Reggie: Switch matchmaking and lobbies handled through phone app
- Thread starter Zombie James
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Just...what the fuck.
WhupTroyGAF
Member
Can someone just go ahead and do that Photoshop of the window looking out while it's raining outside and seeing the Switch there instead of the Wii U?
axisofweevils
Holy crap! Today's real megaton is that more than two people can have the same first name.
I've always wished they'd respond to stuff like this.
It makes no sense, how are you supposed to hear in game sounds and team mate voice chatter. Why did they have on the promo people using this for competitive. In game sound cues are very important for competitive play. Are they going to funnel the games sounds through the internet from the switch and to your smart phone? That's just unnecessary bandwidth usage and lag.
Fam it's really gonna take for the Switch to launch for people to see this is exactly what it was going to be all along. Some here really trying to see what they want to see right now.
I prefer not lying about being a shareholder tho. But yeah, i will try to be careful while writing my concerns.
It's what apple fans do every time a new iphone is shown off
are they orphans or do they have parents?
if they have parents, this comes in conjunction with the parental control that nintendo has put enphasis on
(they will use their parents phones)
Sure, I'm not disagreeing that the online app is a terrible idea. Just that games likely won't have to go through an external device to do random matchmaking in-game. That idea kind of nonsensical, and it would be a terrible design to force matchmaking to pipe through not only an external app, but an external device on top of that. I'm the first person to criticize Nintendo's technical chops, but I can't imagine anyone in their hardware section greenlighting that given the relative sophistication of the overall switch architecture.
Skittzo0413
Member
What I'm getting from this and from Nintendo's website is that the smartphone app basically works as a replacement for OS party chat and matchmaking/scheduling. In game online features will work as each game allows, like how MK8 and SSB4 have slightly different matchmaking and in game chat features. This is strictly a replacement for OS functions.
This is a feature that was not present on the Wii U at all. While this is a ridiculous solution, surely it's better than nothing at all?
Is anybody reading this the same way I am?
This is a feature that was not present on the Wii U at all. While this is a ridiculous solution, surely it's better than nothing at all?
Is anybody reading this the same way I am?
Memorabilia
Member
The question that has to be asked: WHY?
I mean, is this because of some tech limitation with the nVidia SoC? Are they offloading this because it can't handle the OS + games + matchmaking/voice-chat?
If that's not the answer, then what is? What could cause Nintendo to think this is in any way a *good* solution? It's exactly the opposite of "elegant" as it requires device juggling (yet one more thing to keep charged up/nearby when playing a game online).
Truly facepalm worthy if it's the only option and the system lacks any modern lobby/matchmaking/chat system. I've realized for a while now that Nintendo marches to the beat of their own drummer and makes a lot of strange decisions. But this one in particular is just fucking bizarre. Without a technological short-coming to function as a good excuse this is just fucking stupid and smacks of Ninty, once again, shooting themselves in their own foot and not having a clue what the market really wants. It's almost like they saw people moving to their cell phones and away from hendhelds and thought, "Hey if we force people to use their cell phones to chat/play online with friends they'll LOVE the Switch too!" It's like they took a look at market evolution over the past few years and learned the wrong lesson(s).
SMH, this is almost too dumb to believe. Lol
I mean, is this because of some tech limitation with the nVidia SoC? Are they offloading this because it can't handle the OS + games + matchmaking/voice-chat?
If that's not the answer, then what is? What could cause Nintendo to think this is in any way a *good* solution? It's exactly the opposite of "elegant" as it requires device juggling (yet one more thing to keep charged up/nearby when playing a game online).
Truly facepalm worthy if it's the only option and the system lacks any modern lobby/matchmaking/chat system. I've realized for a while now that Nintendo marches to the beat of their own drummer and makes a lot of strange decisions. But this one in particular is just fucking bizarre. Without a technological short-coming to function as a good excuse this is just fucking stupid and smacks of Ninty, once again, shooting themselves in their own foot and not having a clue what the market really wants. It's almost like they saw people moving to their cell phones and away from hendhelds and thought, "Hey if we force people to use their cell phones to chat/play online with friends they'll LOVE the Switch too!" It's like they took a look at market evolution over the past few years and learned the wrong lesson(s).
