Nintendo Switch

Whatever Mario Kart game that was, it wasn't MK8, which doesn't have King Boo as a racer. Might have been an earlier build, I dunno, or something new.

Really excited about this. It looks like the kind of thing that can occupy a lot of space at game nights.

Price is going to be important. It's full of neat ideas but this is an odd time in the release cycle for totally new hardware.

If, like me, you already dropped 300 notes on a current-gen console, you'll likely think twice before paying a similar amount for a secondary one. If it's down around half that, it's a whole different matter. It'd be worth getting just as a portable alone at that price.

Of course, Nintendo are likely gunning for sales from less hardcore players than us. Which is great: but people in that group might not take to the portable aspects of the device.

Strangely, not really targetted to kids. Small controller pieces, unprotected tablet screen. That thing just screams "Break me, kids" or "Lose the left side controller to the neverworld of the couch forever".

I mean, the video looks to be targeting the older crowd...which is fine, but is that their market?

Nintendo knows what they are doing. Nintendo has killer IP, and I don't know a serious gamer (willing to play on console I should caveat) that doesn't keep current with Nintendo just for MARIO/ZELDA/METROID. Some folks drop hundreds on bikes or stereo equipment, folks like me drop it on games, video and otherwise. No issues getting this to go with the PS4.

@MrWhite: you absolutely can get them in the VC, and I have a bunch, but this little thing has 30 games in it, dead simple setup, and better emulation. This is the travel console. I could get this going in my minivan, no lie.

That's odd that the VC emulation is worse. It seems the Wii U is plenty powerful to run NES/SNES games.

Though I will admit these games look very blocky on my HD. Definition to high? I remember the titles looking better, but maybe my CRT telly blurred the lines on the sprites?

Portable gaming is my thing, the Gameboy Advance SP and Nintendo DS are two of my favorite systems of all time. Do I really want to play the same games on a TV console as on the go though? I dunno.

I'm disappointed this has lost the pick-up-and-play ease of use that the Wii had. I understand the Wii U wasn't nearly as successful as the Wii, but man we had a lot of fun playing Wii with a lot of people who weren't "gamers."

jeb wrote: Nintendo knows what they are doing. Nintendo has killer IP, and I don't know a serious gamer (willing to play on console I should caveat) that doesn't keep current with Nintendo just for MARIO/ZELDA/METROID. Some folks drop hundreds on bikes or stereo equipment, folks like me drop it on games, video and otherwise. No issues getting this to go with the PS4.

@MrWhite: you absolutely can get them in the VC, and I have a bunch, but this little thing has 30 games in it, dead simple setup, and better emulation. This is the travel console. I could get this going in my minivan, no lie.

That's the current use for my Wii- hooked up the DVD players in my van for nes and snes emulation on road trips.

It doesn't jump out at me but it makes a hell of a lot more sense than the Wii U ever did, conceptwise. I think it will do well.

I'm most excited that there's no more separate DS and console markets, that is the best thing about the whole thing.

I've got a RetroPie already set up for the classics. I skipped the Wii U, PS4, and XBone. This looks awesome and if the price is reasonable I'm buying on day one.

I don't see myself taking it on road trips or anything, but I love the idea of grabbing the tablet piece and playing on the couch while letting someone else use the TV.

If it has a Wii Sports equivalent I might never turn on the Wii again.

to those with consoles in their vans/vehicles...do the passengers not have 3dses/vitas/tablets/phones?

They didn't have to twist my arm- sold, we'll get one launch day. Will preorder as soon as it's available along with Zelda and whatever that Mario game is.

Funniest thing- "...and you can use a regular, plain old controller!"

I'm not much of a console guy, but in an age where you have to shell out more for an extra controller, it's nice for this one to be playable by two people to begin with.

This is Nintendo doing what they do best. Their portable consoles have been by far the best portable consoles. From SEGA's game gear to Sony's latest offerings no one has ever been able to touch them and if you only play their home consoles you're missing out on a ton of great games they only have available for their portable systems. To have both in one means more great games on a single system and while I may not play it in a park I do know that my son and I will take it on trips, I would probably bring it to a friends on occasion, maybe out on a mini tour with the guys to play between shows... I can think of lots of uses for it, playing in the car or in the cottage on a rainy day I know it will get some portable use and home use. It's a fantastic idea and Nintendo remains not only the most innovative console designer on the planet but in many ways the only company who even attempts innovation at all on any level when it comes to console design.

I still haven't picked up an XBOX ONE or a PS4 but I already know I will get this system. My son and I watched the commercial earlier today and it blew his mind.

This looks amazing and I'm already sold, the only thing that gives me pause is that it looks like an ergonomic disaster. Tablet mode with wings clipped on looks uncomfortable for small hands. Tiny detached controllers look uncomfortable for large hands. No one will be happy! At least you can use the regular controller when docked.

Mr. White wrote: Though I will admit these games look very blocky on my HD. Definition to high? I remember the titles looking better, but maybe my CRT telly blurred the lines on the sprites?

Kind of.

For technical reasons console and arcade games used a resolution called 240p in which for each line drawn, one is left blank. Like this:



This is a key component of the look of classic video games but one that is often lost in translation. Most modern displays simply display the image without the blank lines, crushing the game vertically and causing it to look out-of-proportion and "blocky". It's most noticiable with noses and eyes which tend to become a blur in the middle of the face instead of part of it.

You'll also notice that the picture displayed is not a 4:3 square, but a long rectangle. This is because these blank lines are all missing. Search Google Images for "Street Fighter II Title Screen" and you'll see none of them cover a 4:3 screen they were supposed to.

That's the main reason for blockyness and you can get rid of it by using dedicated upscalers or other advanced solutions. There are lots of minor details that are lost without a CRT or filters and I heavily recommend one for anyone who plays retro games regularly but the main problem with blockyness is in upscaling.