Red Hawk
Diamond Member
- Jan 1, 2011
- 3,266
- 169
- 106
Yeah, only 32 GB of storage is just not sufficient in 2017. But interestingly, during his teardown of the Switch, Ben Heck found that the internal storage is on an entirely separate board from the rest of the device. This would make it very easy for Nintendo to swap out the storage for a higher capacity in future revisions of the Switch. So, I'm pretty sure you can expect to see a higher capacity model in a year or two. Really, I think Nintendo could have done that to start with. Apple does it with the iPad and people seem to understand it, don't see why Nintendo couldn't do the same.
Anyways. Preordered the console, been playing it for a couple weeks now. I'm happy with the actual design and profile of the thing. I noticed in some unboxing videos people were commenting "It's so small!" But to me, it's kind of big for a handheld. I'm used to playing the 3DS XL on the go, and the main tablet part of the Switch alone is longer and wider than the XL (when closed). So it's big for a handheld, but not unwieldy. The joycons are really nice and fit my hands perfectly (full disclosure, I do have kind of small hands). I bought a pro controller for use at home, but I actually ended up using the joycons in docked mode quite a bit. Not in the joycon grip, that sucks, but rather just holding them separately. At the one big Switch reveal press conference, one of the Nintendo devs demonstrated that you could lie on a couch and "release the tension" with each joycon held separately. It looked silly at the time, but it really is true. It's just more relaxing to be able to rest your hands independently of each other when playing a game.
As for games, I've only purchased Breath of the Wild. And it's every bit as awesome as I could have hoped it to be, obviously. People have criticized the Switch's launch lineup, but here's the thing. I think with such a huge launch title as Breath of the Wild, any other big game released right now would be overshadowed. BotW is such a huge timesink and such a huge appeal on its own, that anyone playing BotW would have no time for something else. And everyone with a Switch is playing BotW. It's not like there's nothing else to do on the Switch if you really want -- games like Snipperclips and Fast RMX make for fun distractions -- I've tried Fast RMX on my brother's Switch, it really is fun -- but the main course is still BotW. And clearly BotW was all the Switch needed to have a solid launch, going by sales numbers. If something like, say Splatoon 2 was available on launch, it would just be cannibalized by BotW for no clear benefit. In a few months, when everyone has had their fill of BotW, then will be a great time to continue trickling games onto the Switch for people to buy. I think Nintendo delaying BotW so it could launch on the Switch was the best decision they've made in years (also because it likely gave them more time for QA testing and bugfixing -- it's rather startling how expansive the game is and how comprehensive its physics systems are, and I have yet to come across a noticeable bug. Bethesda, take notes!), and clearing the launch window so the only big game was BotW may have just been the second best.
Yep. I've seen quite a few comments from reviewers who have been taken by surprise with just how appealing playing the Switch in handheld mode is. And it's just impressive to be able to play a game like BotW on the go. Me personally, I was always going to get good use out of handheld mode because I recently started a job where I ride the train to Washington DC an hour in and an hour out every day. And on top of that I have a whole bunch of downtime at this job where I'm free to do whatever. But even at home, the device feels so slick and comfortable to hold and the screen is plenty vibrant that I've found I spent most of my time just playing it lounging around in bed.
Purely from a form factor, build quality, and aesthetics perspective, I think Nintendo hit a home run with this thing.
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