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[ShadowKingpin]

Do we know if both people will have to add each other to be friends on here, or is that still unknown?

 

[Peltz]

When is the last time you saw someone playing any game considered a home console experience out in the wild?

Maybe someone on a DS here and there.

Next question.

When is the last time you saw someone playing a mobile game or something more traditionally considered an on the go experience?

I live and work in NYC and I see hundreds if not thousands of people every single day. Can't even begin to guess at how many I see every day playing candy crush or some other phone game.

Every now and then I see some guy playing a DS, and maybe 5-6 times over the years, I saw the elusive public PSP player. Now those are rare.

I've been rocking a GBA SP on the Q train as of late.

 

[Dystify]

Okay, third try. I uploaded the documents to my site. I'll leave them up for a while, so you can browse through them. (I posted about this earlier but there was a server issue so not everything uploaded properly.)

http://dystify.com/Features/NX-System_Features_Guide.html

http://dystify.com/Overview/NX-Overview.html

http://dystify.com/QuickStart/NX-SDEV_Quick_Start.html

 

[Okami Haundo]

Do we know if both people will have to add each other to be friends on here, or is that still unknown?

No idea. Though Nintendo's recent mobile apps might be an indication. One player sends a request and the other approves it. No more awkward situations where you both have to send a request.

 

[Rodin]

There is no source for it. What we have is video of the game being played, seemingly in portable form, at the Japan Switch event. People then are taking stills from those videos (not even the official Nintendo footage but a capture of the stream from another video) and trying to compare them to stills from the retail copies of the various versions of the game. Not even stills from video but screenshots I believe found on sites. Thing is when people started doing that no one was bothering to account for the difference the game would go through when you look at the undocked and docked modes or the age of the build of the Switch version at the time. Some people started stating it was a port of the Vita version as fact. Even then that's highly debatable because the texture work in the Switch version looks closer to the PS4 then the Vita version when it comes to detail, especially when you put the screens shots side by side. The Switch version lacks the particle effects the PS4 has but again that could be because it was running in undocked mode. Some didn't even want to consider that.

So it's pretty much bullshit, just as i thought haha.

PS4 uses fp16 doesn't it? Are there any games for it that takes advantage?

No, PS4 Pro does.

I'd argue the contrary. E.g. even though the vita was under-powered on the CPU side it at least had extra GPU cores to make up for that deficiency. It also had a "top of the range for its time" OLED screen. It was, at least in some ways, cutting edge tech.

Take for example that image of the iphone and switch. I find it entirely amusing since the iphone, which I presume to be an iphone 6s, is more powerful than the switch. And even were it underclocked and given a large enough battery to last as long as the switch it would still be more powerful and likely not require active cooling to boot.

The switch is just quite a lot of money for mostly old tech. And we can now even tell that the "HD Rumble" is nothing but your standard linear actuator which is found in most recently released phones or smart watches. No, I'm afraid that, like the wii U, the switch is underpowered and expensive. The difference here is that because Nintendo did not learn from MS and Sony about getting into bed with Nvidia, it's likely costing them more to produce the switch than they had expected and they're having to pass that cost on to the customer through their pricing strategy

My pixel is more powerful than the switch. The switch is a mobile device. I'm sorry the facts out there hurt but it's the truth.

Switch doesn't throttle like your super powerful phone, and it doesn't need to use its CPU to run an incredibly complex OS. Sorry.

 

[The Futurist]

I've been rocking a GBA SP on the Q train as of late.

I take the Q sometimes from 59th to 42nd.

Will keep my eyes open.

 

[Inferno313]

The UI looks great, but it's interesting how closely it mirrors the PS4 UI. This really feels like the team at Nintendo looked at PS4, and gave it another Nintendo-Esque Pass.

The system message screen, looks almost identical to the PS4's system message screen.
Switch:

PS4:

The main menu also looks very similar, having individual game tiles displayed horizontally, from left to right.
Switch:

PS4:

Hell, even the notifications are very similar. A simple black rectangle that slides in from the top-left side of the screen.

