Octopus Overlords

First impressions: not terrible, but not great. The biggest issue (other than a lack of launch titles) is with the controllers:

The biggest current issue with the Switch is one of basic reliability. Over the course of my time with Breath of the Wild, I’ve had repeated problems with the left Joy-Con controller partially or even completely losing sync from the Switch console while docked and connected to my television. This is a pain in the ass at best, but has also resulted in several deaths playing Breath of the Wild.

I’m not the only one experiencing this issue, either. Multiple reviewers and editors at other outlets who were provided Switch review hardware by Nintendo say they’ve experienced similar problems while using the Joy-Cons in the Joy-Con Grip accessory — the controller “dock” that allows more traditional play using the two Joy-Cons as opposite halves of a controller — that ships with the Switch.

Apparently, the Pro controllers don't have this problem though.

GamingTrend

Taiwanese developer Rayark announced today that their tablet game Voez will be a launch title for the Nintendo Switch in Japan (translation thanks to NeoGAF). Voez is a touch-based rhythm game which requires a touchscreen to play, so it would be impossible to play in the Switch’s docked TV mode.

They're doing a live stream right now on indie games in the pipeline, and it's looking really promising so far.

OMG BLASTER MASTER

I LOVED that game....and stunk at it so very much. I think I made it like 2 levels - it was so very, very hard.

OMG Advance Wars type game

Presentation starts at about 30 minutes in. It's short and to the point. Well worth a watch, especially if 'lack of content in 2017' was the biggest thing holding you back from ordering a Switch.

better link to just the presentation portion

Steamworld Dig 2 (Summer 2017)
Yooka Laylee
Overcooked Special Edition
The Escapists 2
Gonner Raw Fury
Dandara Raw Fury (Summer 2017)
Kingdom Two Crowns
Runner3 (Fall 2017)
Blaster Master Zero (March 9)
Flipping Death
Graceful Explosion Machine (April)
Mr. Shifty (April)
Tumbleseed (Spring)
Shakedown Hawaii (April)
Pocket Rumble (March)
WarGroove
Stardew Valley (Summer 2017)

From GAF, this is apparently the full list of indie games due on the Switch in 2017

Rogue Trooper Redux
The Fall Part 2: Unbound
Treasurenauts
sU and the Quest for meaning
RIME
Zombie Vikings
Mr. Shifty
TowerFall Ascension
Oceanhorn: Monster of Uncharted Seas
Thumper
Splasher
RIVE
Enter the Gungeon
Cave Story
NBA Playgrounds
1001 Spikes
Redout
Unbox: Newbie's Adventure
Graceful Explosion Machine
Pocket Rumble
SteamWorld Dig 2
Little Inferno
Ultimate Chicken Horse
Runner 3
Neuro Voider
Kingdom Two Crowns
Pankapu
Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove
The Binding of Issac Afterbirth +
Duck Game
World of Goo
Yooka-Laylee
The Escapists 2
Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment
Blaster Master Zero
Toe Jam & Earl: Back in the Groove
Space Dave!
Tumbleseed: A Rolly Roguelike
Terraria
Wargroove
Fast RMX
Has Been Heroes
Human Resource Machine
Gonner
Dandara
Flipping Death
Snake Pass
Stardew Valley
Celeste
Perception
Hollow Knight
Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom
WonderBoy and the Dragon's Trap
Shakedown Hawaii
Overcooked!
The Jack Box Party Pack 3
Hover: Revolt of Gamers
Away: Journey of the Unexpected
Portal Knights
State of Mind
The Next Penelope
Mutant Mudds
Battle Chef Brigade
Ittle Dew 2

The Switch will launch... sometime.

Not posting this to be contrarian; I do want one. But Nintendo is Nintendoing this launch to an incredible degree. I'm comfortable with not having preordered and seeing how the first few weeks go.

I had a feeling that was going to be a Ben Kuchera article. So much doom and gloom.

The Joy-Con connectivity thing is the only legitimate gripe at this point. I'm leaving my worrying about it on pause until I get it in my hands this Friday and see if A) it's actually a problem for me, and B) if Nintendo says at that point if/how/when it'll be fixed.

All the other "what we still don't know" things in that article don't really matter to most buyers.

I'm not even giving Kuchera articles a click anymore.

This system is primarily going to be a portable thing for me. It'll have Zelda at launch, which is enough to keep me going for a while. What I hadn't considered, and what looks to be the case, is that this may also wind up being my primary venue for indie games.

