Umm, what? There was massive hype surrounding the Switch. Months of coverage, with every leak garnering attention and rampant speculation. The system was expected to sell out pre orders online within minutes, which it did. It was always going to sell well in Japan by simple virtue of it being the only big handheld coming out anytime soon.

As for the actual number of units sold, we're gonna have to wait a little while for the final numbers unfortunately. We know Nintendo was targeting 1 million sales in the initial launch though, so if it's sold out then you can expect it to be around that number.

Full disclosure, I do not own a Switch and will likely not be owning it for a while yet, so take this how you will.

Personally, I would say it's not worth it, but I would say that about buying any console for one game, so it's going to come down to what kind of games you enjoy, if you will get use out of a handheld, willingness to buy accessories, aversion to early adopter hardware issues and if you need to play Zelda right now.

So far, the Switch is looking very attractive for indies and smaller developers due to the mobile feature and ease of porting. One developer stated that they got a working version of their game Snake Pass in about a week, which is insanely fast. So if you enjoy games like Stardew Valley, Shovel Knight, Binding of Isaac or DS style handheld games in general, then you're actually likely to get a lot of use out of it even early on.

The big question on support is going to be AAA third party developers. There's been a big show of different groups pledging support for the Switch, but the same thing was said for the Wii U and that evaporated pretty quickly post launch. A huge reason for this was due to it being a nightmare to port to though, and the Switch appears to be a complete 180 of that, so there's legitimate reason to be hopeful. Still, this is a definitely a strong reason to wait and see if you're the kind of person who needs their Assassin Creed's and Mass Effects, but doesn't play them on a PC.

Do you game on the go often? Get a Switch. You will not be finding a better experience anytime soon, seeing as the Vita is dead in the water at this point, and Nintendo is likely to phase out the DS going forward. Personally, I cannot stand playing smaller titles like Stardew Valley while chained to a PC or TV, so that's a big plus in my books.

Of course, being a mobile device means you're likely going to be buying accessories. While not strictly required, it's highly recommended to at least get a carrying case, which will set you back $20-$30. If you're expecting to play games like BotW while mobile for more than three hours, you're likely going to want to invest in a power pack. Due to the large power draw of the Switch, there's some complexity to this issue and it could end up costing a fair amount, but it could end up costing anywhere from $30-$100+ in the end. Depends if an economical USB type C to A converter will behave with a cheap power pack.

Some people consider the Pro Controller mandatory, and there's a big drama about that being $10 more at launch than the competitors. Just know you'll be paying slightly more for additional controllers in general for features you may not be using (HD rumble), and third party products will likely not be an option anytime soon.

Do not ever buy another dock. $90 is literally raping the wallet. Literally. You'd be an accessory to a crime.

This leads us into the topic of hardware issues for early adopters. Despite what others will tell you, this is almost always an issue at launch, whether it be the PS4s Blue Ring of Death, the 360s even more serious Red Ring of Death or anything of this nature. The Switch is having a few smaller issues rather than a single big one, but they're there. The most famous is that some users are having issues with their left Joycon losing signal when docked and past a certain distance due to a poor antenna design. This is by no means occurring with everyone, and there are simple hacks available to fix it, but it is a design flaw for sure. As with any new system, dealing with issues such as this is a serious consideration for waiting on your purchase.

If all of these considerations haven't stopped you so far, then it really comes down to whether or not you own a Wii U and if you think you'll pick up a system eventually anyway. Despite Horizon: Zero Dawn players trolling the user reviews of Breath of the Wild with zero out of tens, Zelda is being reviewed insanely well with a constant barrage of perfect scores. Nintendo really seems to have hit it out of the park with this one.

If you do not own a Wii U, then the Switch is your only option. Obviously you'd be throwing money at a dead system if you bought the Wii U, so I will not even suggest picking up a used system.

If you do own a Wii U and you have to get Breath of the Wild as soon as possible, then you probably like Nintendo exclusives at least a little. So, you have a choice: save money for now or have the next generation of first party Nintendo games on one machine. Make no mistake, the Wii U is dead and the 3DS will likely follow suit if the Switch reaches a high install base, but this also means that the Switch will have one of the most impressive lists of exclusives ever in a year or so. Pokemon, Smash Bros, Mario Kart, Mario World, Zelda, Monster Hunter, Splatoon, etc. You'll have the combined library of Nintendo's handheld and console titles going forward, and that is not something to be dismissed, so even if third party support disappears overnight, you can consider it an investment on that.

