Time to buy?
| Platform | OVERALL |
|---|---|
| Nintendo 64DD | 8.00 |
| Overall | 8.00 |
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No one has posted much about Switch hardware impressions from the 3 people who own it so I thought I'd give a quick review. So initially as you probably read I was quite unhappy with the joycons shape and comfort factor. I wondered day one if I would HAVE to buy the pro controller (some - like Vader) already did. Now I am cheap so I didn't and after 4 full days using the joycons I can say that they work. Nintendo nailed it. Now it doesn't melt into your hands and feel perfect day one as most modern Nintendo controllers do... but given significant time with them I have grown to love them. The simple answer to the question as to whether the Switch is a portable or home console is that it's both. And the joycons are what makes it work in both modes. They may initially feel too small, too flat, you may be concerned about button placement etc but on the whole they are fully functional and carry the same layout as any other normal controller. When you want it as a normal controller it works like a normal controller and it works in all modes and configurations. The build quality of them, the grip, the main unit and joycons themselves is really high. The joycons have a weight to them, and the amount of functionality in them is through the roof. The only real problem I had with them is when asked to play with separate controllers such as Snipperclips, when you go back to the main menu you have to go into controller settings to turn then back to normal (using both joycons as a single controller) As to the left joycon interference (NOT desynching)problem having tested the joycons in all modes, it only ever effects one. 1. Joycons attached to Switch unit (no interference) 2. Joycons attached to the grip (no interference) 3. Joycons attached to the joycon straps (no interference) 4. Joycons split by themselves (some momentary interference) So it only ever effects when you drop your left hand by your thigh and it it's momentary interference. To put things in perspective I have played about 20 hrs plus of Zelda and had only 4 instances of interference which last 1 to 2 seconds each. So it's hardly an issue. In competitive online games it will be more of an issue. Adding Friends? Yes friend codes are back BUT they are only one of the methods of adding friends, NNID is back too at a later time. Unless you are desperate to play FAST RMX day one with friends online it's hardly an issue. The Eshop has about 12-16 games here, 4 of them being Neo Geo titles. I haven't downloaded any yet - but have tried the Snipperclips demo and it's great. Might buy it. A lot of the Switch UI is functional and fast, user friendly too but lacks the Nintendo personality that was in past systems. It feels like the Switch being released early is a soft launch and these things will be fleshed out at a later date. But everything works well and is fine for launch. Switches main unit is lighter and thinner than the Wii U gamepad, it's a technical marvel given its size. The sleep mode is fantastic, only using a couple of percent for hours left in that mode. When in the dock it is in sleep mode and boots up to the exact part you left off in a game like Zelda in like 2 seconds. That is amazing. And it's similarly fast in portable form too. Speaking of amazing - dat screen is so good. You may think 720p is too low but no, it's crisp and bright and in many ways puts your tv to shame. It's large enough too so much so that it never feels like a compromised experience playing it in handheld mode. In fact, reading Digital Foundry saying that docked and undocked Zelda looks similar you might see that as a negative. It's actually a positive when the system in a lower clocked mode can display the game looking as bright, crisp and detailed, that it can match (or beat) your probably full HD tv. The touchscreen is as responsive as any modern phone. Now switch is constantly charged when playing in docked mode so for me, battery life has never been an issue. You can use the adapter for the dock to charge the system in handheld mode but I have never had to. The kickstand is actually thicker and better quality than I expected. Only real problem with the system so far is that on some tvs (and not others) the switch being docked in sleep mode will have your tv attempting to flip HDMI inputs. Sometimes it happens 4 times in half an hour, other times not once in 8 hours. You can turn the switch off IN THE DOCK by holding the power button down and that eliminates the problem. It's far to early to properly review switch as we are still waiting on a fleshed out lineup and other features to come online - but what is here is high quality and with a great potential. If you were to ask me today what Switch is actually like I'd say it's brilliant in how normal it is. On the one hand it's revolutionary, the way it switches between modes - yes it is a handheld - yes, it is a home console. But it does so, so comfortably that it never feels its revolutionary. It just works, in that it feels perfectly natural to use the system in any mode. And it's so easy to do so. I think this holiday will probably be the right time to jump in unless you are a big Splatoon 2 fan - which launches this summer. |
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Posted by gamingeek Tue, 07 Mar 2017 16:08:10
the core system is great and it works but everything around it is awful right now.
Personally I'd rather have it now then wait till the end of the year to play it. It's obviously a soft launch and I don't mind as the core of what it is works well and it has games to play. Not many yet but there are titles lined up for this year.
How many of these problems have you found yourself with your unit?
I don't get how one guy scratches his screen and suddenly it's a screen scratching problem. In fact, the amount of whiny bitching on GAF amplifying every little thing and treating it like the apocalypse is melodramatic.
I expected the kickstand to be a piece of tissue paper reading threads.
And I read everything, good job.
It's annoying however that the Switch will automatically switch my telly to the HDMI channel it's using, even if I'm not gaming on it.
That's it. You can even slide the joycons back into it to recharge.
Unless you select power off the switch always goes into sleep mode.
If you have the switch out of the dock and turn the power off, then put it in the dock it will turn back on into sleep mode.
So the switch must be in the dock when you select power off.