SMH, this is almost too dumb to believe. Lol
Soldiussnaku
Member
It's fucking mind boggling the amount of mental gymnastics people are doing in this thread, when he says, and I QUOTE: 'Thats a very specific answer to your question.' There is no way that a president of a massive company like NoA would state this info,and as people suggest in this thread his words are or misinterpreted or unclear.
There is no reading between the lines here. Which is frustrating as hell since I fucking adored the DS and thought the switch could be my second purchase of ninth hw.
Pie and Beans
Look for me on the local news, I'll be the guy arrested for trying to burn down a Nintendo exec's house.
It's been some of the worst defence force stuff I've seen on the internet since people lost their dang minds during the Gamecube era and Wii lead up. Truly a marvel to behold honestly.
Garrett Hawke
Member
Now this is just silly. No parent is going to hand over their phone to their kid for an extended period of time, lol. Especially if it looks like the kid is playing something already.
7DollarHagane
Banned
Shu isn't pushing a new hardware platform with an "innovative" app feature (their perspective, not mine) being central to their marketing message.
Question; if you select a matchmaking hopper on the switch screen, then while the matchmaking takes place, the app displays the open slots in the lobby, and the players filling them, while the main screen is free for other use, does this not only qualify as being what Reggie said and also totally reasonable?
I personally have no use for voice chat, but I'm glad Nintendo is adding it for those who do.
But text chat? Managing Friends? Match-making? This all needs to be done WITHIN the console, without forcing us to use a smartphone app.
JustSurvive
Member
How do they expect people to game and chat at home? Most people will probably just put their phone on speaker and leave the TV volume on, then we're all listening to everyone's games. Do we plug headphones into each and put one on each ear? I am honestly confused on what should not be a problem in the first place and cannot fathom why they would take all these features out of the console itself.
I went from "TAKE MY MONEY NOW" in the days leading up to all the announcements, to my wallet shutting tighter and tighter the more I read about the Switch.
I went from "TAKE MY MONEY NOW" in the days leading up to all the announcements, to my wallet shutting tighter and tighter the more I read about the Switch.
Shadoron
Member
The biggest issue with all of this, is that Nintendo is drip feeding out info and allowing the conversation to get away from them. I don't blame Nintendo fans, or the media, for having mini meltdowns. I only blame Nintendo for doing a piss poor job of communicating what this phone app is really going to do. They either should have stuck to their guns and not said *anything* until it was ready (and faced the backlash for not giving out information), or they should have had the info ready to reveal during their presentation. We certainly didn't need to see imaginary ice cubes on stage for 5 minutes. They should of had that time set to explain what the cost of multiplayer was for, including how the Switch and the phone app work together.
Do they expect your phone and Switch to blue-tooth together, so you can get audio and voice chat in one headset? That's more battery draining for both devices. Does the Switch actually handle it all, but you need to setup everything through your phone? That's a better solution, but has it's own issues. Can you actually use limited features on the Switch if your phone is dead? Could the phone app notify you of friends who are online and want to play, when the Switch itself is in your bag / back home / in your locker? Sounds like a pretty cool feature, if it's actually going to happen. But, no one knows anything, because Nintendo wasn't ready to give out that info... while allowing Reggie to trickle out stuff basically out of context. This ties into their launch window software issues. Why couldn't they have announced the games in today's FE Direct on stage? And still had the Direct to give more info. That's three more games coming out, that fans would have rallied behind.
Again, really bad marketing and PR timing. All after a great reveal in Oct.
