Sheikah

Yeah but are you happy about that? Freezing your bollocks off? :p

I think you place way too much importance on RRP. The v2 PS4 controllers have just come out, like you said, but already Tesco are selling them on at 40 quid. I should think that Sony are therefore selling them for a reasonable price to retailers. As is often the case with Nintendo, their RRPs may be close to competitor RRPs but this ultimately means little to the consumer; their stuff often stays quite close to RRP. In my experience, anyway. We'll see how quickly them Switch joy-cons go down in price. I don't think anyone wants a pure console in the sense of it lacking pretty essential features, or at least implementing them sensibly. It's like saying your house is pure because it lacks central heating.

That sucks... would it be worth contacting them in a few days to see if you get though to someone else a bit more lenient? :p

There's also another couple of factors Ronnie - a lot more people are playing PS4s than anything else, by quite some margin, and probably for much longer periods of time (on account of the large number of games and numerous multiplayer titles). Inevitably you're going to hear more cases of controllers being worn out. I think this discussion is not really hitting the point though to be honest - you can expect controller wear across the board (in fact, virtually every console controller I can remember has had wear issues through extended use). Build quality isn't just durability but the actually quality and feel of the controller itself, which I don't believe the Wii U Pro controller had. Partly I believe that's due to the fact it was an optional controller and didn't have the same degree of thought put into it.

It sounds like you have had really shit luck. I'm still using my launch system pad and have clocked probably a thousand hours in Destiny alone. Then again you also get some people who are really rough with their controllers. I'm sure I saw some totally wrecked PS2 controllers at my friends' houses back in the day and I did wonder quite how they fucked up their controllers so badly. A slightly unrelated observation, but I'm always in awe at how many people seem to completely ruin their phone screens too.

Yeah, this really is more of an indie-style eShop title.

Yeah, I reckon for some reason the March release date was set and everything else (Zelda, launch games, online) has had to be rushed to be ready for the launch. Looks like online had to give.

This is sad news and gives the impression of business as usual with regards to online for Nintendo.

I'm hoping the app is just a means of controlling the voice chat and that you can have a wireless headset that works with the Switch. And that you can see some sort of voice chat display on the TV/Switch as well as the phone.

I would love for them to react to the criticism like Microsoft did...even if it's just a few changes or clarifications. They need this launch to be a hit.

Not to mention Clown asked me about my opinion of stick placement, then proceeded to tell me to wind my neck in!

Why do they have to be the same? Nintendo are all about producing different controllers. The Wii U supported a wide variety of controllers, some of which had the right stick up top, some below. There's also no reason why they couldn't have gone right stick up top and left stick down below. Or you know, designed the switch to be symmetrical.

Nothing to do with the joy-cons, this is the Switch Pro controller we're talking about. They could have done whatever they wanted basically. Sticks below buttons always in my opinion - makes buttons much more accessible. Whenever you get the left stick above the D-pad the D-pad tends to be a bit shit.

Yeah, I think it's because they explained it in the context of ice cubes and their position that did nothing for me. Would have been cooler if they'd have explained it in the context of a game. Or maybe they did explain it. I think I basically watched the highlights.

Clearly important enough for them to change the design this time round. On an unrelated note, is anyone else totally nonplussed about rumble HD?

They're not the same thing, but the build quality is cheap as well as the design being a bit poor. The controller has a cheap and plasticy feel and weight to it and it's actually pretty flat and amateur looking. The buttons are hard and I remember it being uncomfortable to play Mario Kart for long periods of time with the accelerate button held. The controller is generally not as comfortable to hold as the other two, in my opinion.

The right stick on the Wii U Pro controller is above the ABXY buttons. Now the Switch Pro controller has put the right stick below those buttons. All three manufacturers now place the right stick below the buttons. There's a reason for that.

Sorry, but it really isn't. You're talking to someone who has spent thousands of hours playing competitively online with various controllers over the years too. The right hand side Wii U Pro buttons aren't even laid out sensibly, hence why they have U turned with the Switch pad and reorganised the stick and buttons. The battery is the best thing about it. And to repeat myself, I did not make this initial comparison.

I didn't make the comparison. Look back; Ronnie specifically mentioned the 'just released' (v2) dualshock, which has just come out, and is £40. The PS4 controller is an extremely solid pad. By comparison, the Wii U Pro controller is not. Looking at the Switch Pro controller, it looks quite similar to the Wii U one in terms of design so I'm questioning that £65 tag. NFC and the like do not justify it. Especially given the cost of the other peripherals, I would expect a price closer to 50.

The v2 PS4 controller is £40 at Tesco. What's the cheapest the Switch Pro controller is selling for? I'm willing to bet quite a bit more for what will be a lower build quality pad (going by what the Wii U Pro controller was like).

No but it is a pretty good indicator of whether your preferred console is going to be dropped by developers like a hot scone.

Yeah it's the best Dragon Quest game there is.

It's clearly all been rushed. They don't have the network information ready because they're rushed a launch window (hence why there was a "will it make launch" question of Zelda). That's why I'm betting there is no network service properly in place to begin with (hence the mention of a trial), and why there's so few launch games. You ask for patience and say the information will come just before launch...what good is that? The sites have all sold out pretty much by now. Thus, people have no chance of making an informed purchase, just an impulse one.

But what about the 28 quid charging controller shell? Bear in mind you get the exact same shell as the one you must pay for, just without the wiring for it to charge the controllers. You say gamers are irrational but I think hardcore Nintendo fans are very irrational. This has just a few games at launch, Zelda is 20 quid more expensive compared to Wii U, it's 280 quid at launch and if you want a charging cradle that's 28 quid...and we don't know the online details other than you will pay for it, despite launch being just over a month away. Sink 280 on something where online details are unknown! I'd say it's irrational to buy this without question rather than point out everything I just said.

I wouldn't pay 94 dollars for it, never mind that being cost price. It was like a Fisher Price toy.