Reggie: Switch matchmaking and lobbies handled through phone app

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Going by how they have always approached this, enabling online communication for kids seems to have always been against their values as a company. Even at the expense of (in this case apparently the supposed countless core gamers without phones.)

Again, look at what happened with Swapnote.

It became Swapdoodle!
 
The thing is Nintendo console is supposed to be youth friendly. I'm out of touch, is it common for 8-10 year old kids to have a smartphone with data plans and such nowadays?

Well... yes.

But this is still dumb and cumbersome. You are now reliant on two batteries to not running out.
 
Yes, how the UI functions (if it requires you to constantly juggle your phone, or if it is conducive to intuitive online matchmaking) makes a difference. Other potentially unrevealed features can make a difference.
I don't think anyone is expecting something as stupid as a voice chat app that cuts off when the screen turns off or that you'd have to keep swapping to your phone each match to affirm your desire to continue. The people against it are against it because it requires a separate device to do something everything else has built in. No UI will offset that. The UI sucking or not will only sway someone on the fence with the approach, but there's not a UI in the world that'd change someone's mind opposed because they don't want to use their phone.
 
He's right about the fact that doing all that with a phone could be fast and cool.

But the problem lies in it being the only way to do it. Which is fucked up beyond words.

60 pages to get the truth. You win good sir.

I don't see how having to have my phone to hand to do this stuff is necessary. I leave it as far away from me as possible when I'm at home because I get work emails on it.

Any chance they chose this way because they couldn't be bothered to fit it in the UI? XBox Smartglass is a bit useless but they could have designed an app to run alongside an incorporated system.
 
I can understand its reasoning for a portable. On the go you can connect to your phones cellular and use up your data allowance in seconds. Brilliant idea. And at home you can further complicate things by slowing down the data exchange through 2 devices. Its so brilliant its saved me £280 permanently.
 
The thing is Nintendo console is supposed to be youth friendly. I'm out of touch, is it common for 8-10 year old kids to have a smartphone with data plans and such nowadays?

A data plan isn't needed. In pretty much any scenario where you will be playing online with the Switch, you will have wifi and no be using data.
 
60 pages to get the truth. You win good sir.

I don't see how having to have my phone to hand to do this stuff is necessary. I leave it as far away from me as possible when I'm at home because I get work emails on it.

Any chance they chose this way because they couldn't be bothered to fit it in the UI? XBox Smartglass is a bit useless but they could have designed an app to run alongside an incorporated system.

Lol it didn't take 60 pages for us to arrive to that conclusion, we've just been going in circles the entire time.
 
Maybe this has been clarified already but, is matchmaking handled through phone app ONLY or as an option? I think this is the key question.
 
O.................................k.....................


I'm telling you, its to force their stupid fucking phone games on you.

100000% FUCKING PERCENT.

"Hey, enjoyed that match of Splatoon 2? Why don't you try miitomo while you're here!!11"

*ding ding ding* we have a winner ;).
 
I hate that way Nintendo allocates it's R&D funding. They waste time with gimmicks, over design their hardware to have features we're not likely to use like HD Rumble but can't be bothered with meat and potatoes stuff like having a decent battery.

I thought the Switch was a good idea until I realised it's just an extension of the Wii/Wii-U philosophy ie. gimmicks over substance.
 
No.

Youre saying it's logical that someone who's not in a position to own a common, current smartphone would reasonably purchase a completely optional $300 luxury entertainment device. This makes no sense.

Also, yeah, I agree Nintendo's communication sucks here. That this thread even exists is their fault. That Switch presentation had numerous issues.

But, the fact still remains that we have no info. Any decision you make now is premature. Any calls you make are conjecture without solid insight.

..and you're saying that a smartphone itself isn't a completely optional luxury entertainment device? It is (for most people at least). They might have convinced themselves it's essential but it really isn't.
 
To be honest, I'm quite curious about how all this is going to work. Can't wait to try it, even though I'm sure it will be far from ideal.
 
Maybe this has been clarified already but, is matchmaking handled through phone app ONLY or as an option? I think this is the key question.

