Top 5 Reasons to be excited for the Nintendo Switch

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The Switch event has come and gone and now we are at least a little bit wiser about what we can expect from Nintendos newest Home Console. And while the Event was far from perfect and the console looks like it's going to have some flaws, overall I'm pretty excited for the Nintendo Switch. But, and that has to be said too, no excited enough to buy the system at launch. Still I'm going to buy it eventually. At the latest when Super Mario Odyssey releases.

Generally the reception of the Switch has overall been positive. Except for a few hiccups it looks like the console has the potential to be a success. So what actually is there to get excited about? Let me tell.

Here is my selection of five reasons to be excited for the Nintendo Switch.
Oh and before anyone asks, these reasons have to be specifically for the Switch. So, while Breath of Wild would otherwise be a clear Number One pick, it's not on this list because it also releases for the Wii-U. But if you don't own a Wii-U then feel free to tack Zelda on as Number 0 or S or whatever is better than the Top spot on a list.

5: No Region Lock

To fans of other consoles this may seem like a silly point, but as a Nintendo only console gamer (I still own a PC for all the Third Party Games that interest me) it has been frustrating waiting months or even years for game releases. An example for this frustration has been Operation Rainfall, where fans had to petition Nintendo of America to release Xenoblade Chronicles, The Last Story and Pandoras Tower in the US, when it had been released in the EU for months. This games were fully translated and voice acted. Without region lock it would have been easy to import those games from the UK, but because of it American fans had to wait several months and then only got a very limited release, which saw prices for these games skyrocket immediately.

So after dealing with these frustrations for years upon years it's simply great news that Nintendo has finally decided to get rid of region lock. Of course this doesn't make up for the years they ignored their fans plea, but I take it as a sign that maybe they start to listen and open up.

4: Local Multiplayer

Nintendo is the last of the big three console manufacturers that still believes in local multiplayer. They proved this with the Wii-U and they're proving it again with the Switch. You can link together up to eight Swtich systems for local multiplayer battles. Or you can hand one of the Joy Cons to your friend and play together on one system. This is great news for all of us who enjoy Mario Kart, Smash Bros., Mario Party and Co. with our friends.

I had some of the most fun with my Cousin and Friends spending our evenings racing in Mario Kart or fighting in Smash Bros. and it's great news that Nintendo enables today’s children to experience this joy too, as well as giving us ''Oldtimers'' the possibility to relieve such memories. The Age of LAN Partys may be mostly over, but at least Nintendo is still holding up for local multiplayer.

3: The Promise

Today I visited a GameStop with a good friend of mine, who is a pretty casual gamer. He enjoys gaming greatly, but is not near as invested as I am. There it was the first time he saw the Nintendo Switch announcement trailer from last October and he was blown away by it. The Promise of a console, which you can take with you wherever you want without too much of a hassle, was just blowing his mind. The Possibility to play however and wherever you want with the Swtich and the detachable Joy-Con controllers is simply genius.

And from the presentation we know that they really intend to keep this promise. Personally I was positively surprised about the battery life of the Switch. Three to six hours depending on the game you play is a good time. Even three hours is normally enough for any public transport and the like. And if you travel longer, for example by train, then there is often a way to charge your devices.

The Nintendo Switch truly delivers on the promise they first showed in that announcement trailer. Play wherever you want however you want.

2: The Games

While the Third Party support is once again questionable. A late port of a great game and the announcement of a Fifa for the console are not enough to quench my doubts. But otherwise I'm pretty satisfied with the Game line up. The launch has a system seller with Breath of the Wild and Splatoon 2, ARMS and Mario Odyssey are coming across the year. There's also a lot of unannounced games still in the pipeline for the system. But let's focus on what the Switch will provide.
It is a given that the Switch will offer great Nintendo games, but the Wii-U did the same and we saw that alone is not enough. Still Mario Odyssey alone is reason enough for me to buy the system.

But what the Switch will also be getting is a great support from Indie developers. During the Wii-U era Nintendo has build a great reputation with Indies and we saw the release of many outstanding games like Shovel Knight, Fast Racing Neo or Runbow. And now with the Switch, which is reportedly easier to develop for, this trend will surely continue.

And lastly third party support. This will be largely dependent on the Switchs success. But because the console is easier to develop for than the Wii-U the threshold, where game ports for the Switch become profitable is probably not as high. So the chances for a good third party support are much better than with the Wii-U.

1: The Joy Cons

These things are simply great. I never really had a problem with the motion controls on the Wii, but I have to admit that they sometimes can hinder a games enjoyment. For example the controls dampened Star Fox Zero quite a bit.

Still the Joy Cons look absolutely great. From the way they are presented they just scream comfortable. Holding them in your hands without being attached to anything while laying on the couch is surely a great feeling.

Motion controls are also much easier to enjoy if you're not holding a massive Gamepad or have a cable between the parts like with the Wii. The controls should always be easy and intuitive and the Joy Cons deliver on that promise.

And lastly let us talk about the great Rumble HD feature. It's puzzling why Nintendo isn't focusing on this more, because it hast the potential to be huge. This amount of precision is exactly what the next step of gaming should feel like. It's the possibility of creating immersion for everyone. With Rumble HD the Joy Con can accurately simulate the feeling of one, two or more ice cubes in a glass or the fact that water is poured into this glass. I hope Nintendo uses the possibilities that Rumble HD provides. Getting exact feedback for all of your actions will change the way we play games. Or at leas I hope so.

In the end it all depends on the developers and how they use the tech they are given. As seen with the Wii-U that isn't always a given.

So what are the reasons you are excited for the Switch? Or are you disappointed by the offering of Nintendos newest console?

And lastly will you buy a Switch at launch or wait a little before you get one?

Let me know in the comments

and as always

thanks for reading