Switch:

PS4:

This is not to criticize, or accuse the Switch of ripping off another console. It's just something interesting that I noticed. It seems to me that the younger teams that are leading the charge on the Switch at Nintendo are more well-versed in what's going on in the larger gaming ecosystem, and are more willing to take what works for other platforms and iterate on them with a Nintendo polish. Rather than simply ignoring what else is out there, as Nintendo has tended to do at times.

 

[FearMyWrench]

oops wrong place

 

[ShadowKingpin]

No idea. Though Nintendo's recent mobile apps might be an indication. One player sends a request and the other approves it. No more awkward situations where you both have to send a request.

I'm really rooting for Nintendo here. Eliminating their old ways in regards to adding friends would be extremely wise. I hope they clarify soon.

 

[Pancakes R Us]

As evidenced by..?

PSP.

I should probably have been more specific: stuff like CoD. People tend to want to experience those on big screen monitors/TVs. 3DS got what people would call Nintendo console-style games, but Nintendo franchises often translate well to handheld. Are there any sim/arcade/CoD-like FPS on 3DS that did well? Do they even exist?

 

[Buggy Loop]

I'd argue the contrary. E.g. even though the vita was under-powered on the CPU side it at least had extra GPU cores to make up for that deficiency. It also had a "top of the range for its time" OLED screen. It was, at least in some ways, cutting edge tech.

Take for example that image of the iphone and switch. I find it entirely amusing since the iphone, which I presume to be an iphone 6s, is more powerful than the switch. And even were it underclocked and given a large enough battery to last as long as the switch it would still be more powerful and likely not require active cooling to boot.

The switch is just quite a lot of money for mostly old tech. And we can now even tell that the "HD Rumble" is nothing but your standard linear actuator which is found in most recently released phones or smart watches. No, I'm afraid that, like the wii U, the switch is underpowered and expensive. The difference here is that because Nintendo did not learn from MS and Sony about getting into bed with Nvidia, it's likely costing them more to produce the switch than they had expected and they're having to pass that cost on to the customer through their pricing strategy

Yeahh... no

Iphones score good in benchs, but they throttle hard afterwards, GPU wise a least

Gwennap estimates Apple increased clock speed by 50 percent to get those performance gains. The custom Apple GPU blows away competitors when operating at peak speed, but it can't sustain that performance.

Iphones would burn trying to run Botw.

Apple did not invent some magic hardware that outperforms Nvidia's X1 while also not exausting heat in its enclosed case, they did not open a gate to a parallel universe to move the heat there, they're not that good. I find it funny that peoples think it could have been much better if it were not Nintendo, probably peoples who don't understand basic principles of electrical and thermal laws.

And you know, we do see what games are output on the phones since pretty much everyone has one, nothing on there approach Switch, even with 1st gen software on it. I would say once E3 hits and we see Steep and other big developer's games, it's a no brainer that it's more powerful.

 

[Painraze]

PSP.

I should probably have been more specific: stuff like CoD. People tend to want to experience those on big screen monitors/TVs. 3DS got what people would call Nintendo console-style games, but Nintendo franchises often translate well to handheld. Are there any sim/arcade/CoD-like FPS on 3DS that did well? Do they even exist?

PSP was a long time ago. I'm not sure I'd use that as proof that today's market wouldn't be interested in console games on the go.

 

[BRocknRolla]

I might be overestimating it but if you had 100 games that would still be a lot of data. Mobile games only sync the game when you're playing and you need a connection to play.

If you found yourself in the circumstance of having 100 game saves to upload, I see your point, but theoretically, this would never happen. You'd only upload/download the saves that changed since the last sync, so more likely we're talking about 2-3 games most of the time, but even if you get to 10 or 20 somehow without having synced them, that shouldn't take more than a couple minutes.

 

[The Boat]

I'm really rooting for Nintendo here. Eliminating their old ways in regards to adding friends would be extremely wise. I hope they clarify soon.

The Wii U doesn't require each user to add each other, you add someone and they get a notification.

 

[FearMyWrench]

Little tidbit on friends that I haven't seen mentioned:

Features
The Friends mechanism on the NX has the following characteristics.

Friends are saved independently for each user.

Each user can have as many as 300 friends.

To use the Friends feature, the user must be linked to a Nintendo Account.

There is a Favorites feature, and friends set to Favorites are displayed preferentially in the friend list. For more information about the friend list, see 5.2.1 My Page.

