Nintendo Switch - Happy Switchmas Everyone!

[Choze]

No one was expecting the handheld form to be close to the XBO. In docked form though there was a hope that would be closer to the XBO using a beefed up X1 chip.

 

Anything above the Wii U in handheld form is awesome, the problem is the performance in docked mode.

 

People are flat out being unrealistic but it is not their fault. I hope Nintendo can be more competitive(popularity wise) but they are not doing themselves any favours with their marketing and expectation setting. MS also have the same issue with Scorpio given their 'no generations' reveal at their own e3 press conference. Lack of consistency hurts.

 

Back when Dragon Quest was revealed there expectations that the new Nintendo console was more powerful than the PS4. Times have changed.

Edited December 19, 2016 by Choze

[Goron_3]

You cant compare the clock speeds of the cpu and gpu on the WiiU to the ARM/Tegra at all.

 

 

 

People are flat out being unrealistic but it is not their fault. I hope Nintendo can be more competitive(popularity wise) but they are not doing themselves any favours with their marketing and expectation setting. MS also have the same issue with Scorpio given their 'no generations' reveal at their own e3 press conference.

 

Back when Dragon Quest was revealed there expectations that the new Nintendo console was more powerful than the PS4. Times have changed.

 

Personally, I don't really care for power as long as the games are decent and more ambitious than before. In handheld form it's going to be their most powerful machine every which is great news.

 

My concern comes from the fact that I want Nintendo to do well and to appeal to as many types of gamer as possible. I want Nintendo's console business to be strong - I don't want to see another Wii U situation.

 

Ah well. Jan 12th can't come soon enough.

[khilafah]

if the experience when playing the switch undocked takes a huge nosedive can everyone else see this as a worrying feature.

 

I mean why would we want to play it in handheld mode if the performance is not great.

 

Not a great incentive. I was major hyped to play games like BotW on the go. Now I am thinking why bother when the performance will suck.

[Nicktendo]

I think marketing this primarily as a home console would be a mistake, especially given the specs. If it is cheap (sub £200) with the handheld experience being a marked improvement over 3DS, then I don't think Nintendo will have too many problems shifting it. The DS had incredible sales, the 3DS has been extremely solid, if not stunning. If Switch will be the new home of Pokemon, Layton, Fire Emblem, Animal Crossing, not even thinking about Mario and Zelda, then the machine will sell - there are still 60-80 million handheld gamers out there if you think about Vita and 3DS owners. Hopefully the fact that it can be played at home will attract a few more players.

 

I still play my 3DS regularly, but almost exclusively at home. I'm ready for a 3DS successor to drop and the sequels to all those great 3DS games, if it also means I can play BOTW and Xenoblade/Skyrim type games on my TV through one console then it's win/win for me.

[Goron_3]

I think marketing this primarily as a home console would be a mistake, especially given the specs. If it is cheap (sub £200) with the handheld experience being a marked improvement over 3DS, then I don't think Nintendo will have too many problems shifting it. The DS had incredible sales, the 3DS has been extremely solid, if not stunning. If Switch will be the new home of Pokemon, Layton, Fire Emblem, Animal Crossing, not even thinking about Mario and Zelda, then the machine will sell - there are still 60-80 million handheld gamers out there if you think about Vita and 3DS owners. Hopefully the fact that it can be played at home will attract a few more players.

 

I still play my 3DS regularly, but almost exclusively at home. I'm ready for a 3DS successor to drop and the sequels to all those great 3DS games, if it also means I can play BOTW and Xenoblade/Skyrim type games on my TV through one console then it's win/win for me.

 

Yeah promoting it as a handheld would be the better option. They should "Switch" their marketing to reflect this... Ha.

 

That said, there is still a lot we don't know. For example, the X1 can almost run Gamecube games perfectly (with the odd framerate drop) however this looks to much a very underclocked X1 chip. You would therefore not expect Gamecube VC to be possible however we have rumours indicating that it is happening. Despite how weak the chips are they may have a lot of customisation done to them, so there's still a chance of getting some surprising performance for a cheap price.

[Hero-of-Time]

Personally, I don't really care for power as long as the games are decent and more ambitious than before. In handheld form it's going to be their most powerful machine every which is great news.

 

My concern comes from the fact that I want Nintendo to do well and to appeal to as many types of gamer as possible. I want Nintendo's console business to be strong - I don't want to see another Wii U situation.

 

Ah well. Jan 12th can't come soon enough.

 

This is just how I feel.

 

I was more than satisfied with power and visuals of the Wii U, especially with the art style Nintendo use in their games, I just want them to do well in the market again.

[liger05]

Yeah promoting it as a handheld would be the better option. They should "Switch" their marketing to reflect this... Ha.

