NX vs Switch
My secret NX fantasy versus the Switch reality
Not long ago (as I hid underneath the rock I call home), rumours drifted to me of a new Nintendo console (code-named “NX”).
Now that some time has passed since the revelation of the Switch, I find myself unsure as to just how well Nintendo have encapsulated the key concepts behind the machine that fans have been speculating about since its cryptic announcement in March of 2015.
Like many people, I had my own private fantasies about what the NX might be. What I saw in the announcement trailer is not, in fact, the console I have been craving; while watching the footage, I initially thought I was looking at some sort of mobile add-on. It took me perhaps twenty seconds to realise that this was indeed the new console — so removed was my secret NX fantasy from the now-solid Switch reality.
Aesthetic discomfort
Before moving on with my main discussion here, may I quickly share my opinion of the console’s logo?
Man, the thing is ugly!
I appreciate the vaguely mystical nod to the yin-yang, but the effect could have been achieved so much more cleanly. Comparing it to the effortlessly graceful graphic design of the PlayStation logo, it hardly inspires confidence. What a clunky jumble!
And don’t get me started on the system’s default controller set-up! That square-shaped hub for the JoyCons with its puckered, asymmetrical icons, its rack of eight lights, and vertical trenches all combining to look busy despite the controller’s large (and fairly empty) surface area.
I’m also really not a fan of the name! But––
Ahem. Thanks for indulging me.
Now, leaving aesthetic quibbles aside, how does the actual machine compare to my original NX fantasy?
One man’s dream
What I’d really wanted was a PS4 with 3DS cartridge slot. That’s basically it. Kind of absurd, right? But that’s all I’d need. It would be a console that stayed home all the time, showcasing performance roughly equal to or better than Sony’s darling; and when you had a desire to keep playing, but had to go catch a train or something, you could just eject the cart and put it into your New 3DS to run the game in a low-quality graphics mode. Obviously I’m no engineer; but as fantasies go, it doesn’t seem too outlandish.
There was one major problem with my fantasy: if the NX’s graphics were to rival those found on PS4, the cartridges were probably going to be too big to fit into the slot of a 3DS. But remember when rumours circulated that the NX would be released in two parts? A portable device was to come in November of 2016, and the stay-at-home unit was to ship in 2017.
If that had been the case, the portable unit was almost certainly not going to be dual-screened. Nintendo were obviously anxious not to repeat the unfortunate companion screen set-up of the Wii U; which is to say that gameplay parity between a TV console and its portable component could only really be achieved if both units have the same number of screens (in this case, just one each).
And so, following this line of thought, the DS line would finally come to a close, and be succeeded by a new line of… GameBoy? Or something. GameGirl?
Awesome ideas, but are they for me?
Now, I will say that the Switch is clever. So clever! How that cleverness manifests, however, is very rarely going to be utilised by me.
Let’s look, for a start, at the little modular controllers. There are plenty of interesting configurations, and I can see it being a heck of a lot of fun! But how often am I likely to employ them? Most of the times I’ve played anything on my Wii or Wii U, I’ve just wanted (boringly) to hold a Pro or Classic controller.
The unique control abilities of those two consoles have only ever manifested into absolute magic on a very occasional basis (think of games like Resident Evil 4 and Super Mario Maker), with the addition of motion controls or second-screen functions in many other cases feeling like they had been shoe-horned into the experience to the detriment of my physical comfort.
And so, the only type of Switch controller I’m looking forward to using is the only one not included in the package — the Classic/Pro controller.
Even when it comes to multiplayer, I think it will be worth having some spares lying around; they’re just going to be so much more comfortable to hold, not to mention having all the buttons you could need for fine control. I mean, a lot of games are going to be unplayable otherwise. Would you rather be with your friends, playing something like a modern GoldenEye with dual-analogued, quadruple-shoulder-buttoned, ergonomically handled controllers? Or tiny, single-sticked rectangular prisms?
Again, I don’t mean to knock the Switch or its “JoyCon” idea; there will be games and occasions for which that mode of play is quite lovely. It’s just not a major draw for me.
How portable is portable?
Another clever thing I want to bring up — perhaps the cleverest thing of all — is how a fairly powerful home system can be picked up and taken on the go, seamlessly.
But here, again, I am presented with something less appealing than my pre-reveal NX fantasy. Why? Because I don’t want to carry the console around. My New 3DS (the small, white one) is already too big to put into my pocket, and is even — yes, I’ll say it — a little hefty. It’s fine in a backpack; no problem. But being out of school, I hardly ever use one of those.
Judging by my finicky complaints here, it would be fair to say I’m not an avid portable gamer. If I’m going on the train and already taking a satchel or gym bag with me, excellent: I’ll pop the 3DS in there. But a Switch? Have you seen the size of that thing? It’s fairly massive! Okay, I’m exaggerating. But, seriously, there’s no telling how heavy (or expensive) it’s going to be. Am I going to be happy lugging that thing around town with me? I just wouldn’t do that with my main console. It’s got to stay home, where it and all the save files are safe (though I do recall some rumours of cloud storage being part of the product). All the same, by accommodating portability, Nintendo have lowered their device’s technical specifications and disappointed people who were hoping for something more powerful.
Power and “the big N”
This is actually a topic that’s been on my mind for years and years (since Christmas 2006, I guess). At that time, we were suddenly in an era when the current Nintendo console was demonstrably less powerful than the contemporary crop of consoles. I was living in Japan when the Wii launched there, and I thoroughly enjoyed playing WiiSports and The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess on the console of an early adopter I knew.
Around that same time, another friend of mine bought a PS3 on launch. Although in those days, the fat, shiny PS3 was far less interesting to me (in a pre-Demon’s Souls world), and I had no intention of buying one, the visuals in games like Warhawk and Gran Turismo were just dripping with gorgeousness. And that was on a standard definition TV.
Anyway, some time after that, when the Wii/PS3 era took shape, I remembered being a Sega boy, back in the mid-nineties. Back then, my friends would tease me for having a Mega Drive instead of a SNES. “Sasha and Sega, sitting in a tree,” they would jibe, “K, I, S, S, I, N, G.”
It was all light-hearted; but even so, I came to resent Nintendo.
Not only did the SNES have more interesting games, but it was quite clearly the more powerful machine. For a few (very formative) years, Nintendo was an intimidating force; the very name sparked both resentment and envy in me. And the Super Nintendo, as far as I knew, was the epitome of console gaming, powered by the most impressive hardware and given life by the most creative designers. Today’s Nintendo is quite different. Although most of those same designers are still around, the company has forgone its position as most powerful platform manufacturer. They continue to shine on a technical level, but often with innovations that don’t interest me. And the name has lost its imposing ring for me, now — replaced by something closer to cuteness.
Still, in recent years, I have wanted the mid-’90s Nintendo to come back; the amazing, dominating (maybe arrogant) Nintendo.
That, in a nutshell, was at the heart of my impossible dream for the NX. Of course, I only realised it was impossible after the Switch was revealed (because I’m a little bit stupid). Nintendo isn’t intent on the kind of arms race that occupies Microsoft and Sony — they’re cornering a different type of market with a different type of strategy; which gives today’s Nintendo the air of a slightly wacky underdog. How could I not root for them? Yes, okay, they’re a multi-billion-dollar outfit who could squash me like a bug if they wanted to; but they’re so cute!
Ultimately, I welcome the Nintendo Switch, even as I mourn what might have been the NX.