It seems random matchmaking (ranked/unranked) is in-game and "enhanced" matchmaking (friends/lobbies/voice chat) is in-app only.

The app will be available in limited form (whatever that means) sometime this Summer and goes paid in Fall. So no friends/lobbies/voice chat til then.

We don't know what devices will be supported but it's a good bet only iPhone and Android for the near future and who knows, really.
 
Nintendo put a lot of efforts on kids on their presentation.

Many kids don't have smartphones.

Actually...

smartphone-penetration-among-children.png


And I can't imagine many kids 10 and under being permitted to game online without supervision, so there's that.
 
Not only did they close Zipper but they still refuse to port Socom to PS4.

Instead we get LocoRoco and money being thrown at NMS.
 
I think this is a good move. Let's keep things separated. Let the Switch be the best gaming device. Why build all that online stuff into the Switch when everybody has a phone. Nintendo proved time and time again that they can't build a solid OS + apps. I'm not going to use it anyway. So lets have that experience on my phone.

It's the same with in-car entertainment. I've a 2015 Renault Clio and they can't figure it out. The console is way too slow. You can only scroll trough your playlist with buttons (3 songs at a time, then wait 3 sec. for the next screen to appear). Navigation is outdated, ugly and has no POI. I always use my phone to navigate, listen to podcasts/music, make phone calls etc.

TL;DR: I think it's smart that Nintendo knows its weak points. And that they don't try to reinvent the wheel.


Alright so let me get this straight just to make sure I'm not misunderstanding you. You think that they would be reinventing the wheel by integrating matchmaking and lobbies into the gaming device?
 
The best plan at this point is wait and see and hear all the details exactly. We have a foundation of what it sounds like, but please Nintendo ASAP would be nice for the whole online infrastructure.
 
Going by how they have always approached this, enabling online communication for kids seems to have always been against their values as a company. Even at the expense of (in this case apparently the supposed countless core gamers without phones.)

Again, look at what happened with Swapnote.

They have such elaborate parental controls, putting in voice chat too seems trivial.

Or simply not allowing public voice chat.
 
I hate that way Nintendo allocates it's R&D funding. They waste time with gimmicks, over design their hardware to have features we're not likely to use like HD Rumble but can't be bothered with meat and potatoes stuff like having a decent battery.

I thought the Switch was a good idea until I realised it's just an extension of the Wii/Wii-U philosophy ie. gimmicks over substance.

You haven't read this: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=228323268&postcount=519
 
Having an app that does that isn't a bad idea, having the app be the ONLY way to do that is a terrible idea. Even more so when you're asking me to pay for your online service.
 
It seems random matchmaking (ranked/unranked) is in-game and "enhanced" matchmaking (friends/lobbies) is in-app only.

The app will be available in limited form (whatever that means) sometime this summer and goes paid in Fall. So no friends/lobbies/voice chat til then.

We don't know what devices will be supported but it's a good bet only iPhone and Android for the near future and who knows, really.

That is... not good :( thanks for clarifying.
 
I don't get it. Matchmaking through the app on the phone while playing a game on the Switch, how is that going to work??

Okay let me help with the visualization because I realize people get confused by this really easily.

Imagine you are playing a game on Steam/Origin/PS3/PS4/360/XB1/whateveeeeeeeer. The game is running, the game has multiplayer options. But to access your friend list, chat options, and all that you usually have to bring up the system overlay right? Now imagine that instead of a system overlay in the game, it's just an app on your phone. That's how it will work.
 
I don't get it. Matchmaking through the app on the phone while playing a game on the Switch, how is that going to work??

There are many examples of game clients being separate from launchers. For example LoL or BF4 (now redesigned). However, once inside the game all features are built into the engine, so... Sure there are Origin overlays, but voice chat rarely runs externally without users making a separate group in skype or discord.
 
I don't get it. Matchmaking through the app on the phone while playing a game on the Switch, how is that going to work??

Custom matchmaking, i.e. getting in touch with people outside a game, will work by using your smart device. There is no evidence that you have to do this while playing on your Switch, however. That bit is pure conjecture.

So this console is going to be a disaster isn't it.

We like to say "doomed," but yes. Easily.
 
