Thread: Nintendo Switch Reaction?

  1. #1
    Its hard... But im here swgh's Avatar
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    Nintendo Switch Reaction?

    Well, it's here.

    First Look at Nintendo Switch - YouTube

    Nintendo's new innovative(?) next generation console.
    So much for the NX name (which I actually thought was
    really cool; aka Nintendo Console 10), we have the
    Switch.

    I've seen the T.V advert - it's pretty long and gives good
    views of what it can do. TBH, it's a mobile Wii U. It looks
    really impressive with the capability to take it on planes and
    out and about - but it's another gimic. I really am pretty let
    down from the reveal, I was looking forward to Nintendo really
    catching up with Sony and Microsoft in the Console market.

    Yes, they cater to kids and family, but the only cool game I saw
    was Skyrim which is the first ever Nintendo port. It's only a
    reveal, so maybe more will be shown and I could be proven wrong,
    I hope I am... but if the hardware specs are not up to par and
    the frame rate drops in the games are true.. it's going to be another
    flop.

    Ada x
    Double Helix STL

  2. #2
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    Well, my opinion is that they've made another big flop. Nintendo is simply out of touch: they do not understand what makes a good console.

    First problem: While the idea is sound, bringing your games wherever go, in practice it's unrealistic. Either you have big, impressive high-resolution graphics OR you have scaled-down graphics for better battery life. You can't have both. I just can't see how they're going to balance the graphics from while docked to portable mode.

    Second problem: Going with ARM. Again Nintendo sets themselves apart from Sony and Microsoft. This will make ports even more difficult. That, including the lack of horsepower is going to mean we're going to see fewer ports and fewer games. If Nintendo is really intent on keeping backwards compatibility, this problem is just going to get more and more severe, to the point where they might have to abandon their platform in the future. I see this as a short-sighted decision. Games on Nintendo platform tend to sell less. This leads to it being less and less likely that studios are going to see it worth the investment. Just look at the WiiU! Totally devoid of life, and because of the high cost of developing for the system, even more so!

    Third problem: You can't have the best of two worlds. Either it's going to have great hardware for the big screen, or great hardware for the mobile world, but you can't have both because that drives up the cost. So we're going to be stuck with something that's not as good on the big screen, and something that's not as good on the portable front. And remember: Nintendo is losing on the big screen front due to above-mentioned problems. Traditionally they've had great profits from mobile, but with phones and tablets cropping up like crazy, those profits have taken a nose-dive. Without a great portable system, I don't think this trend is going to change.

    I think that we are going to see Nintendo burn again. They cite a lot of 3rd party support. That's good, right? Wait a moment, wasn't that exactly the same situation with WiiU? Game studios said it was going to be a game changer and put a lot of resources into developing for it only to end up... scrapping it and disregarding the platform. Yeah, something tells me it's going to happen again.
    Quote Originally Posted by Adak View Post
    io.h certainly IS included in some modern compilers. It is no longer part of the standard for C, but it is nevertheless, included in the very latest Pelles C versions.
    Quote Originally Posted by Salem View Post
    You mean it's included as a crutch to help ancient programmers limp along without them having to relearn too much.

    Outside of your DOS world, your header file is meaningless.

  3. #3
    Lurking whiteflags's Avatar
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    Well I heard that Sony isn't doing a PS5 and as far as I know Microsoft is out of the console scene, so Nintendo is pretty much the only one making consoles. Video games are changing.

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    Sony is making PS4 Pro (or PS4.5 if you so will). Microsoft are doing Xbox Scorpion (essentially Xbone 1.5). So no, neither of them are out of the race. Both current consoles, PS4 and Xbone, are selling just fine. Nintendo's console is the only that's not really selling.
    Quote Originally Posted by Adak View Post
    io.h certainly IS included in some modern compilers. It is no longer part of the standard for C, but it is nevertheless, included in the very latest Pelles C versions.
    Quote Originally Posted by Salem View Post
    You mean it's included as a crutch to help ancient programmers limp along without them having to relearn too much.

    Outside of your DOS world, your header file is meaningless.

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    (?<!re)tired Mario F.'s Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by whiteflags View Post
    Well I heard that Sony isn't doing a PS5 and as far as I know Microsoft is out of the console scene, so Nintendo is pretty much the only one making consoles. Video games are changing.
    And a strange situation if we remember analysts were predicting the end of Nintendo console systems not long ago in the wake of a constant loss of market share.

    next generation
    Without a doubt the most abused two English words on the tech industry. I'm taking those two words, and those two words alone, to next year "World Biggest Liar" in Cumbria, England, which will no doubt give me first prize. It will be also the shortest lie ever told on that international competition. And on my winning speech I will promptly dedicate the prize to all engineers around the world that dedicated their lives to create next generation technology every Tuesday.
    Originally Posted by brewbuck:
    Reimplementing a large system in another language to get a 25% performance boost is nonsense. It would be cheaper to just get a computer which is 25% faster.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Elysia View Post
    First problem: While the idea is sound, bringing your games wherever go, in practice it's unrealistic. Either you have big, impressive high-resolution graphics OR you have scaled-down graphics for better battery life. You can't have both. I just can't see how they're going to balance the graphics from while docked to portable mode.
    There is some speculation that the dock will have a nice cooling system.
    That might allow the hardware to clock up with docked.