Notably, the friend limit has been raised from 100 on 3DS/WiiU to 300 on the Switch. Additionally, you can have favourite friends to pin them to the top of your list presumably.

 

[OCD Guy]

I find it funny that peoples think it could have been much better if it were not Nintendo, probably peoples who don't understand basic principles of electrical and thermal laws.
.

It's also laughable how people think Nintendo are able to pull battery technology out of their ass too.

I remember the complaints when the battery life was announced, but people conveniently forgot that battery technology is one area that hasn't really advanced in any meaningful way.

That's the reason things like fast charging technology have been introduced to try and counter the negatives of having a short battery life.

But no one cares about any of that, they want a portable console as powerful as scorpio in a really thin package, with passive cooling and 24 hour battery life with 5 minute quick charging to full capacity lol.

Compromises need to made, you want more battery life then you either add more battery (and therefore make the device larger), or reduce the power of the device.

 

[BRocknRolla]

The UI looks great, but it's interesting how closely it mirrors the PS4 UI. This really feels like the team at Nintendo looked at PS4, and gave it another Nintendo-Esque Pass.

The system message screen, looks almost identical to the PS4's system message screen.
Switch:

PS4:


The main menu also looks very similar, having individual game tiles displayed horizontally, from left to right.
Switch:

PS4:


Hell, even the notifications are very similar. A simple black rectangle that slides in from the top-left side of the screen.

Switch:
PS4:

This is not to criticize, or accuse the Switch of ripping off another console. It's just something interesting that I noticed. It seems to me that the younger teams that are leading the charge on the Switch at Nintendo are more well-versed in what's going on in the larger gaming ecosystem, and are more willing to take what works for other platforms and iterate on them with a Nintendo polish. Rather than simply ignoring what else is out there, as Nintendo has tended to do at times.

I see some of the similarities, but I'd argue that a lot of the UI mirrors things you can see on most modern tech (I see just as much of my Android phone UI in it). It's just the present standard for this approach, which as you said, does show an awareness. It's nice to see the clean approach though along with some of Nintendo's quirkiness.

 

[Oregano]

If you found yourself in the circumstance of having 100 game saves to upload, I see your point, but theoretically, this would never happen. You'd only upload/download the saves that changed since the last sync, so more likely we're talking about 2-3 games most of the time, but even if you get to 10 or 20 somehow without having synced them, that shouldn't take more than a couple minutes.

True, as I said I was probably overestimating.

 

[mario_O]

When is the last time you saw someone playing any game considered a home console experience out in the wild?

Maybe someone on a DS here and there.

Next question.

When is the last time you saw someone playing a mobile game or something more traditionally considered an on the go experience?

I live and work in NYC and I see hundreds if not thousands of people every single day. Can't even begin to guess at how many I see every day playing candy crush or some other phone game.

Every now and then I see some guy playing a DS, and maybe 5-6 times over the years, I saw the elusive public PSP player. Now those are rare.

I suppose playing 'on the go' is something more japanese. For the West it will be like with the rest of hanhelds: 90% of people will never take the Switch outside.

 

[FearMyWrench]

We are currently discussing whether to allow blocking transitions to the HOME Menu if the HOME Button was pressed during application gameplay. The Nintendo 3DS system and the Wii U provided the option to skip HOME Menu transitions during communications, including Internet play. The NX might not provide that option, however.

A bit on whether blocking the HOME menu in certain menus in games will be allowed. Drives me nuts when this is done really overkill on some 3DS/Wii U games, kinda hoping they've decided not to allow that this time.

 

[Berordn]

A bit on whether blocking the HOME menu in certain menus in games will be allowed. Drives me nuts when this is done really overkill on some 3DS/Wii U games, kinda hoping they've decided not to allow that this time.

Accidentally launch the wrong game?

Too bad. Wait five minutes for load screens and maybe you can change it now.

 

[Sendou]

PSP.

I should probably have been more specific: stuff like CoD. People tend to want to experience those on big screen monitors/TVs. 3DS got what people would call Nintendo console-style games, but Nintendo franchises often translate well to handheld. Are there any sim/arcade/CoD-like FPS on 3DS that did well? Do they even exist?

