PixlBit

Nintendo Switch Year 2

*raise the volume and reload the page*

                                                        God I love that noise

Hello everyone, how are you? It's been 2 years since the release of the amazing Breath of the Wild and Nintendo's current gen console, the Nintendo Switch. I wrote my thoughts on the first year of the Switch last year, so if you wanna read that then go ahead. That way I can get all the fluff out of the way and not bore you. I'm sure you all know how incredible Breath of the Wild and Odyssey were anyway. 

Well anyway, the second year of the Switch was really critical. While in the first year Nintendo was trying to get everyone to buy their new console, it's the second year that mattered the most. With this second year, their goal was to keep everyone engaged with new games while also releasing games that would interest potential new buyers as well. Not a easy task trying to achieve that balance.

                                              Seeing Kirby brings me so much joy

The beginning of the year was a bit slow. We did see ports of Wii U games. Nintendo's goal was to get everyone who never bought a Wii U to buy those Wii U games that have been repurposed as Switch games. I already had those games on the Wii U so I really didn't see any point in buying them again so soon. Maybe when they go down in price. Nintendo also did this to fill in the gaps between new releases. You see, this was a big mistake Nintendo did with the Wii U. We had software droughts for a while because third-party developers jumped ship and it was up to Nintendo to release games for it. Because of this, we would spend months without new games, which prompted Nintendo to release as many games as possible. Doing that caused the quality to slip in some since they were obviously rushing themselves to get games out.

They fixed this mistake on the Switch with said ports, that way it can give them time to release new games. Ports still require work, making sure the games work on new hardware, but that's still far more easier since the game is basically done and much easier than making an entirely new game from scratch. But the second year of the Switch didn't start till they released Kirby Star Allies. Kirby was the first new game we got that wasn't a port of an older game. While short, the game was really fun and for many, this was Kirby's first HD game. It's technically the second, but many people didn't like Rainbow Curse and deny that the Wii U was a thing.

                                  Pretty much me enjoying my childhood game in HD

Later on we got word that Nintendo was planning a paid online service. We were technically supposed to pay for online back in 2017 but they had delayed it till 2018. We got word that Nintendo had prepared a paid online service known as Nintendo Switch Online. Basically you can't access online play without it. It would cost $20 a year which is really cheap and they even included free NES games as well. And you can back up your games on their cloud storage too. Thhat's actually was my most requested feature. That looks like quite a lot for $20 a year. $35 if you want a family membership plan.

I did see a lot of complaining. For years, Nintendo had been the last bastion for free online and many hoped that Nintendo would continue to offer free online play for the Switch. I hoped so too, but $20 didn't seem like much for a year compared to what you pay for the other systems. But honestly, the only thing the online membership has going is that the price is cheap. Free NES games aren't going to light the world on fire. In a way, you are paying in order to play online. I mean yes, you get some free games but majority aren't going to care for those games.

We also got expansion passes for older games too. Splatoon 2 got the Octo Expansion, which was more single player content for the game. Plus for the first time, it allowed you to play as Octolings, not only for the single player content but also for the online multiplayer. We also got Torna The Golden Country which was a prequel expansion for Xenoblade Chronicles 2. I felt that it moved on too quickly, like they wanted to get it over with, but if you want more story for your game, then that's something else to play.

                                 Discovery through exploration in this game is amazing

Pokemon Let's Go Pikachu and Eevee were announced later in the year and not everyone was sold on the games. Reason was that the games were simplified, they were aimed at younger players and people new to the series. These were aimed at the Pokemon GO crowd since chances are most people hadn't played a core Pokemon game before. It makes sense, one would get overwhelmed with all the mechanics of the current games and these games are meant to ease people into the series. Personally, I loved them. Pokemon has always been a core part of who I am as a gamer and seeing the games that started it all, the games I played as a kid, in HD was a no-brainer for me. Don't brush them off because of what everyone says, they are great games. I wouldn't mind if we got Let's Go games based on the other regions too.

Fornite even made its way to the Switch. I know people love to hate on it, but it's a really fun game. It really gives you an adrenaline rush when you're one of the last players left and it's only you and the other last player. It definitely makes getting that Victory Royale like a satisfying victory that you came out on top of the other 99 players. It also has other modes too. I actually put a lot of time into the game than I relized.

Games like Starlink was really fun, I loved how you can explore the planet's surface but you can go into space so seamlessly without any loading screens. That is incredible. I especially love how I can basically swap weapons and ships on the fly. It's amazing. You can even play the game without buying the actual toys too, whhich is a plus for those who want to play the game but don't want to actually purchase the toys. You can buy them digitally, so it's great that you have options. That and the fact that I can pretty much play the game from start to finish as Fox? That is so cool. I love how he just blends in so well with the cast. I hope we do get an actual Star Fox game in the future.

