sports and brain age as opposed to Wii Music. We will see how that turns out, those kinds of broad appeal hits are the hard part.

They also want you to simply USE the thing. If you end up using it to watch a movie via streaming, you might then pop back into your home plaza (you can bet a "version" of the Wara Wara Plaza [free ads] will be there again), see a cool post and check out a game you didn't know about before and buy it. Or play a game after finishing a movie since you're already on the device anyway.

Active users, yo. The promised land!

Wara wara and miiverse and that stuff isn't 3rd party, I wouldn't be surprised if those kinds of things exist still on the Switch.
 
I think he meant that Nintendo wants people to use Switch at least for third-party services to serve ads and hook up to their new games and products.

This is what they are constantly going for: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=851215

Exactly.

Wara wara and miiverse and that stuff isn't 3rd party, I wouldn't be surprised if those kinds of things exist still on the Switch.

Miiverse was one of the Wii U's biggest successes. 0 question about its return.
 
She's not Nintendo's witch, she's Platinum Games' witch.

I mean technically Platinum/Sega, yeah, but we all know we wouldn't have gotten Bayo 2 if it wasn't for Nintendo. And the Switch is definitely the most likely platform for a theoretical Bayo 3.

plus it was just a shitty pun lol
 
Exactly.



Miiverse was one of the Wii U's biggest successes. 0 question about its return.

Ummm.. that's what I said. It's not a 3rd party entertainment app. I'm not arguing Nintendo won't have a miiverse equivalent. My bet was 3rd party apps like Netflix.
 
Ummm.. that's what I said. It's not a 3rd party entertainment app. I'm not arguing Nintendo won't have a miiverse equivalent. My bet was 3rd party apps like Netflix.

But you are still going through Nintendo's system UI before opening the app. This UI can be (and currently is) used to display mild advertisement such as SpotPass newsletters or Miiverse impressions.
 
whats the difference though in practice? If the console supports TV out via a dock, that means it has the connections in the console to pass TV information, even if that isn't a direct HDMI socket on the console.

So you should still be able to make a cable that converts whatever pin layout the switch has, to a HDMI plug. Unless there is significant extra processing going on in the dock which I doubt. Also if the dock has a fan and the switch unit only has vents. Then in that case a TV out cable might not be practical

I'm just parroting terms I've read elsewhere here since I don't know wtf they mean, but apparently in handheld mode the Switch is "underclocked" at the dock "upclocks" it, even if it doesn't add more processing power from the unit. It looks like there are intake vents on the back of it, from what I understand the handheld is "low power mode" and when docked it's "full power mode" to be able to output a higher resolution to an HDTV. So I don't think just Frankensteining a plug to get the video signal from the Switch to a TV would work if it needs to be in the dock to run at full power. You'd presumably have to plug the Switch into a wall to not drain the battery in minutes while running stuff on the TV, and at that point you may as well just put it in the dock where it can get the constant power needed to run in TV mode.
 
Great point. That would be terrific, especially if the Switch is affordable. I could see in some markets that if Switch costs less than a midrange iPad, it can have success in that market in a way Surface didn't.

I can't imagine switch taking any meaningful marketshare away from tablets. But it doesn't have to. Apps like Netflix etc aren't necessarily a reason to buy a switch instead of a tablet - they're a way to keep people on the switch rather than put it in your bag and swap to a different device to watch a show. So it's more about stickiness than moving people from other ecosystems
 
I'm just parroting terms I've read elsewhere here since I don't know wtf they mean, but apparently in handheld mode the Switch is "underclocked" at the dock "upclocks" it, even if it doesn't add more processing power from the unit. It looks like there are intake vents on the back of it, from what I understand the handheld is "low power mode" and when docked it's "full power mode" to be able to output a higher resolution to an HDTV. So I don't think just Frankensteining a plug to get the video signal from the Switch to a TV would work if it needs to be in the dock to run at full power. You'd presumably have to plug the Switch into a wall to not drain the battery in minutes while running stuff on the TV, and at that point you may as well just put it in the dock where it can get the constant power needed to run in TV mode.

Well I suppose you could run a 'tv only' cable which stayed at 720p? Or require power as well but yeah that could get messy
 
But everyone already has their phone with them and streams shit there. I beleive it'll be straight gaming as much as possible. Position it as a hardcore, streamlined machine. Been thinking about it a lot, that's just my feeling. Get as far away from all in one box and other devices as they can.



Browser I would guess might be in, but 3rd party entertainment apps I think won't be.

What's our bet anyway guys? Avatar? I'm not good at these things.

I'm guessing it using a modified version of Google Playstore, so all the apps would come from the Playstore of the developer wanted to do the work. Netflix, Hulu, etc would be the for sure. Will it get Facebook, Kik, Instagram, watch ESPN, etc. That will be telling.

At this point though, I'm assuming it is a tablet also. Albeit a small one. Like a Kindle with an app store. It is a tablet though. I will be surprised if it is not.
 
Which part? The link to a thread where someone went to the eshop > miiverse > eshop?

I'm not arguing there won't be an eshop.

You're completely missing the point then. :)

Nothing of this has anything to do with the existence of an eShop or a plaza or a Miiverse.

Read again with highlights.

They also want you to simply USE the thing. If you end up using it to watch a movie via streaming, you might then pop back into your home plaza
(you can bet a "version" of the Wara Wara Plaza [free ads] will be there again)
, see a cool post and check out a game you didn't know about before and buy it. Or play a game after finishing a movie since you're already on the device anyway.

Active users, yo. The promised land!
 
Have people discussed the grooves in the four cardinal directions on the control stick? I feel like this is something small that might actually have a noticeable impact on the way mainpulates the control stick. I've noticed in recent years the direction we naturally push a control stick doesn't always match the direction we're intending. It's small but you're more likely to push slightly to the side when trying to tilt forward. This is a natural consequence of controller grips being angled, which makes your thumb come in at angle.

If you're able to feel which direction is where directly on the stick without tilting, that could lead to some increased control accuracy.
 
Have people discussed the grooves in the four cardinal directions on the control stick? I feel like this is something small that might actually have a noticeable impact on the way mainpulates the control stick. I've noticed in recent years the direction we naturally push a control stick doesn't always match the direction we're intending. It's small but you're more likely to push slightly to the side when trying to tilt forward. This is a natural consequence of controller grips being angled, which makes your thumb come in at angle.

If you're able to feel which direction is where directly on the stick without tilting, that could lead to some increased control accuracy.

I noticed those grooves but for some reason it didn't click in my head that they were any different. That's a very interesting find, and a good thought for the reasoning behind it.
 
Have people discussed the grooves in the four cardinal directions on the control stick? I feel like this is something small that might actually have a noticeable impact on the way mainpulates the control stick. I've noticed in recent years the direction we naturally push a control stick doesn't always match the direction we're intending. It's small but you're more likely to push slightly to the side when trying to tilt forward. This is a natural consequence of controller grips being angled, which makes your thumb come in at angle.

If you're able to feel which direction is where directly on the stick without tilting, that could lead to some increased control accuracy.

Noticed right away but I never put it together like you did. Now that you made me think about them more, they seem to be a "twist" on the old N64/GCN/Nunchuk/CC-style grooves (which were for all 8 directions). This might indeed be a great best of both worlds here.

edit: and now that I looked at them again, the notches are on top and not around the stick's base. meaning what I said there makes no sense. :D crap lol
 
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