Do they expect your phone and Switch to blue-tooth together, so you can get audio and voice chat in one headset? That's more battery draining for both devices. Does the Switch actually handle it all, but you need to setup everything through your phone? That's a better solution, but has it's own issues. Can you actually use limited features on the Switch if your phone is dead? Could the phone app notify you of friends who are online and want to play, when the Switch itself is in your bag / back home / in your locker? Sounds like a pretty cool feature, if it's actually going to happen. But, no one knows anything, because Nintendo wasn't ready to give out that info... while allowing Reggie to trickle out stuff basically out of context. This ties into their launch window software issues. Why couldn't they have announced the games in today's FE Direct on stage? And still had the Direct to give more info. That's three more games coming out, that fans would have rallied behind.
Again, really bad marketing and PR timing. All after a great reveal in Oct.
The fact that THIS is their solution with a NEW console is what's baffling to everyone. Sure, having the functionality exist is better than nothing, but in this clumsy way, it's just disappointing.
i mean, people are assuming that you need the freaking phone on your lap or something.
maybe it just need to be syncronized or something.
on the parental video, bowser can see how much the kid has played, and it doesnt have to be near the freaking switch
Godzilla's Left Toe
Member
Are we sure it's just Smart phones or could people use other hand held smart devices like iPad or other tablets.
Dash_Riprock
Member
Still not as bad as the "Reggie just misspoke!" defense.
So either online is a clusterfuck, or the COO or a major international corporation is a complete moron who can't string together sentences well enough to explain basic online features that other consoles have had for almost twenty years.
That's about the only way I can read into this so it makes any sense. This is purely OS level stuff and not game specific functionality. It's not ideal but it doesn't sound completely backwards, just expanding on what we could already do on the Wii U in a much more... cumbersome way than preferred.
My wife's nephews, aged 8 and 10, have their own smartphones. Times are changing.
Skittzo0413
Member
I don't disagree with that but I think some people think this applies to every single possible online gaming situation on the Switch, so we desperately need some clarification.
If there's one thing you can count on with Nintendo it's absolutely terrible messaging.
That's not what Nintendo says they're doing so why does this hypothetical matter?
Godzilla's Left Toe
Member
DeNa
Lol you can probably use tablets but that doesn't make this better.
brandywine
Banned
But why at all.
How is that not worse than how it works on other consoles, though?
Yeah I remember the first time I tried to make jokes.
Joeshabadoo
Member
what the fuck are you not getting? what reggie's talking about is custom private friend lobbies/chat/match-making. Games with online play, like MK 8 Deluxe coming out in April will not require an app to be used in order for players to get grouped in to a lobby for online match-making. the thread title, despite what the article includes, very clearly sets out to say that even the most basic of online play and random online matches in any switch game will need to be facilitated by an app rather than in-game, software level.
any regular GAF poster knows full well that is absurd and untrue and it's borderline irresponsible to title the thread in such a way
Yes, there is messaging confusion, and that is quite baffling in its own right, but we should be better than that and know when someone simply didnt chose their words as carefully as possible
They found out about cellphones
Ditto. Nintendos at fault for how people are reading into this. They need a good PR rep to come out and clear the air or something.
Ninja Scooter
Member
It's requiring the cell phone app that people have an issue with. why can't the open slots in the lobby be displayed on the Switch screen? It's the requirement that people have a problem with. If this was a complementary app, much like Sony and MS have, that you can use to buy stuff or start downloads or add friends while at work or on the bus, that's cool, but if the phone is required, when the Switch is itself a mobile device for crying out loud, that's what is leading to the negative reaction.
im not talking about if it is good or bad or whatever
im just answering the question of "what about the kids that dont have a phone"
Unless you're playing with a bluetooth headset, you need the phone to be close enough to connect to it.
franklyshankly
Member
You need a second tablet to matchmake games on your tablet. Amazing.
Or they could just observe what works and go from there instead of making paying customers jump through hoops.
Dash_Riprock
Member
Ninja Scooter
Member
What I'm getting is that you are whining and crying about the thread title because of assumptions you are making about what Reggie may or may not have meant. The thread title states exactly what Reggie says. Deal with it and stop crying.
and you know this how?
GarthVaderUK
Banned
That's what I'm going to have to do if this is true, because I doubt they're making a Windows Phone app!
So the Switch itself doesn't even support 3.5mm in-line headphones with mic? WTF LOL
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