PSP was relatively succesful but even then it hardly offered "full-blown console experiences". What's the difference between a game like Splatoon 2 and Call of Duty?

Like if I'm a huge CoD fan then of course I prefer to play it on big screen but that's not always possible where devices like Switch will make it possible to play it easily even on the go. Finally we have enough power and an actual push to bring these kind of experiences to a portable format.

I mean 3DS didn't even have two sticks.

 

[Pancakes R Us]

PSP was a long time ago. I'm not sure I'd use that as proof that today's market wouldn't be interested in console games on the go.

I don't see why it couldn't be used as such. They tried. It didn't work. I'm not saying it can't work at all, it's not impossible, but the market spoke. Even when Vita hit, I don't remember many console-style titles hitting outside the launch window/first year period.

 

[El Sabroso]

A bit on whether blocking the HOME menu in certain menus in games will be allowed. Drives me nuts when this is done really overkill on some 3DS/Wii U games, kinda hoping they've decided not to allow that this time.

was seeing more use while online play to sort of prevent rage quits I guess, was hard to take screenshots like that tho, but with dedicated button for share can be blocked while online

 

[Pancakes R Us]

PSP was relatively succesful but even then it hardly offered "full-blown console experiences". What's the difference between a game like Splatoon 2 and Call of Duty?

Like if I'm a huge CoD fan then of course I prefer to play it on big screen but that's not always possible where devices like Switch will make it possible to play it easily even on the go. Finally we have enough power and an actual push to bring these kind of experiences to a portable format.

I mean 3DS didn't even have two sticks.

Oh, it's great that it'll be possible to play these games on the go now for those that want it. I was just saying earlier that this being the reason that lots of people jump on board is probably not it. I reckon there'll probably be a significant chunk of buyers that'll be buying it as a handheld that can connect to the TV.

 

[GinoFelino]

The UI looks great, but it's interesting how closely it mirrors the PS4 UI. This really feels like the team at Nintendo looked at PS4, and gave it another Nintendo-Esque Pass.
.

PS4's has become my favourite console OS. I'm really glad to see they're taking inspiration from the right places.

 

[Skittzo0413]

I don't see why it couldn't be used as such. They tried. It didn't work. I'm not saying it can't work at all, it's not impossible, but the market spoke. Even when Vita hit, I don't remember many console-style titles hitting outside the launch window/first year period.

There's a big difference between console-style games and full console games though. People don't want to settle for a different, stripped down experience, but consoles (rather than PC) show people are perfectly willing to settle for stripped down visuals, with the same game and features.

 

[Sendou]

Oh, it's great that it'll be possible to play these games on the go now for those that want it. I was just saying earlier that this being the reason that lots of people jump on board is probably not it. I reckon there'll probably be a significant chunk of buyers that'll be buying it as a handheld that can connect to the TV.

Yeah for sure. I just think nobody has made a compelling proposition before when it comes to "games you expect to play on the big screen but instead take them with you whenever" and there's power in that.

 

[Jaded Alyx]

No idea. Though Nintendo's recent mobile apps might be an indication. One player sends a request and the other approves it. No more awkward situations where you both have to send a request.

I'm really rooting for Nintendo here. Eliminating their old ways in regards to adding friends would be extremely wise. I hope they clarify soon.

Got rid of this since the Wii U.

 

[Rodin]

The UI looks great, but it's interesting how closely it mirrors the PS4 UI. This really feels like the team at Nintendo looked at PS4, and gave it another Nintendo-Esque Pass.

The system message screen, looks almost identical to the PS4's system message screen.
Switch:

PS4:


The main menu also looks very similar, having individual game tiles displayed horizontally, from left to right.
Switch:

PS4:


Hell, even the notifications are very similar. A simple black rectangle that slides in from the top-left side of the screen.

Switch:
PS4:

This is not to criticize, or accuse the Switch of ripping off another console. It's just something interesting that I noticed. It seems to me that the younger teams that are leading the charge on the Switch at Nintendo are more well-versed in what's going on in the larger gaming ecosystem, and are more willing to take what works for other platforms and iterate on them with a Nintendo polish. Rather than simply ignoring what else is out there, as Nintendo has tended to do at times.

Yup noticed the similarities, and it is a very good thing in my book. PS4 has simply the best gaming OS out there at the moment, hopefully the Switch one is just as fast and animations are smooth.