 

That said, there is still a lot we don't know. For example, the X1 can almost run Gamecube games perfectly (with the odd framerate drop) however this looks to much a very underclocked X1 chip. You would therefore not expect Gamecube VC to be possible however we have rumours indicating that it is happening. Despite how weak the chips are they may have a lot of customisation done to them, so there's still a chance of getting some surprising performance for a cheap price.

 

This.

 

There likely is something we don't know if GC VC is happening as I'm expecting GC games to run on the switch better than the shield. Would be ridiculous if that isn't the case.

 

Doesn't it being locked 40% in handheld mean that handheld mode will be the performance target for developers rather than the other way round so you shouldn't see a game take a huge downgrade in portable mode?

Edited December 19, 2016 by liger05

[Kounan]

I don't really care so long it's HD in portable mode (it will be HD, or better in TV mode). There should be so many Nintendo games that I will not have time to finish them, while most games I like and that don't come on Nintendo can be played on a PC (and I am in the process of upgrading mine)!

[Fierce_LiNk]

I'm desperate to find a reason to get excited for the Switch, but I'm honestly struggling at the moment. Today's revelations have been pretty underwhelming. It's very odd to know (for the second time - after the WiiU) that there's a new Nintendo console approaching and that I'm not particularly buzzing about it.

[Falcon_BlizZACK]

I'm desperate to find a reason to get excited for the Switch, but I'm honestly struggling at the moment. Today's revelations have been pretty underwhelming. It's very odd to know (for the second time - after the WiiU) that there's a new Nintendo console approaching and that I'm not particularly buzzing about it.

 

With all due respect though they have barely shown the thing/its games etc.

[Ronnie]

And what they have shown made the vast majority of people very happy, hopefully Jan 12th will live up to the hype.

[liger05]

It's a strange one as I read estimates say 6 x more powerful than the vita in handheld mode which is plenty but I'm thinking this would have a larger effect if it was just a handheld.

 

Being a console first as Nintendo call it could be more of a concern me. As long as this is compared against the console competition it could suffer.

 

Where this leaves third party I have no idea but if it's the same as the wii u I think it's a big problem.

[killthenet]

I didn't expect such a dramatic drop off in power from docked to handheld mode, 60% is quite a drop. Obviously I never expected it to be a super powerful device but rumours from a month or so ago pegged the graphical power at around 1 Teraflop, which is below Xbox One but close enough for ports to be doable. That might still be the case in docked mode but to drop off to 400 Giga Flops in handheld mode would compromise more than just the resolution, I had expected handheld mode would just run the games in a lower resolution and therefore need to use less power to produce similar results as in docked mode, but having a 60% drop will affect things like framerate, number of assets on screen etc so could greatly alter the gameplay of some games.

 

Obviously it's all still conjecture and I'm still excited for the console but it does make me cautious about playing it in handheld mode with bigger experiences like Breath Of The Wild.

[Pestneb]

Because the leaks that have come out said it would be closed to xb1 than Wii U.

 

if on an arbitrary scale, wii U = 1, Xb1 = 2 and switch = 1.00000001

 

Technically the switch IS closer to the xb1 than the Wii U [is]

 

But yeah, I was surprised by the suggestions it would be in the same ball park as an Xb1/PS4 in terms of power.

Although @Ronnie those 2 do have disc drives, HDD I think and potentially internal power units and beefier fans. Plus they may make the shell larger than it need be because, unlike a handheld, size isn't quite the same constraint AND bigger = more powerful in many people's eyes. So it pays for them to make the console almost as big as it can be without taking the piss.

[liger05]

I didn't expect such a dramatic drop off in power from docked to handheld mode, 60% is quite a drop. Obviously I never expected it to be a super powerful device but rumours from a month or so ago pegged the graphical power at around 1 Teraflop, which is below Xbox One but close enough for ports to be doable. That might still be the case in docked mode but to drop off to 400 Giga Flops in handheld mode would compromise more than just the resolution, I had expected handheld mode would just run the games in a lower resolution and therefore need to use less power to produce similar results as in docked mode, but having a 60% drop will affect things like framerate, number of assets on screen etc so could greatly alter the gameplay of some games.

 

Obviously it's all still conjecture and I'm still excited for the console but it does make me cautious about playing it in handheld mode with bigger experiences like Breath Of The Wild.

 

Maybe that's where the 5-8 hour battery life comes from. Heavily reduced clock speed so the handheld will last?

[Ronnie]

if on an arbitrary scale, wii U = 1, Xb1 = 2 and switch = 1.00000001

 

Technically the switch IS closer to the xb1 than the Wii U

 

I think the report meant the Switch would be 1.51 or greater, as in closer to XBO than Wii U.

