Nintendo Switch: Boom or Bust?

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VideoGameCritic
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Nintendo Switch: Boom or Bust?

Postby VideoGameCritic » January 15th, 2017, 11:13 am

I'd like to hear your thoughts on this, but I think the Switch is going to be a major hit. Here are my reasons.

First, there are a lot of appealing features with the new system. The ability to play it on its own screen is not only good for travel, but even in your living room if you want to play while watching TV. The controls seem very innovative and the use of cartridges is appealing to a lot of people. And finally, Nintendo seems to be putting together a winning lineup of games headlined by Zelda and Mario.

Second, a lot of people skipping out on the previous Nintendo system (Wii U) for various reasons. There's a huge audience who wants something new and fresh.

Third, I think a lot of people have a bad taste in their mouth from the PS4 and Xbox One systems with their PC-style maintenance headaches. People just want to have fun. Playing a video game should not be a chore.

Finally, the runaway success of the NES Classic shows that the appetite for Nintendo merchandise is hotter than ever.

Your thoughts??

ESauce
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Re: Nintendo Switch: Boom or Bust?

Postby ESauce » January 15th, 2017, 1:29 pm

I'm pretty worried for Nintendo honestly. I think they are pricing themselves out of the market. The Wii U launched for $300 for the core version, and it's price point was part of the reason it couldn't pick up steam in the early days. People felt that an underpowered console shouldn't be nearly the price of it's competitors, even if it had a tablet controller. The 3ds launched at $250 and sold poorly initially, forcing Nintendo to slash the price to $170 in under a year. People felt the $250 was too much for a handheld. I don't see how people will look at the price of the Switch any differently, and I'm baffled that Nintendo does.

And if the $300 price point wasn't bad enough, Nintendo has exacerbated the problem by overpricing the accessories (a pro controller is inexplicably $10 more than an Xbox One controller), and now charging for an online service that from everything they have said so far, appears to be worse than the online services on the Xbox and PlayStation. Online gameplay might not matter to everyone here, but it does matter to the average consumer.

Nintendo needed to realize that their best bet was to make this console a budget alternative. If they couldn't afford to make it $200 with the hardware as it is, they should have pared down the features until they could. Realistically is the Hd rumble really going to sell the system? And maybe people expect 1080p, but given that the tablet outputs in lower resolution anyway, and the console is already underpowered compared to its competitors, maybe cutting the visuals back a bit more would have been a good idea, in order to make it more wallet-friendly.

I don't anticipate this console doing much better than the Wii U, and I think Nintendo is making some pretty terrible decisions with it. I would hate to see them pushed out of the console industry, but I'm scared for them. I'm especially scared because I think a lot of core Nintendo players aren't seeing the problems that the average consumer will have with this console, so nintendo won't get the feedback they need until it's too late.

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Atariboy
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Re: Nintendo Switch: Boom or Bust?

Postby Atariboy » January 15th, 2017, 1:51 pm

I don't think $300 is too bad. More alarming is the slate of software that we know about, accessory prices (Didn't I see something like $75 for a 2nd dock, lol?), unclear online plans, etc.

$300 might be a bit at the high end, but I don't think it surprised too many people nor is it too far off the mark since there wasn't a prayer for $200. The best case I felt that we could hope for was $250 and we're only $50 away from that. Do something surprising like bundle in '1,2, Switch' if Nintendo is confident that it could be another surprise Wii Sports style hit, and you'd erase that deficit if others feel as you do that the value isn't there to justify the expense.

It could help sell more systems and could help launch a new minigame franchise in the process, since it has a tall hurdle to jump if people actually have to risk buying this separately instead of being force fed it at launch for their own good. Heck, if $300 is too high, promote the heck out of it and explain to the masses how they don't need to buy a separate Nintendo console and a handheld this generation since they're getting both in one package for just $300.

Probably an easy 13 million of the 13.36 million Wii U's out there belong to people that also own at least one 3DS system. If this was a generation ago, you'd be getting both the console and the handheld for what people paid for the Wii U alone (And at just $50 more than what the 3DS launched at).

I suspect that $300 is the least of their problems.

ESauce
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Re: Nintendo Switch: Boom or Bust?

Postby ESauce » January 15th, 2017, 3:23 pm

Atariboy wrote:
$300 might be a bit at the high end, but I don't think it surprised too many people nor is it too far off the mark since there wasn't a prayer for $200. The best case I felt that we could hope for was $250 and we're only $50 away from that. Do something surprising like bundle in '1,2, Switch' if Nintendo is confident that it could be another surprise Wii Sports style hit, and you'd erase that deficit if others feel as you do that the value isn't there to justify the expense.


I think exactly the fact that everyone expected $250 is why managing to get it out at $200 would have floored people and given them a great leg up. I agree $300 is just one problem among many, but I think it is a significant problem. It is a better value if Nintendo is going to discontinue the 3ds line and make this their home console and handheld, but Nintendo hasn't made that direction clear yet, and the time to explain that to consumers in time for launch was the most recent presentation.

eneuman96
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Re: Nintendo Switch: Boom or Bust?

Postby eneuman96 » January 15th, 2017, 5:16 pm

I've already mentioned how I think the criticism this system is getting tends to be overblown, but there are a few aspects I imagine will be sticking points for potential buyers (though a lot of people seem to forget that several of those issues are commonplace with consoles in their first year or so).