Okay let me help with the visualization because I realize people get confused by this really easily.

Imagine you are playing a game on Steam/Origin/PS3/PS4/360/XB1/whateveeeeeeeer. The game is running, the game has multiplayer options. But to access your friend list, chat options, and all that you usually have to bring up the system overlay right? Now imagine that instead of a system overlay in the game, it's just an app on your phone. That's how it will work.

If you have the right phone, of course.
 
Maybe this has been clarified already but, is matchmaking handled through phone app ONLY or as an option? I think this is the key question.

I agree this is what definitely needs clarifying. If it's supplementary to the console itself then...cool! Makes no sense to me why the app couldn't be made for the switch itself.
 
Remember all the talk of the NEW Nintendo?

They've learned nothing from the Wii U.

They've got no idea about what gamers want and expect in 2017.
 
A data plan isn't needed. In pretty much any scenario where you will be playing online with the Switch, you will have wifi and no be using data.

Actually the problem is not invites or match making, its people like to listen to the game while in voice chat....It is 2017, you should be able to perfectly balance both game and chat volume in your earpiece...

Maybe you can have one earpiece on left ear and the phone earpiece on right ear (LOL) - I can imagine the defences...

Next we are going to get - but game music and sounds are not important.....
 
I think this is a good move. Let's keep things separated. Let the Switch be the best gaming device. Why build all that online stuff into the Switch when everybody has a phone. Nintendo proved time and time again that they can't build a solid OS + apps. I'm not going to use it anyway. So lets have that experience on my phone.

It's the same with in-car entertainment. I've a 2015 Renault Clio and they can't figure it out. The console is way too slow. You can only scroll trough your playlist with buttons (3 songs at a time, then wait 3 sec. for the next screen to appear). Navigation is outdated, ugly and has no POI. I always use my phone to navigate, listen to podcasts/music, make phone calls etc.

TL;DR: I think it's smart that Nintendo knows its weak points. And that they don't try to reinvent the wheel.

how much do you get paid for this?
you are letting them off the hook for building a convoluted experience that requires outside hardware because they are fundamentally incompetent. That's your reason for being okay with this, for championing this decision.

Nintendo is terrible at software therefore this Nintendo software is great.
what the fuck?
 
Man, every Switch news post-presentation infuriates me. I though Nintendo would learn something of how to manage internet on their consoles from mobile developing... uh, I mean something good...
 
Someone explain this to me: how do I play Splatoon 2 online? Do I need to search for a game through the app? How does that sync with the game? What happens if I try to find a match in the game? Does a big text box telling me to go download the app pop up?

I'm so confused. I just wanna put the game in and then play the game.
 
Or a smart device. It's not just a phone.

Oh, I hope I can have my (android or ios) tablet on my lap while I play!

Someone explain this to me: how do I play Splatoon 2 online? Do I need to search for a game through the app? How does that sync with the game? What happens if I try to find a match in the game? Does a big text box telling me to go download the app pop up?

I'm so confused. I just wanna put the game in and then play the game.

Read some of the posts above. If you are looking for concrete info you will need to ask Reggie.
 
Again: except that now you have to pay for that barebones experience.

That's just my guess with Splatoon 2. It won't be barebones if the smartphone app offers all of that online gaming functionality. It might be awkward that it's on a smartphone and not system level. But it won't be barebones.
 
Actually the problem is not invites or match making, its people like to listen to the game while in voice chat....It is 2017, you should be able to perfectly balance both game and chat volume in your earpiece...

Maybe you can have one earpiece in on ear and the phone earpiece on other ear (LOL)

Next we are going to get - but game music and sounds are not important.....

They'll just pipe the audio from the Switch through your phone. If you're on the move you're tethered and have a direct connection, and if you're on wifi then your phone and Switch will share the same network. The latency should be minimal.
 
I just had an amazing thought.

What if Nintendo is using the Switch as a vehicle to become a completely Mobile developer?

Say the system flops, they would have all the userbase subscribed to their App service.
They also made the Joycon controllers detachable as a way of testing future add-ons for mobile devices.

Bookmark this post, I think I just predicted Nintendo's entire business future.
 
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