[Pestneb]

 

Am I right in thinking 1.24GHz = 1240MHz, meaning the Switch has a slower CPU than Wii U? That's very disappointing. As I understood it, the biggest technical problem with Wii U was the slow CPU.

 

Mhz isn't everything though.

That's how many times the processor works a second, but if the switch does 1.5* as much per cycle as the Wii U processor, the difference in cycle speeds is quickly accounted for.

 

1.24*1 = 1.24

1.02*1.5 =1.53

[Blade]

Sadly, if these rumours are to be believed then it is becoming increasingly more apparent that the real new story is Nintendo dropping out of the console race.

[Pestneb]

if the experience when playing the switch undocked takes a huge nosedive can everyone else see this as a worrying feature.

 

I mean why would we want to play it in handheld mode if the performance is not great.

 

Not a great incentive. I was major hyped to play games like BotW on the go. Now I am thinking why bother when the performance will suck.

 

the CPU remains the same. The GPU takes a hit, but look at the difference in the screens... for the screen it has, the GPU will be fine undocked (so long as you are satisfied with the tv image.. and even if you're not, as has already been said, it is a big boost from the 3ds)

[killthenet]

Maybe that's where the 5-8 hour battery life comes from. Heavily reduced clock speed so the handheld will last?

 

I'm sure it will help give it a longer battery life, but I think a lot of us would rather it be more powerful and have a less substantial battery life than to be so underpowered compared to the docked version. I think 3-5 hours battery is a pretty respectable number, especially with faster USB-C charging.

[Pestneb]

Available CPU Speeds Available GPU Speeds Available Memory Controller Speeds

Undocked 1020MHz 307.2MHz 1331/1600MHz

Docked 1020MHz 307.2/768MHz 1331/1600MHz

 

So to clarify... the CPU remains the same. 100% in docked and handheld. That is where the game is. The GPU drops to 40%.... but then unless you have a SD tv, the visual out put on the switch's tiny screen will be significantly less impressive and require much less from the GPU to produce as nice as possible an image.

 

The memory controller can be held at higher speeds in handheld mode.. if the CPU needs it.

 

So basically the game itself will remain (potentially) the same in handheld mode, just your battery life will be hammered.

Or the developer can allow the memory controller to drop to 83% if they feel battery life is important and the performance drop won't affect their game...

 

I think the report meant the Switch would be 1.51 or greater, as in closer to XBO than Wii U.

 

or is that just how we all read it? :P

 

Seriously I am sure that is what it meant but then the question is whether it was legit of fake? I don't know which report it is specifically so.. yeah

Edited December 19, 2016 by Pestneb

[Ronnie]

Sadly, if these rumours are to be believed then it is becoming increasingly more apparent that the real new story is Nintendo dropping out of the console race.

 

The Game Boy, PlayStation 2, DS, Wii and 3DS were all less powerful than the competition yet all "won" their generation. The Switch is packing a huge amount of tech for a (likely) affordable price, and the lesser graphical specs are nothing new for the company.

[nekunando]

I'm desperate to find a reason to get excited for the Switch, but I'm honestly struggling at the moment. Today's revelations have been pretty underwhelming. It's very odd to know (for the second time - after the WiiU) that there's a new Nintendo console approaching and that I'm not particularly buzzing about it.

 

We've definitely expressed different tastes in the past and, with your love for PS4, it's probably going to take more from Nintendo to lure you into getting hyped for Switch than perhaps the more devoted Nintendo crowd. My concern at the moment is that I'm probably more Nintendo focused than you and even I'm feeling that same desperation in finding something to get excited about

 

Chances are that I'll be frothing at the mouth come January and fully on board but the dynamic has definitely changed for me now that I've joined you, and many others, in the land of PS4. I'm no longer concerned about what third party games will make it across as I'll be able to indulge those needs on Sony's system but it does affect the potential success of the Switch and how much quality content we'll eventually see for it. If it turns out to be another Wii U, that's going to be a huge disappointment despite me enjoying the console, for the most part (though I also wasn't that excited for it back in 2012 and didn't fancy the gamepad at first sight)

 

I'm sure I'll get one as I'm still a Nintendo fan and will need my fix of certain games but I just hope there's more for my tastes than there has been overall for the last few years. A revival of one or two of their dormant racing franchises would go a long way to getting me hyped but if we see things like Mario Party, Animal Crossing, Fire Emblem, Advance Wars or some less than stellar Mario sports titles, including the Olympics, that's going to be less encouraging for me personally.

[Hero-of-Time]

A revival of one or two of their dormant racing franchises would go a long way to getting me hyped but if we see things like Mario Party, Animal Crossing, Fire Emblem, Advance Wars or some less than stellar Mario sports titles, including the Olympics, that's going to be less encouraging for me personally.

 

You monster!

[Kav]

Don't mind the specs so much if it has Party Chat.