Hope this has helped anyone on the fence about the Switch decide either way. Personally, I think it's what I've wanted in a system for a while now that does what my PC can't, but that doesn't mean you're obligated to opt in now.

 

One thing I'll add in reference to the above post is that in the case of a power pack, USB-C to C is the only way to go from what I've read. The Switch is power hungry as hell and there's been word that C to A doesn't cover it with the battery being playable but not charging properly.

I've a fair few C to C leads hanging around the house but people really should be investing in them anyway as more and more tech switches over.

 

First of, thanks for the in-depth reply, this really helped me a lot.
I'll probably hold off on buying it for the moment since I do own a 3DS already and I probably wouldn't use the Switch as a handheld.
I might get it later on since I've always enjoyed Nintendo Games and liked having a handheld console. In the end, the main point will be if they still support the 3DS in the future and what Games will come out.

 

My copy of Breath of the Wild came today. Still no Switch. May have to firebomb the postal service.

 

Mario Odyssey is out, and getting pretty amazing reviews. I just got my copy today, and I have to say I agree. The game is full of amazing moments and I would have thought it's a bit on the easy side until the boss I just reached.

Spoiler

Scaling a skyscraper in a thunderstorm, then getting into a tank and destroying a magic techno-centipede.

What is this game?!

 

Yeah, I'm heartily enjoying Mario although sadly I've really only played an hour or so despite having it for more a week. So far, the biggest thing I've taken away is that the world is beautiful and the art direction of the game was obviously toward making Mario the cutest Mario yet. Things are very similar to previous "Mario (post-64) installments" while still being an enjoyable romp through a completely different and original universe. Cappy makes for a fun companion and the way that the game hints at old school Mario material (for ex. turning 2d in certain moments) while allowing for such amusing displays as playing as a T-rex or a tower of Goombas is innovative and should give the game a lot of replay value for me in the future.

 

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is every bit as polished as the reviews promised. Gonna make a fantastic drinking game - need to find a repulsive bright blue liquid to do shots of as a forfeit whenever some dickhead pulls out a blue shell.

 

I've had a weird relationship with the Switch. I've gone from swearing not to buy it until Pokemon arrives on it to wanting Zelda, Mario, MK8, L.A Noir and yet again, Skyrim.

In the space if a week.

 

My wife and I are looking at getting one of these for ourselves for Christmas. With Thanksgiving rolling up in a few days, I figured I'd wait until black Friday to buy one, and try and get a combo deal or something. After looking at Amazon in surprise the Switch is still selling for $300. That means after 2 games plus a carrying case I'm looking at $400 or more.

Currently I'm only planning on getting Mario Odyssey and Breath of the Wild to start with, and then getting Mario Kart some time after that. Any other really great games I should keep an eye out for?

 

If you like turn based strategy, ala XCOM, Mario + Rabbids is pretty great, and Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is coming out in like a week.

 

I've had the switch for a good long while and Mario Kart, Mario and Zelda (rumored expansion due soon) should be enough for me until Kirby or Yoshi. Can't bring myself to buy Skyrim for the third time.

 

It runs at 30fps on switch, but they've slowed down the enemies to compensate.

 

I'm waiting until the prices on the Switch go down. It's too expensive for me right now.

 

Yeah, I just got one with credit card points. Feels a lot better than forking out the 500 or so they're asking for here.

 

Mario Tennis is really, really good. Can't wait for the release. Last one I played was 64, so dunno if there's been others since. It's got some depth that'll take getting used to, which I love in an arcadey game.

 

It's pretty fun, I'll get it. My favorite Mario sports games were the soccer ones. Hope they bring those back too.

Also really excited for Octopath in July, can't wait.

 

Yeah, I love all arcadey sports games. I've no time for the simulation types tbh.

Octopath had a demo i played, the lighting was beautiful but I just can't stand pixel art anymore.

 

How many hacks would a pirate hacker hack if a pirate could pirate hacks?