WARNING: Wall of text ahead. I don't expect anyone to read this, or agree with me. If you're interested in a Switch, I'm completely cool with it
I'm definitely not interested in it anymore. And this is coming from someone who's loved Nintendo his whole life. I'm more of a fan of lighthearted games, and I've owned most of the consoles and handhelds (except for SNES and GC, because I could only afford one console at those times, but I did pick them up later to experience some of their libraries). Really, it's all because in the last year, Nintendo has made a ton of mistakes (as well as all of the poor choice they're making with the Switch, IMO).
Here are the poor decisions:
The Games: In the past years (2016 especially), I've been seeing Nintendo making a LOT of terrible decisions regarding their franchises, and keep in mind, that some of this merely comes down to personal taste. Still, a lot of their franchises are being run into the ground with ideas that just don't work, or ones are being flat-out ignored. Why we can't have a traditional 2D or 3D Metroid title is beyond me (aside from sales, but they can make anything sell [like Fire Emblem Awakening] if they put their hearts into it). Why we can't have a classic budget downloadable Starfox title doesn't make sense either (we don't need all of these shoehorned motion control schemes or on-foot adventure elements incorporated into these games. Just keep it simple!). F-Zero has been abandoned apart from a Mario Kart 8 DLC track. Kid Icarus got ONE amazing game on the 3DS, and could be amazing if it was given another chance. Paper Mario has been utterly DESTROYED since Sticker Star. Fans just want another classic Paper Mario game with partners, and Nintendo stubbornly refuses to use the elements that made the series great in the first place. Animal Crossing got a crappy board game title. Even Luigi's Mansion Dark Moon was a dud for me. Many people loved it, but everything that the first game got right was stripped from the sequel for me. Also, it took forever until Yoshi's Wooly World, where we could get a decent Yoshi game.
And these next two come down to personal preference, but I am NOT a fan of the look of Zelda: Breath of the Wild or Mario Odyssey, and I normally LOVE these franchises. But Zelda is so open world, that it looks like there's not much to do in it. Regular Zelda elements have been artificially lengthened to seem like chores. Cooking seems unnecessary, since using potions and cutting grass were convenient ways to get life back. Crafting/looking for ingredients and forging breakable weapons seems like a pain in the ass and looks like it slows down the game considerably. And from the look of the treehouse demo, Link was mostly just walking around aimlessly, doing the occasional uninteresting thing for over an hour. I've never been so bored looking at a Zelda game. Mario Odyssey should be something I like. Mario 64 is one of my favourite games. However, Sunshine is one of the worst games I've ever played, and this has more Sunshine vibes to it. Going around a bland New York inspired city looks like a lifeless bore to me, and it's ridiculous seeing people realistically proportioned next to Mario. All of the fantastical elements look like they were ripped straight from 3D world, and I've already played that game, being relatively unimpressed in the first place. Like I said though, personal tastes.
Also, Arms looks like it will be repetitive in 5 mins, despite the nice character designs, and I don't even want to get started on 1 2 Switch. Literally, the only games that appeal to me are Splatoon 2 and Xenoblade 2, but I wouldn't buy a new console just for them. I've also got to say, that since Nintendo keeps shoehorning in motion controls, like with the joy cons, they're still going down the route where they have to get super experimental with just about every franchise. I used to not mind this as much in the past. I don't mind getting new experiences when they work. But sometimes, Nintendo just doesn't know when to simply go back to their roots, and focus on what made their games great in the first place. And my patience is wearing thin these days.
I would like to add that there have been plenty of games that I've really enjoyed over the years as well, like most of the Kirby games (aside from Rainbow Curse), Splatoon, Xenoblade Chronicles and Xenoblade Chronicles X, Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, Yoshi's Wooly World, Mario Maker, Mario Kart 8, Smash Bros, Captain Toad, Zelda: A Link Between Worlds and even TriForce Heroes, etc).