Right now, I wind up buying them on PC, then not playing them. When I'm at my PC, I'd usually rather play a big, beefy game, so the lighter indie stuff generally gets backburnered. But a lot of those games would make fantastic portable titles. Having them on the Switch makes them be portable, all of a sudden. In the future, I can see myself buying indies on the Switch to play, then re-buying them for cheap on the PC later, if I want an archival copy.

Chaz wrote:this may also wind up being my primary venue for indie games.

Right now, I wind up buying them on PC, then not playing them. When I'm at my PC, I'd usually rather play a big, beefy game, so the lighter indie stuff generally gets backburnered. But a lot of those games would make fantastic portable titles. Having them on the Switch makes them be portable, all of a sudden. In the future, I can see myself buying indies on the Switch to play, then re-buying them for cheap on the PC later, if I want an archival copy.

I'm pretty similar. I already own Stardew Valley on the PC but I'll be buying it again on the Switch. It just seems better suited to couch or portable play.

Then there's games like Overcooked. It looks perfect for the Switch, especially with how I can take two Joy-Con pairs and be able to support 4 players. I can't imagine ever getting a group of people to play it if I had bought the Steam version.

See, for couch MP games, I'm actually more apt to get them on Steam. The Steam Link lets me get them on the TV easily, and I can use my four 360 controllers. Overcooked, for example, works great that way.

Chaz wrote:See, for couch MP games, I'm actually more apt to get them on Steam. The Steam Link lets me get them on the TV easily, and I can use my four 360 controllers. Overcooked, for example, works great that way.

Overcooked feels like a game I could use to actually pull off a Karen in real life.


If I'm on a flight playing Zelda in kickstand mode and my seat neighbor(s) take an interest, *click* *click* *switch* next thing you know the two or three of us are playing Overcooked together.

Man, the Switch looks awfully cool, though I doubt I can persuade the wife on buying this in addition to the current XBOne.

Just read that the Switch will be available at launch without preorders at Best Buy and Target. What are the chances the supply is more than a handful?

From what I've been reading elsewhere, places like Best Buy do have a fair number of units set aside for walk-in customers. If you get a decent spot in line, sounds like you'll get one. Real question is how fast the lines are gonna get long.

FWIW, it also sounds like there are a lot more units with grey Joy Cons than the neon red/blue ones.

El Guapo wrote:Man, the Switch looks awfully cool, though I doubt I can persuade the wife on buying this in addition to the current XBOne.

The argument that convinced my wife was that with my commute, I'd get a ton of use out of it. It was super effective!

Chaz wrote:

El Guapo wrote:Man, the Switch looks awfully cool, though I doubt I can persuade the wife on buying this in addition to the current XBOne.

The argument that convinced my wife was that with my commute, I'd get a ton of use out of it. It was super effective!

The issue wouldn't be how much use it would get, but the whole $300 thing.

In any event, I'm not really a day 1 adopter kind of guy, so it'll be an eventual acquisition kind of thing.

wonderpug wrote:From what I've been reading elsewhere, places like Best Buy do have a fair number of units set aside for walk-in customers. If you get a decent spot in line, sounds like you'll get one. Real question is how fast the lines are gonna get long.

FWIW, it also sounds like there are a lot more units with grey Joy Cons than the neon red/blue ones.

That would be tonight, right? I would be the best dad ever if I did this for my kids...

hentzau wrote:

wonderpug wrote:From what I've been reading elsewhere, places like Best Buy do have a fair number of units set aside for walk-in customers. If you get a decent spot in line, sounds like you'll get one. Real question is how fast the lines are gonna get long.

FWIW, it also sounds like there are a lot more units with grey Joy Cons than the neon red/blue ones.

That would be tonight, right? I would be the best dad ever if I did this for my kids...

Tonight for stores doing a midnight release, yes.

Still no official word from Nintendo on the issue, but I'm seeing several reports that the Joy-Con connectivity issue has gone away since the latest system update.

hentzau wrote:

wonderpug wrote:From what I've been reading elsewhere, places like Best Buy do have a fair number of units set aside for walk-in customers. If you get a decent spot in line, sounds like you'll get one. Real question is how fast the lines are gonna get long.

FWIW, it also sounds like there are a lot more units with grey Joy Cons than the neon red/blue ones.

That would be tonight, right? I would be the best dad ever if I did this for my kids...

You would also be the best forum pal if you did this for your favorite Guapo.

El Guapo wrote:You would also be the best forum pal if you did this for your favorite Guapo.

I didn't think he came to the forum any more. Are you still in contact with him?

coopasonic wrote:

El Guapo wrote:You would also be the best forum pal if you did this for your favorite Guapo.