    When used standalone, a reasonable ARM soc is good enough for the games they are targeting, especially at low screen resolutions.

    (Anecdote : I was surprised to see the GTA San Andreas android port running nicely on my 3 year old android tablet.)

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    Quote Originally Posted by manasij7479 View Post
    There is some speculation that the dock will have a nice cooling system.
    That might allow the hardware to clock up with docked.
    Just clocking up the frequency will only do you so much good. The chip has to be designed for performance, but then you sacrifice portability. And then you get this discrepancy, where you get good graphics fidelity on the big screen and worse on the go.

    When used standalone, a reasonable ARM soc is good enough for the games they are targeting, especially at low screen resolutions.

    (Anecdote : I was surprised to see the GTA San Andreas android port running nicely on my 3 year old android tablet.)
    Sure, but like I mentioned, it will make porting from other platforms difficult and selling stuff on Nintendo systems is difficult enough as it is, so exclusives are not ideal for publishers, but Nintendo doesn't seem to understand this.
    Quote Originally Posted by Adak View Post
    io.h certainly IS included in some modern compilers. It is no longer part of the standard for C, but it is nevertheless, included in the very latest Pelles C versions.
    Quote Originally Posted by Salem View Post
    You mean it's included as a crutch to help ancient programmers limp along without them having to relearn too much.

    Outside of your DOS world, your header file is meaningless.

  8. #8
    Lurking whiteflags's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Elysia View Post
    Sony is making PS4 Pro (or PS4.5 if you so will). Microsoft are doing Xbox Scorpion (essentially Xbone 1.5). So no, neither of them are out of the race.
    I'm aware of the Pro, but there isn't really a reason to get one unless you don't already have a PS4. The biggest feature seems to be 4K support. It's the same for the Scorpio.

    If you want to call that a race, you're welcome to, but I think consoles are largely a stagnant market that is increasingly PC-like.

    I've said this for a while elsewhere but I really feel Nintendo should be the only ones around making consoles. They at least try to invent interesting hardware.

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    Well, in my book, it's a race because they're all consoles are they're vying for consumer money. Consoles, to me, have always been just like PCs (in the gaming department), but with fixed hardware, making it hassle free to play games, and easier for devs since they don't have to take increasingly varying hardware into mind.

    I honestly feel like Nintendo should stop making consoles because they've just shown, time and time again, that they're stagnant. The only thing they seem to do is be a little experimental on the hardware approach. But nothing thus far have really amazed us and nothing really continues to be part of the "standard fare" for new consoles. Motion controls? Gone. Second screen? Gone. The motion controls never really worked. The second screen never really worked.

    And what else do they have except for their unique hardware? Mario? Stagnated. Zelda? Stagnated. The new free roaming Zelda seems old news too. Been there, done that. Nintendo only gets credit because they're... Nintendo. Others have always surpassed them at everything, IMO.

    Online functionality? Terrible. UI? Terrible. Functionality? Terrible. Approach to allowing gamers to capture and share gameplay footage and even make some advertisement money on it? Terrible. DLC? Horrible. They've started locking content at game launch to physical DLC that's exclusive to certain stores and poorly stocked and horribly overpriced. Nintendo is just going downhill, so I will not be sad to see them go. Though I will miss some of their franchises.
    Quote Originally Posted by Adak View Post
    io.h certainly IS included in some modern compilers. It is no longer part of the standard for C, but it is nevertheless, included in the very latest Pelles C versions.
    Quote Originally Posted by Salem View Post
    You mean it's included as a crutch to help ancient programmers limp along without them having to relearn too much.

    Outside of your DOS world, your header file is meaningless.

  10. #10
    Lurking whiteflags's Avatar
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    Well, in my book, it's a race because they're all consoles are they're vying for consumer money. Consoles, to me, have always been just like PCs (in the gaming department), but with fixed hardware, making it hassle free to play games, and easier for devs since they don't have to take increasingly varying hardware into mind.
    Then potentially any market is in race conditions because it's a competitive environment. A paltry ad for the benefits of console gaming falls flat for me.
    And what else do they have except for their unique hardware?
    All the more reason they should keep doing it, because I feel like someone should. A race to me means lots of advancement, new features, within a short period (like technology in the Space race). Consoles just aren't as interesting anymore. No one knows where they should be going.
    Online functionality? Terrible. UI? Terrible. Functionality? Terrible. Approach to allowing gamers to capture and share gameplay footage and even make some advertisement money on it? Terrible. DLC? Horrible. They've started locking content at game launch to physical DLC that's exclusive to certain stores and poorly stocked and horribly overpriced.
    Elysia? Terrible. Well, I'm not sure I can actually respond to all of this. It's exactly because the console scene is so stagnant that I'd love to see some of the vitriol and hype die. I'm not going to count 1/2 measure versions with incremental features as a new, nice generation. If we're there already, just depart from it and spare us uninspired overpriced gaming boxes.

