Nintendo NX is now Switch (Official thread) (1 Viewer)

[Edwin-S]

Whether it turns to be garbage or not, this LABO idea of theirs seems to actually be something fresh when it comes to interacting with a video game system.

 

[Steve Y]

I (genuinely) applaud Nintendo for always trying something new, but for the "full" Labo experience, you'll have to pay $160 for a robot game, 5 mini games, 50 sheets of thin cardboard and some crafting materials. Way too expensive.

The jokes on other sites about PlayStationery and XCardboxBox are not necessarily off-base if this thing takes off. And if it doesn't, we have another weird misfire to joke about for years.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

"$160 for..." is kind of like saying that you need to pay $100 for the privilege of assembling your own plastic toy, but people love the Lego Star Wars sets, anyway. And how much did people pay for Kinect? Or Rock Band sets? Or PSVR (with the camera and controllers and headset, before you even consider the games)?

A normal videogame is $60. We don't know how much depth the Labo games have (the press event had limited access to the games' functions) though I doubt we're looking at a 100 hour RPG or even a 30 hour Mario game. The amount of time people spend actually building the toys and playing with them is probably reasonable for the price. I imagine most people would get the $70 kit for their kids and then consider the $80 kit if they love the first one, rather than feel like they need to get both.

 

[Steve Y]

Lego and cardboard are different beasts (Legos aren't designed to degrade and won't tear), but you make a good point about the software. However, I'm still skeptical because 1-2-Switch was $50 upon release, and that was easily a $20 product.

But I do consider Nintendo a "premium" service, like Lego, so even if the content is slim, or the cardboard tears easily, I'm almost willing to cut them slack because of all the R&D that must have gone into this concept, and the overall polished veneer of their first-party offerings.

With so many other first-party money going into multiplayer competitions and loot boxes, I'm extremely thankful Nintendo is successful this generation.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

Nintendo released a couple new videos highlighting the features of Labo. This is....REALLY impressive. And it doesn't even touch the stuff that they announced recently where you can program your own stuff and make custom creations.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

Nintendo released another Toy-Con Garage video, showing off how to program a guitar and then some other instrument ideas.

https://twitter.com/NintendoAmerica/status/981698182403932163

Looks pretty impressive still. I'm not sure how much I personally would create stuff with this but it's awesome to essentially give away a simple devkit to gamers like this.

 

[Clinton McClure]

Labo looks cool but it’s not for me.

 

[DaveF]

Are there any discounts or bundles to be aware of shopping for a Switch and a couple games?

 

[Morgan Jolley]

There have been a couple sales recently on the Switch (Target and eBay had sales that including Switch consoles) but it's still new enough and selling well enough that it's hard to get for under $300. I believe Best Buy has a sale on games now and some Switch titles are included. First-party games (Zelda, Mario, Arms, Splatoon) tend to take years to drop in MSRP but you may occasionally find a sale.

There were bundles in the past, I believe specifically Mario Odyssey with a Switch console, but I'm not sure about right now.

 

[DaveF]

I’m still noodling on getting one, mostly for travel. Not sure I’d play it at home much. But it could be a nice distraction on long plane flights.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

The battery doesn't last too long depending on the game, so flights are...iffy. Zelda gets about 2.5-3 hours on a full charge while small indie games can get closer to 5-6. External batteries, battery packs (that attach to the Switch), and planes with USB ports for charging can mitigate this somewhat but it still probably wouldn't play Zelda for a whole 5 or 6 hour flight.

So...I guess it depends on what you mean by "long" flights? Even so, some of the games on it are so good you may find yourself playing them at home, anyway.

 

[Clinton McClure]

I’ve probably put over 200 hours into Skyrim since I finished Mario Odyssey. I’ll have to check my Switch and see how many hours it shows.

 

[DaveF]

Can you charge and play the Switch simultaneously? 3 hrs is fine for a 6 hr flight. But if splurged for one on an upcoming 8 hr international flight, 3 hrs gaming probably too little.