 

[Oregano]

Got rid of this since the Wii U.

Yeah but to be fair it sounds like Codes are back(as an option).:/

 

[FearMyWrench]

Woah, is this implying My Nintendo will expand to retail games for the Switch?

My Nintendo Points Program

You can receive an amount of Gold Points equivalent to the amount spent on a retail version product. To receive points, a Nintendo Account is required. For downloadable versions of applications, gold points are assigned automatically when purchasing the application from the shop. You do not need to do anything else. For more information about My Nintendo and Gold Points, see the following websites.

Tempted to make a thread on it, but I'm not sure if I'm optimistically reading into something that isn't really here.

 

[Inferno313]

Woah, is this implying My Nintendo will expand to retail games for the Switch?



Tempted to make a thread on it, but I'm not sure if I'm optimistically reading into something that isn't really here.

The Gold Points are the ones you simply get for purchasing digital WiiU and 3DS games. They're saying you get Gold Points for buying Switch games. That was almost a certainty. I'm wondering if retail Switch games will get you points this time, like how Club Nintendo used to work.

The bigger question is whether or not the Switch is implementing the platinum coins into the system, which are the ones you earn from in-game missions and spend on in-game rewards in Nintendo's three mobile games so far.

EDIT: Doh, I am a dummy.

 

[shadow2810]

The UI looks great, but it's interesting how closely it mirrors the PS4 UI. This really feels like the team at Nintendo looked at PS4, and gave it another Nintendo-Esque Pass.

The system message screen, looks almost identical to the PS4's system message screen.
Switch:

PS4:


The main menu also looks very similar, having individual game tiles displayed horizontally, from left to right.
Switch:

PS4:


Hell, even the notifications are very similar. A simple black rectangle that slides in from the top-left side of the screen.

Switch:
PS4:

This is not to criticize, or accuse the Switch of ripping off another console. It's just something interesting that I noticed. It seems to me that the younger teams that are leading the charge on the Switch at Nintendo are more well-versed in what's going on in the larger gaming ecosystem, and are more willing to take what works for other platforms and iterate on them with a Nintendo polish. Rather than simply ignoring what else is out there, as Nintendo has tended to do at times.

The UI is closer to the Wii U than PS4.

Or maybe they hired the same guy to do the UI lol

edit: actually it looks much closer to the 3DS

 

[FearMyWrench]

The Gold Points are the ones you simply get for purchasing digital WiiU and 3DS games. They're saying you get Gold Points for buying Switch games. That was almost a certainty.

I don't see why it was a certainty when you don't get them on WiiU/3DS. Talking about retail games here.

 

[UnemployedVillain]

I suppose playing 'on the go' is something more japanese. For the West it will be like with the rest of hanhelds: 90% of people will never take the Switch outside.

People need to stop saying this when there's no evidence of it whatsoever. And no, GAF doesn't even begin to represent the general population. And no, asking me "How many people have you seen..." or posting anecdotal evidence doesn't count either

 

[Inferno313]

I don't see why it was a certainty when you don't get them on WiiU/3DS. Talking about retail games here.

Oh, doh! I missed the word "retail" in your post. My apologies.

 

[Oregano]

The Gold Points are the ones you simply get for purchasing digital WiiU and 3DS games. They're saying you get Gold Points for buying Switch games. That was almost a certainty. I'm wondering if retail Switch games will get you points this time, like how Club Nintendo used to work.

The bigger question is whether or not the Switch is implementing the platinum coins into the system, which are the ones you earn from in-game missions and spend on in-game rewards in Nintendo's three mobile games so far.

Yeah but it sounds like they're going to put codes in cases like they did with Club Nintendo.

 

[KingBroly]

I think what sucks about Switch (and it will continue to suck) is that all of these 'old notions' that people have about Nintendo's hardware in regards to stuff like adding friends, accounts and whatnot. Now I'm not saying everything will be modernized (because we don't know at this point), I'm just saying that the old stigma is going to last for a LONG time, regardless of how true it may be.

 

[Okami Haundo]

There's a big difference between console-style games and full console games though. People don't want to settle for a different, stripped down experience, but consoles (rather than PC) show people are perfectly willing to settle for stripped down visuals, with the same game and features.