That said, I think the portability is a pretty good reason to buy a multiplatform game on the Switch even if you own more than one current-gen system. If I really want to play a multiplatform game on PS4 or Xbox One and it's not currently discounted on either system, I just flip a coin to decide which system I buy it for since it'll be the same either way. Since the Switch can be played on the go, there will be a legitimate reason for me to choose its particular version of a game. After all, it's the only version of Skyrim I can play on the bus.

All in all, it's a bit early to be making a whole lot of assumptions, but I think the Switch has more potential than people give it credit for. Only a month and a half left to see for ourselves.

...Though I don't know what they were thinking when they decided not to make 1-2 Switch a bundled game. Who on earth is going to pay 50 bucks for that?

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Re: Nintendo Switch: Boom or Bust?

Postby David » January 15th, 2017, 6:53 pm

Eh, I have a bad feeling about this. As much as I'd love for this to be a hit, there's too many things against it right now.

-The price of the console is okay, if not a little high, but the accessory prices are out of control. The dock is essentially just a dongle with an HDMI out and they're charging $90 USD for it.

-The launch lineup is severly lacking, with only Zelda as a heavy hitter, which is also available on the Wii U. And the third parties are doing the same thing they did with the Wii U. Skyrim is supposed to a big deal? It's a six year old game that just saw a remaster last year for the PS4 and Xbox. Sure, it's portable, but how have portables been faring as of late? The 3DS has sold 40 percent of its predecessor, and the Vita bombed.

-Paid online now, with no history or infrastructure in place. Voice chat is maybe only done through a phone only with a paid app, and might not be native to the system. Plus, no mention of a trophy or achievement system which is important to many people. And one free NES or SNES game per month that you don't get to keep after that month, even if you have the subscription still. Meanwhile, Sony ans MS give away multiple games each month that you get to keep.

I feel like this forum can be a little out of touch with where gaming is now. The PS4 just topped 50 million units after three years. How does that indicate that people have a sour taste from the current generation? The Wii U was a more traditional console with limited online services and little in the way of patches, and it completely tanked. I think an optimistic goal for Nintendo is to sell 30 million lifetime, build an online infrastructure with a modern account system with trophies/achievements, and be profitable enough to continue putting out hardware.

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Re: Nintendo Switch: Boom or Bust?

Postby Rookie1 » January 15th, 2017, 9:06 pm

Its going to take a dump in the long run. They always want to attract the "casual gamer." Is the casual game going to spend $300 on the switch + $80 for another joycon + $50 for 1-2 switch so they can have something fun to talk about at parties? Thats just silly. The casual gamer wants to spend $60 so they can play SMB with their friends. At the same time, would the average parent drop that kind of cash for their kid to take that thing out and about with them only to have them lose or break it? Probably not. $80 for a 2ds is much more reasonable and the library is massive and pretty inexpensive.

This will have it initial burst of sales. Its new, its Nintendo, its exciting! 3rd party support is going to jump ship faster than steerage on the titanic. And why wouldnt they? Why try to dumb down their games to make it work? Why make games for it when it doesnt have enough power to bring their vision to life?

I would be really surprised if this thing had more than 2 years worth of longevity in it.

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scotland
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Re: Nintendo Switch: Boom or Bust?

Postby scotland » January 15th, 2017, 10:36 pm

I say more toward "bust".

Mobile or off tv gaming is great. Doing it tonight watching a ballgame. So are others in the room...on phones and tablets. They are ubiquitous. I game all the time off tv....this unit may be great for me, but if I get one its going to be one more mobile entertainment device among many, and I think that will be common. In short, don't oversell mobile.

Its just too expensive for the modest value added to the mobile tech most people already own. I also doubt its going to have enough of the big multiplatform AAA titles to use the 'play at home or on your commute' pitch.

We'll see, but for the cost its too little value.

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LS650
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Re: Nintendo Switch: Boom or Bust?

Postby LS650 » January 15th, 2017, 11:50 pm

They can't even get the NES Classic into stores two months after release; imagine the delays and supply issues we'll see with the Switch. Bust.

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Re: Nintendo Switch: Boom or Bust?

Postby bluenote » January 16th, 2017, 9:24 am

Man, I don't know what to think about the Switch. When I saw the initial 3 minute commercial, I was super excited! Now, after watching the reveal the other day, I'm a lot more subdued in my excitement. Price point is pretty high. And to be honest, the launch lineup is pretty mediocre. Considering that Nintendo hasn't been releasing hardly anything for the Wii U the past year or so, I thought all their resources would be working on Switch games and have a ton to reveal on day 1.

Having said all that, perhaps they are saving a lot of reveals for E3 and really blow everyone away. Perhaps.

I think this console is just going to come down to games. If they can really churn out the games, then people will eventually buy it. But that's a big if.

Also, regarding the portable aspect, it'll be hard to bring over portable fans (the people who bought 3ds) because of the price of games. From what I can see, most games will be around $60, that's a hard sell for portable gamers who are used to paying $30. Not sure if they are planning on portable type games to go with their AAA games.

Also, why no information on Virtual console? They haven't said a peep about this, other than the monthly thing.


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