Then on E3 Nintendo showed more of Smash Bros. known now as Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and that's when they made the biggest announcement and that was that "Everyone is Here!" which is the best tagline of 2018. Every character that had been playable in the series would be back and yes, including Snake. I have always wanted a Snake amiibo ever since Nintendo started making them and that is going to become a reality soon. I have been around this series since it began and have obviously played through them all and I can say that Ultimate is the best one yet. It's packed with so much content, it's a culmination of the history of the franchise taking everything you loved about the games and putting it all in one amazing package. It's a game you'll be playing for a very long time should you want to unlock everything, or you can just play and have fun.

                                               I had so much fun Smashing online

Final Thoughts: While the beginning of 2018 was a low start for the Switch, we got ports of Wii U games that basically got a second chance on newer hardware. While not for people who already had those games, it did give new buyers and people who never got them originally new games to try out. I paid full price for those games on the Wii U so I saw no reason to get them again so soon, but definitely go for it if you never played them. I played them before so I can fully recommend the Switch ports, plus they have added content too so that's a bonus.

The Nintendo Switch Online membership while cheap in price, is pretty much lacking in many areas. You can't back up all your game saves on the online storage. This would have been useful in case for some reason, your Switch breaks or gets stolen or you have to send it to Nintendo for repairs. Games like Splatoon 2 can't be backed up for some reason. I spent hours playing that game so losing everything and having to start from scratch is a red flag from me. Plus if you don't have the online membership, you don't want to know how painfull it is transferring everything to another system. You can back up other online games and offline games, but it's up to the developer of those games to have the cloud storage enabled. The free classic NES games with new features sound great, but thing is there are a lot of people out there who have no nostalgia for them and about 90% of them haven't aged well at all. I hope they expand their online catalog with SNES, N64, and even GCN and Wii games. Heck, GB and GBA games too. The service has so much potential, so we'll see what happens from here.

The system could still use some improvements too. Like a much better dock for better ventillation. It gets hot after playing games on it due to poor ventillation while docked, which is a huge problem for those who prefer to play on tv. Myself included. The Joy-cons themselves still need to be improved. Those analog sticks aren't very durable. But one good thing I see about them is that I can easily replace them without having to replace the whole system. These are the top issues Nintendo needs to fix on the Switch. Plus, if you are releasing a collection of games on the Switch, please include both games on the same cart, I'm tired of one game being on the cartridge and the other is something I have to download. If you can't afford the biggest cartridge, use 2 smaller ones.

We did get some really amazing games later in the year. We got a number of great fighting games for the system, with more on the way. We finally got a good Star Fox game somewhat and I can tell this is not the end ofcollaborations between Nintendo and Ubisoft, or any collaboration for that matter. Switch got Fortnite, which is the most popular game in the world right now and that's pretty big. It's actually one of the most played games in the Switch too. We got some announcements of some unexpected games and we got a new Pokemon game and a new Smash Bros. game this early on. That is pretty much unheard of.

                       2 years and it has already an incredible library to rival the others

It's only been 2 years and I already have a big library of games for the Switch. I normally don't even have that many games for a system that early on, it just goes to show you that there are many incredible games on the system. There is something on it for everyone who's a fan of any genre. We are entering Year 3 and we are getting so many amazing games this year. Games like Super Mario Maker 2, Dragon Quest Buiders 2, and my most wanted, Pokemon Sword and Shield. Those are my personal top 3 must haves this year, in fact 90% of my most wanted games this year are on the Switch. But those are the ones I must absolutely have above the rest.

I got to try out a good mix of newer games and some older games too. I got to try out Mario+Rabbids, L.A. Noire, and Dragon Quest Builders. Mario+Rabbids was such a fun surprise and it's proof that you shouldn't judge a game till you've tried it. Hope we get a sequel. L.A. Noire is a game I've been wanting to revisit. Switch version has a few hiccups but it was a fun time. Dragon Quest Builders was a game I played late last year, but I was surprised at how fun it is. I love it's discovery through exploration thing it has going. You get more about the story by esploring. It definitely reminds me of BotW in a way.

I had a lot of fun with those and obviously with all the games I tried out on the Switch as well. Switch Year 1 was legendary, but 2 Year 2 was really great in its own right too. If you don't have a Switch yet, definitely get one. It has a big library of games now and it's getting many more great games this year. What it does it does well. You can play your games on your tv or use portable mode all in one convenient system and switch seamlessly between both modes. You can play however you like whenever you like. It's a fantstic system and I highly recommend it. I absolutely love it

And those are my thoughts on Nintendo Switch, 2 Years later.

What are your thoughts on the Nintendo Switch? Thanks for reading and happy 2nd year anniversary Breath of the Wild and Nintendo Switch!

 

*All images, except the gif, were taken courtesy of me, my Nintendo Switch and their respective games*