    "Online functionality" - it really depends on what you mean because Nintendo does have a family image that they like to have. That means, you know, no free, open online chatting because of the GIFT. It also explains a number of other things, like friendcodes on the DS. Beyond the rationale, it does work, and unless you only play AAA gaming titles, you really can't take multiplayer for granted.

    Oh and concerning DLC? No one has their hands clean there. Left 4 dead DLC was free on PC, until Microsoft wanted to sell it for money on their console, and Valve capitulated.
    Last edited by whiteflags; 10-22-2016 at 03:31 PM.

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    I can kind of understand where you're coming from - that we need innovation. I just disagree that Nintendo should be the one doing it. We need a new company that understands today's market, not some stuck-up jerks relying on old traditions.

    I know Nintendo is trying to retain a "family friendly" image - but to be fair, it's just not working. It may work for social gamers, but it just alienates all other gamers who tend to associate themselves with PS4/Xbone. And Nintendo is not doing anything about it. It's as if they don't care. Not to mention they are years behind on everything. Accounts? They just recently got those while Sony/Microsoft has had them for years. Still not sure what you can do with those Accounts on Ninty.

    Everyone has their ups and downs, sure. But Nintendo has only recently started giving in to DLC. Just another tick on their long list of failures today. That tick, combined with others, is why I'd like to see them go away. That list is just going to expand because they don't understand today's world and probably never will.
    Quote Originally Posted by Adak View Post
    io.h certainly IS included in some modern compilers. It is no longer part of the standard for C, but it is nevertheless, included in the very latest Pelles C versions.
    Quote Originally Posted by Salem View Post
    You mean it's included as a crutch to help ancient programmers limp along without them having to relearn too much.

    Outside of your DOS world, your header file is meaningless.

  12. #12
    (?<!re)tired Mario F.'s Avatar
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    You won't see me holding my hand out for Nintendo on any matter, Elysia. I'm fully with you on my distaste for this company. But it is nonetheless weird to hear you saying that Nintendo should just quit because they aren't ahead on the competition race. It's a bit like arguing that only the winner should end a marathon.

    As a consumer, you have in fact everything to gain from Nintendo presence. The number of businesses in this market is getting thin and no new competitors are emerging. SONY seems to be the only one holding out. And the best way to screw the consumers in an open market is being the only one offering a solution. Good or bad, innovative or not, Nintendo still acts on the market as a competitive force. Thank goodness for that. Wish them the best.
    Originally Posted by brewbuck:
    Reimplementing a large system in another language to get a 25% performance boost is nonsense. It would be cheaper to just get a computer which is 25% faster.

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    I find a distaste in that you have to invest in their platforms to get some of their franchise. If they would just stop producing hardware and put their games on other platforms we'd be so much happier IMO. So that's why I want them to stop. I don't want to invest in their platforms and get locked down with DLC and maybe get 1-2 in the hardware's entire existence.

    We need a new competitor who invents, because Nintendo isn't doing the job properly.
    Quote Originally Posted by Adak View Post
    io.h certainly IS included in some modern compilers. It is no longer part of the standard for C, but it is nevertheless, included in the very latest Pelles C versions.
    Quote Originally Posted by Salem View Post
    You mean it's included as a crutch to help ancient programmers limp along without them having to relearn too much.

    Outside of your DOS world, your header file is meaningless.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Elysia View Post
    I find a distaste in that you have to invest in their platforms to get some of their franchise.
    That's a good point. I haven't considered it.
    To be perfectly honest it doesn't resonate with me because I find the whole of Nintendo intellectual property tasteless and uninteresting to the extreme, even in the face of some of its cultural impact. But I must agree that for anyone liking it, you make a very strong point.
    Originally Posted by brewbuck:
    Reimplementing a large system in another language to get a 25% performance boost is nonsense. It would be cheaper to just get a computer which is 25% faster.

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    Lurking whiteflags's Avatar
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    To me the point is completely hollow and selfish. He's acting like he cares about Nintendo exclusives, and he doesn't. My only real reaction is basically, "that's capitalism for you." Nintendo isn't the only one with exclusive titles. Xbox and Microsoft have them. Sony does too. I even sat on this reply, 'cause I thought I was missing something, but like I got nothing.

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