Today Nintendo finally lifted the curtain from what was so long simply known as the NX. We heard all the rumors about it being a handheld system that moonlights as a home console and the video and announcement today seem to back this all up.
The video shows the new consoles ability for the user to take the game on the go or play it on the TV at home by snapping controller pieces to the left and right of the tablet which can also be removed and wirelessly connect to the mobile screen. Of course a traditional controller can be paired with the Switch as well and it resembles the Pro controller from the WiiU days. It also looks like the Switch controller has a touch pad in the middle of it for home use.
The tablet has a little kick stand making it a small TV when you are on the go and aren’t attaching the tablet directly. These all appear to be cool solutions but we will have to see if this is all comfortable on the hands without developing the ‘claw’ after a few hours.
Some of the games shown in the trailer include Bethesda’s Skyrim, NBA 2K and Mario Kart, which can be played by 2 players using each ‘half’ of the controller attachments. If you are buying this for your kids, be prepared to by replacements because they got lost or simply broken. Spatoon was also shown of briefly which suggests that multiple Switch consoles can be connected for multiplayer while you’re out and about with your friends.
The console seems to be completely built into the tablet and runs as well at home as it will on the go unless the screen station, which can be seen in the pictures above and below, provides some added power for home use. The Switch seems to be running NBA 2K17 and Skyrim quite well which suggests power in the range of a PS3 or PS4 for example but at the very least on par with the WiiU. One of the coolest things about the Switch is that it will run games from a cartridge a la 3DS.
While we have no price or release line up, we know the Switch will come to market in March 2017. I would imagine we will hear a lot more at Tokyo game show later this year. In some ways it seems Nintendo always wanted the WiiU to be the Switch but couldn’t make the budget work. The games line up will include most of the big studios and publishers after the WiiU became a first party console but left most of the other guys not wanting to support the console due to slow sales figures across the life of the WiiU.
