Previously codenamed the Nintendo NX, the Nintendo Switch has finally made its debut as Nintendo’s new major home console. Some of the games showcased for release with The Switch are a new Legend of Zelda game and a possible new Mario game. The hype has arisen, but will it be all it is cracked up to be?
Nintendo fans as well as other excited gamers are pumped for this console to be on store shelves. The gaming system allows gamers to play next generation games in high resolution at home without the bulky pad controller belonging to its predecessor, the Wii U. It uses a sleek-looking, regular controller with all the necessary buttons. Unlike any other home console Nintendo has manufactured, The Switch lets gamers on-the-go have the same amount of fun as they would at home.
On the console itself, there is a detachable screen that the player can take anywhere. The normal controller detaches like a transformer and connects to the sides of the screen, making it a monitor and a controller at the same time. It is almost exactly like the Wii U gamepad except that it is travel friendly. It’s meant to be taken anywhere. The screen is thin and the player can even use the built-in stand to set it down, disconnect the controller and play in relaxation. It’s almost like Nintendo combined their DS with a Gamecube, then upped the graphics by one hundred.
The price will be announced in January but this detail is very important. Nintendo’s last console, the Wii U, was a borderline failure sale-wise. Its outlandish gimmick of the only controller being a screen with the release price of $349 made people skeptical about whether it was worth the money.
If the Switch keeps its price reasonable, it should help bring major success for Nintendo. The new idea of a screen for the home console on-the-go isn’t as risky for customers as a big bulky pad with a Wii.
Behind all the hype, there is an underlying problem: the frame rate. Specifically, the frame rate when the console is being used away from a TV, possibly even Wifi. The Wii U’s gamepad had frame rate problems from time to time and it couldn’t be taken anywhere away from the console itself. So how will the travel monitor for the Switch hold up when used away from the console? Even in the announcement video, the frame rate seems a bit sluggish on the screen compared to when it was on a TV.
This problem is still a little iffy because not much is known yet, at least not until January. We do know that the processor used for the portable screen is made by NVIDIA, which makes graphics-processing units used by PC gamers, specifically the NVIDIA Tegra. The company has received high praise before, so it could work out just as well as it does on PCs.
As of now, the Nintendo Switch will be available in March 2017. Fans are just going to have to wait and see until then if the Switch truly meets their expectations.