I didn't think he came to the forum any more. Are you still in contact with him?

No, no one's seen him for awhile now.

To be clear, for your favorite remaining Guapo.

hentzau wrote:

wonderpug wrote:From what I've been reading elsewhere, places like Best Buy do have a fair number of units set aside for walk-in customers. If you get a decent spot in line, sounds like you'll get one. Real question is how fast the lines are gonna get long.

FWIW, it also sounds like there are a lot more units with grey Joy Cons than the neon red/blue ones.

That would be tonight, right? I would be the best dad ever if I did this for my kids...

I cannot wait in line tonight for a Switch for my 3rd grader who wants one more than anything for his birthday 3/18. So I sucked it up and bought a bundle from Gamespot. $459 got me a Switch (grey joycon), Zelda, Zelda guide and a pro controller.

I hope I don't regret this!

[edit to add: To be clear, this is not a standard birthday present. Grandparents and aunts and uncles are pitching in, and I'm willing to spend a bit more on the assumption that he'll be sharing this with others . . . ME!!]

Saw this on Slickdeals today: https://slickdeals.net/f/9832143-32gb-n ... 0-free-s-h

32GB Nintendo Switch Console on sale listed below for $299.99. Shipping is free.

Edit: Looks like not available for shipping anymore...local stock only now I guess if you have a Shopko nearby.

hentzau, my Amazon order got hit with a shipping delay from UPS, so I ended up hiking down to Target and buying the last unit they had for walk-ins. If you'd like my Amazon unit (grey Joy-Cons), it's yours for cost+tax+shipping. If you want it, I can also sell you the extra physical copy of Zelda I now have.

Mine arrived. First impression.

Joycons are waaaaay too small and uncomfortable to use in any fashion on their own.



Putting them in the dock makes them useable but still too small for long play sessions.
Playing with the Joycons connected to the screen is probably the best option but still awkward.
I would have actually preferred a little more plastic around the edge of the screen. Because it’s a touch screen, it’s too easy to fumble options you don’t intend when trying to attach the Joycons or just moving it around.
I am going to need to buy a pro-controller, which is disappointing because I found the WiiU normal controller one of the most comfortable controllers I’ve ever used.

The system interface itself is snappy and a nice improvement over the sluggish WiiU.
eShop seems to work as expected. I was able to transfer over my funds from my WiiU account with no problem. Ordered Snipperclips and have it downloading right now.


Zelda seems pretty neat. Framerate bombs at times though, which is disappointing.

We're holding off on the Switch for now, but did pick up Zelda for the WiiU. Overall loving it but two frustrations so far:

1. I played a bit, then my son wanted to start up his game. I hit save, found no way to get to the Zelda menu so we quit the program, relaunched it. Son selects "start new game" or whatever it's called and we get a warning about overwriting previous saves. Thought that was odd. He played a while and then we went to bed.

Woke up this morning to pick up my game, select "load game" and it's nothing but my son's save when he stopped and a bunch of his autosaves. My save is gone. Went to the internet and found out the game supports multiple player files but it does so through Mii profiles. So we have to switch Miis to play separate games. I'd only played for about an hour so no huge loss, but just seems silly having to exit the program, switch profiles and relaunch Zelda between players.

2. We played on the WiiU pad last night which is OK but we really wanted to use what we assumed was our pro controller but it's not working. Then realized we have an older Wii "classic controller" and not the newer WiiU "Pro Controller". It's functioned just fine with every other game we have but I suppose there's some functions that are missing like being able to press down on the analog sticks. *sigh*

Daveman wrote:Woke up this morning to pick up my game, select "load game" and it's nothing but my son's save when he stopped and a bunch of his autosaves. My save is gone. Went to the internet and found out the game supports multiple player files but it does so through Mii profiles. So we have to switch Miis to play separate games. I'd only played for about an hour so no huge loss, but just seems silly having to exit the program, switch profiles and relaunch Zelda between players.

We made this discovery this morning - fortunately we only lost about an hour of game time but it's surprising there's no more warning since I think most previous Zelda games supported multiple saves.

We're playing on the WIiU. My Target Switch pre-order was estimated to arrive sometime next week but it showed up last night - and was almost immediately listed on eBay. Without Zelda there's no reason to have the system right now and by the time more games come out I should be able to pick up another.

I gave my or order away and just picked up Zelda for my Wii u, which I have really been enjoying a lot. I'm really happy with my decision since there are no switch games I'm interested in and can't currently play until Christmas.

Oh... One annoyance. The expansion pack they tried to sell with the game... What a load of crap that is, extra treasures etc. So lame Nintendo. I emphatically said no to it.