The Price: Price-wise, the Switch doesn't seem too bad, but all of the accessories are ridiculously expensive. In terms of the Canadian dollar, a pro controller is about $100 after taxes. I've heard that when the joy cons are connected to the base controller to play on your TV, it's really uncomfortable, so a pro controller seems necessary. Speaking of joy cons, they run for close to the same price, if you want controllers for more players (or a more advanced set of two for a second player). Memory cards are only about 50GB (I think?) for a very high cost, similar to the Vita. Add an online subscription, Zelda's DLC (which should be part of the game, even if I were interested), and having NO bundled game into the mix, and it gets VERY expensive. Add a $90 game to the mix, and I had close to $900 Canadian on my calculator. I recently saw that I could buy a PS4 for $50 cheaper than a Switch, with Uncharted 4 included. Granted, I may eventually need one controller, but that's about it. I honestly don't know if you NEED a subscription with the PS4 to play online though. I know PS3 and Vita were fine, so that's something I will admit I haven't researched yet.
A Weaker System and a lack of 3rd Party Support (eventually): Normally, this didn't bother me. With the Wii U, I expected Nintendo to follow their same strategy as the Wii, but now things are absolutely dated. The Switch still isn't even as powerful as a PS4, and in a couple of years when the PS5 is announced to be in development, the Switch will seem absolutely irrelevant. Not to mention this will turn off third party support. They'll be around for the first year or two, but the Switch's novelty will run out, and third party support will suffer. Now I know that most people buy Nintendo consoles for the first party games, but for me, when the first party lineup is also unappealing, this is a BIG problem. Also, who the hell asked for Skyrim? It's a game that came out about 5.5 years ago. A little late to the party.
Online/Sales/Taxes/Parental Controls:
The online subscription service looks terrible. I've heard that upon subscribing, you get ONE free NES game a month, and at the end of the month, they take it away from you. Compare this to Sony's subscription service, where each month, you get a variety of relatively (and sometimes brand new) games. Plus, as long as you're subscribing, you get to keep those games each month. If you like them enough, just buy them for a discounted price. Speaking of shopping online, at least at the Canadian PSN store, there's no taxes. If I were to pay for the same title on a Nintendo console, I get taxed, and it really adds up. Not to mention that Sony usually has good flash sales going on fairly often. I've been paying attention to Nintendo sales for the last couple of years, and there's hardly ever anything, apart from shovel ware. Nintendo even used to have a better rewards system with Club Nintendo, giving you occasional FREE games when you collected points from buying new ones. Now you just get coins, which give you 10% discounts off full priced games that have typically dropped in retail price by then anyway.
Also, I would have HATED those parental controls as a kid. I really believe in communicating with your children to compromise with cut off times, rather than relying on a cold, calculating timer. Imagine being in the middle of the hardest boss fight of your life, that you're just starting to get the hang of. It's down to 10% health...you've almost got this...then you're out of time. The next day when you come back to it, you're all sloppy and not in the zone, and it kicks your ass. And don't get me started about anal parents who set the timer for 15 minutes. That's not enough time to do anything in a video game. I'm just a much bigger believer in talking with your kids, instead of letting the machine babysit their habits. I honestly think that a lot of kids are going to avoid the Switch when they learn about this, so their parents can't lock down their play time with the push of a button.
The Good though?
I do like the handheld/console hybrid. I will admit that THIS is the most important step for Nintendo, merging both markets together. This makes the system convenient, and they don't have to divide resources between two systems. I'm more of a portable gamer, so this is a very nice feature. Unfortunately for me, it's the ONLY worthwhile feature this time around, and that's just not enough for me.
I know that this was a HUGE rant, and I'm not trying to come across as an ass. For those interested in the Switch, PLEASE, enjoy it. From the bottom of my heart, I sincerely hope that you do. But there's so many factors that are personally turning me away from the system, and it really makes me sad. Like seriously, I've been feeling a little depressed, as Nintendo has mostly been my favourite company up until this point, and it really, really pains me to say these things. But honestly, I'm looking into a PS4 for my future gaming needs. I've been enjoying indies a lot more since becoming a parent, as they're quick and satisfying to get into, and the costs are often low (with a good chance of sales coming by). Not to mention the PSN store doesn't tax me, and by this point, the PS4's library has grown enough to me where it's starting to look appealing (and there's even plenty of upcoming games I'm getting excited about). Sorry to tell my life's story here, basically, but there's been A LOT on my mind with the whole lead-up until the Switch, and I really had to get these things off of my chest. Lastly, I want to say that this doesn't mean I will never get a Switch, but from what I've seen until now, I just can't take the plunge.