 

[Clinton McClure]

Can you charge and play the Switch simultaneously? 3 hrs is fine for a 6 hr flight. But if splurged for one on an upcoming 8 hr international flight, 3 hrs gaming probably too little.

You can if you have access to an AC power source and use the official Switch AC power adapter (model No. HAC-002). I am not aware of any 12V DC or USB/USB-C type chargers which have been approved for use with the Switch.

Listening to several video game podcasts, it seems some people are ruining their Switches by charging them with non-Nintendo USB-C cables, chargers, and docks.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

There are some third party mini docks that have caused issues with Switches being "bricked" but that is because they're not licensed as official products by Nintendo. There is an official licensed mini dock coming out some time this year, I believe. Some of the more recent issues were due to a firmware update that caused the Switch to shut down if it was being charged with the wrong cable, but I believe a subsequent firmware update fixed that. Either way, use the official Nintendo stuff just to be safe.

I have used a USB-C cable and external battery and a socket adapter on flights before to play my Switch while it charges. However, it didn't really keep it fully charged, it mostly just made it drain the battery slightly slower but that may have been the cable/charger/battery I was using, not the Switch itself. I would imagine that using the official charger (which comes with the Switch or you can buy a spare, since you're supposed to use it to power the dock) would probably allow nearly unlimited play while plugged in.

 

[Clinton McClure]

I leave my Switch docked almost 100% of the time and it does allow unlimited play while plugged in. This is using AC power, however. Unless you are flying first class (or sometimes business class), I do not think most flights offer 110VAC power at the seats.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

I caved a bit and bought the Labo Variety Pack on Friday. I put together the RC Car, Fishing Rod, and Piano. Still have to assembly the House and Motorbike.

It's really cool. The surprisingly simple tech being used in really clever ways is awesome. It's also DEFINITELY aimed at kids and families, with a lot of the instructions and UI centered around that kind of audience. For example, one of the steps in building something said something like "you may need an adult for this part" and the Discover mode (which goes into the technical details of how everything works) is put together like a 4-person chat (you plus 3 cartoon characters) and is equal parts fun and instructional.

I get a kick out of building kits like Labo, anyway, so seeing how these things interact with the Switch is just extra cool. If anyone has kids then I would highly recommend getting at least the Variety Pack.

Nintendo also started offering spare cardboard pieces for sale on their website (they're on the order of like $3-10 depending on the parts) along with high-res PDFs that you can print out and use to cut out your own replacement cardboard. That's probably the best thing people could have asked for. I wouldn't be surprised if people start making wood, Lego, K'nex, Erector, or some other material sets for fun now.

 

[Ruz-El]

I don't fully know what "Octopath Traveler" is all about, but what I do know is it's adding to my desire to plunk down on the switch. :S

 

[Clinton McClure]

I sold my Switch today. No regrets. I had beaten the two primary games I bought the system for (plus put in over 300 hours in Skyrim) and the entire remainder of the Switch catalogue is dull white noise to me. Even the announced titles and upcoming Switch Online platform just aren’t exciting for me. I feel I got my $ worth out of Breath of the Wild and Super Mario Odyssey alone; Skyrim was a bonus. I also sold my lime green Amazon special edition New 3DS XL and the 15 games I had for it. It had been powered off and sitting in a drawer for over a year and a half. I figure if I had not turned it on in that long, that I obviously wouldn’t miss it. I still have my NES and SNES Classic systems which have games I like much better than what’s available on Switch and they’ll serve to scratch that video game itch from time to time.

 

[CraigF]

I still have my NES and SNES Classic systems which have games I like much better than what’s available on Switch and they’ll serve to scratch that video game itch from time to time.

I just (finally!) got a NES Classic today. Must be ~18 months since they first came out, first time I've ever seen one in a store and I've been regularly looking (this store had around 10). So, Nintendo is delivering on what they said last summer... And I just missed out on the last SNES Classic in the area, it was there at lunch time, but not by the time I got to it; so still a popular seller. Plenty of Switches/accessories around too, unlike at e.g. last Xmas. It seems like Nintendo fans are really big at release-day purchases, which I guess is good for Nintendo, but would also make it difficult to manage production schedules.