I think the weird savegame thing for Zelda may be because of them designing it for the Switch. It's a lot more seamless with the Switch -- it asks you right when you launch the game which profile you want to use.

Zelda... Is soooo good

Any further thoughts/impressions from those with Switches? Anyone playing anything other than Zelda? Also, if you got a Switch, what accessories did you grab for it? I'm hearing about scratched screens during docking/undocking and that a screen protector is a good idea. Any recommendations for decent cases?

Ours arrives on 3/9, but I'm going to hold it until my son's birthday on 3/18. Then he'll have to pry it out of my hands!!

Kurth wrote:Any further thoughts/impressions from those with Switches? Anyone playing anything other than Zelda? Also, if you got a Switch, what accessories did you grab for it? I'm hearing about scratched screens during docking/undocking and that a screen protector is a good idea. Any recommendations for decent cases?

Ours arrives on 3/9, but I'm going to hold it until my son's birthday on 3/18. Then he'll have to pry it out of my hands!!

I'm loving mine. So far I'm playing mostly Zelda. The only other game I have is I am Setsuna, which will be great for me in portable mode.

As far as accessories I bought the Pro Controller, which is ridiculously expensive, but it's a huge improvement over the joycons. I also bought the official screen protector, so no scratches for me. The only other thing I bought was a USB C cable. It was $6 on amazon and it charges the Switch perfectly via my cell phone charger. The Pro Controller comes with a USB C cable but I didn't want to have to be constantly removing it from the Switch base when I need to charge on the go.

I'm loving it so far. It's mostly been a Zelda machine, but I did play a bit of Snipperclips and Fast RMX. Snipperclips seems to be a real gem, super fun to play co-op. Fast RMX seems good so far, but I haven't sunk much time into it. Zelda is incredible.

Do not buy the $20 'premium' Hori screen protector. I preordered that one since I (used to) trust Hori as a brand and I figured it'd be a safe bet, but it's constantly peeling at the edges. It's now at 1.5 star average review score on Amazon. When the Switch is docked I think it heats up quite a bit and gives screen protectors a stress test.

I'm now ordering this tempered glass screen protector which people seem to like a lot despite it being a no-name brand.

For the case, I went with the Hori Tough Pouch. It's not the prettiest, but it seems well designed. It's nice how it has a thick flap that covers just the middle screen section and not the analog sticks -- it helps make sure nothing is pushing against the analog sticks. My only nit to pick is that the case seems a bit too spacious, and the Switch can flop to the other side if you turn it upside-down. I might add something to make the screen flap thicker to fix the issue.

The main thing to avoid with a case are the ones that have some kind of mesh webbing going over the screen. That's the biggest complaint I've seen people have against other cases.

Thanks to Wonderpug, I was able to drop a Nintendo Switch into my kids laps last night. I made them clean up the living room before I let them hook it up. The only game they have right now is Zelda, but they are absolutely loving it. I doubt I will get much time to play, though.

hentzau wrote:Thanks to Wonderpug, I was able to drop a Nintendo Switch into my kids laps last night. I made them clean up the living room before I let them hook it up. The only game they have right now is Zelda, but they are absolutely loving it. I doubt I will get much time to play, though.

Awesome! Glad it worked out.

I highly recommend you download Snipperclips for your kids to play together. It's pretty amusing to watch people switch back and forth between cooperating and just messing around trying to cut each other into pieces.

I'm digging the hell out of mine. So far, I only have Zelda and Shovel Knight. I've mostly been playing Zelda, since I just picked up the other yesterday. We also played the Snipperclips demo. I don't think my wife was convinced enough to buy it, but I also think the demo ended a level or two early, just as it was getting good.

The only accessory I grabbed was a case. I just got one from Gamestop, it's got Zelda art embossed on it. Pretty similar to the one Pug posted, though it doesn't seem to have as much room for the thing to flop around in. I held off on the pro controller, and I'm glad I did, because I think the joycons in the grip work just fine for me. I've messed around a bit with playing holding one in each hand, and that's okay, but not great. It's an interesting option, though.

I haven't put a screen protector on mine, and I haven't scratched the screen yet. I'll probably be getting one of the glass ones though. I did find that the USB-C cables I use to charge my phone seem to work fine with the Switch. I haven't tried charging while playing, so it's possible that the charge via those cables won't be enough to keep up with the gameplay drain, but I can live with that.

Just having a console that I can play on the TV on demand, play off the TV on demand, that isn't tethered to the TV at all, and that I can suspend instantly mid-game is fantastic. I want all my games on this thing.