My boys spent all free waking time they had last weekend playing with their new Nintendo Switch. After I waited in line in the cold for it, they better have!
We got three games to start with the Switch – the new Legend of Zelda Game, Breath of the Wild, Super Bomberman and 1-2 Switch.
A lot of friends have been asking me about it, since it just released last Friday and it’s still pretty hard to come by. So here are some initial thoughts after having played with it for the past 4 days:
*the mobility factor is awesome. They brought the Switch out to dinner Friday night with friends and had a group of kids playing. It’s nice to be able to pop it in and out and this definitely feels like the future in gaming. As far as we can tell, the game & graphics quality doesn’t seem to suffer at all just because it’s in a smaller package.
*In that same regard, it does feel a little like a souped up 3DS. As you guys can see, the games themselves are small too! I keep trying to figure out whether it’s a home gaming system or a portable gaming system – not sure why I feel the need to define it. And maybe that’s the point – it shouldn’t be categorized as it’s a bit of both and small tech is our future, right?
Here’s a picture that shows you the size of the game cartridge – that’s my finger next to it to indicate scale. Tiny!
Games:
*While I personally think Bomberman is fun, my boys weren’t very interested. It’s a bit of a simple game so I can see where serious gamers wouldn’t love it. This is the only one we have so far that can connect online and you can play against other people around the world though, so that’s cool.
*1-2 Switch is entertaining for a group and my boys have definitely been active playing with it. That said, I know it won’t last in our house. It’s a bit like a Wii Play – basically a game that teaches kids how to use the new controls. The newness factor of it is going to wane here.
*Zelda is an awesome game. And that’s really what it boils down to for me – if you’re a big Nintendo fan, as well as a huge Zelda fan, then you should run out to get yourself a Switch. No doubt about it. But for casual gamers or Nintendo gamers who are only in it for the Mario games, don’t sweat the lines and trying to find yourself a console just yet.
There are several Mario games soon to come in upcoming months and as the newness of the system dies down, there may be some sales or at least package deals to be found with purchasing the system so my two cents it to wait it out for a couple of weeks.
And if you still really, really want it and have to have it now? Stalk your local stores. It’s really the best way to find a unit. I lucked out at my local Target – they received a shipment of 24 units for opening morning and I was the 14th in line. Toys R Us, Walmart, GameStop and Target are all getting shipments regularly. I hear some luck can be had at Best Buy too.
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