I most definitely agree! I remember buying a Vita on day one because of Uncharted Golden Abyss. While I enjoyed the game overall, it was nothing like being able to play Uncharted 2 on the go. That's honestly what excites me most about the Switch.

 

[Sendou]

I think what sucks about Switch (and it will continue to suck) is that all of these 'old notions' that people have about Nintendo's hardware in regards to stuff like adding friends, accounts and whatnot. Now I'm not saying everything will be modernized (because we don't know at this point), I'm just saying that the old stigma is going to last for a LONG time, regardless of how true it may be.

Well deserved in many cases. I really really hope Switch is another step into the right direction but this continued silence doesn't inspire confidence.

I most definitely agree! I remember buying a Vita on day one because of Uncharted Golden Abyss. While I enjoyed the game overall, it was nothing like being able to play Uncharted 2 on the go. That's honestly what excites me most about the Switch.

This is it. I liked Golden Abyss but it was a B-effort compared to Naughty Dog games. Same with games like Assassin's Creed and Call of Duty.

 

[Hero Prinny]

The UI is closer to the Wii U than PS4.

Or maybe they hired the same guy to do the UI lol

edit: actually it looks much closer to the 3DS

... no it doesnt...

 

[phanphare]

The UI looks great, but it's interesting how closely it mirrors the PS4 UI. This really feels like the team at Nintendo looked at PS4, and gave it another Nintendo-Esque Pass.

The system message screen, looks almost identical to the PS4's system message screen.
Switch:

PS4:


The main menu also looks very similar, having individual game tiles displayed horizontally, from left to right.
Switch:

PS4:


Hell, even the notifications are very similar. A simple black rectangle that slides in from the top-left side of the screen.

Switch:
PS4:

This is not to criticize, or accuse the Switch of ripping off another console. It's just something interesting that I noticed. It seems to me that the younger teams that are leading the charge on the Switch at Nintendo are more well-versed in what's going on in the larger gaming ecosystem, and are more willing to take what works for other platforms and iterate on them with a Nintendo polish. Rather than simply ignoring what else is out there, as Nintendo has tended to do at times.

honestly it just looks like a more modern version of the 3DS UI with only one row (hopefully we'll be able to zoom out on Switch) and the main icons below the tiles instead of above them

doesn't really remind me of the PS4 at all tbh, aside from the tiles being square instead of rounded

 

[Inferno313]

The UI is closer to the Wii U than PS4.

Or maybe they hired the same guy to do the UI lol

edit: actually it looks much closer to the 3DS

I mean... How so? Both the 3DS and WiiU used small square icons in a grid-like layout. I'd say the better point of comparison for those UIs is the iOS home screen. (Though, to be fair to Apple, they execute on that idea much much better than Nintendo did)

 

[FearMyWrench]

Oh, doh! I missed the word "retail" in your post. My apologies.

Yeah I'm focusing on the last part here saying on a retail version product: "You can receive an amount of Gold Points equivalent to the amount spent on a retail version product." Although it could just be poor phrasing and they're just meaning the cost of a game, not literally retail?

 

[Wolfgang Jr]

Soooooo....how many Wii Us is this?

1

 

[El Topo]

I think what sucks about Switch (and it will continue to suck) is that all of these 'old notions' that people have about Nintendo's hardware in regards to stuff like adding friends, accounts and whatnot. Now I'm not saying everything will be modernized (because we don't know at this point), I'm just saying that the old stigma is going to last for a LONG time, regardless of how true it may be.

Well they haven't really done anything to fight these notions.

 

[Clefargle]

1

Lol you never disappoint. How long have you been waiting to post that? We got a live one here!

 

[Inferno313]

1

It's a WiiU and the Gamepad duct taped together!

 

[phanphare]

I mean... How so? Both the 3DS and WiiU used small square icons in a grid-like layout. I'd say the better point of comparison for those UIs is the iOS home screen. (Though, to be fair to Apple, they execute on that idea much much better than Nintendo did)

see my post above, you can have your 3DS show one row of big tiles instead of a grid

I'm hoping Switch allows for the tiles to be arranged in a grid as well

also iirc the 3DS defaults to one row when you buy it new like the Switch