A few weeks ago I was invited by Nintendo to attend a hands-on session with its then-yet-to-be released Switch. Sadly, I had to decline the invitation (it was in Auckland and I live in Christchurch, which is in New Zealand’s South Island) but Nintendo’s PR company in Australia kept in touch over the following weeks.
Last week, I got the good news that Nintendo was going to send me a Switch to look at for review. The console arrived today (after being held up by Customs for a couple of days). It came with a copy of Zelda: Breath of the Wild & 1-2 Switch as well as spare JoyCon controllers (red & blue).
The last Nintendo home console I played was the Nintendo GameCube (which I still own) so I’m looking forward to having a good look at the Switch over the coming days, especially trying out the portable mode. I’ll document my thoughts in the next week or so.
Set up was easy enough and I managed to connect the JoyCon controllers the right way to the tablet body (I read on social media that some people slid them on wrong, causing them to get stuck). As I write this, the Switch is charging the tablet.
Zelda: BOTW will also be the first home console Zelda game I’ve played (I’m not counting the Nintendo 3DS version) so I’m looking forward to it.
In the meantime, here are some images of the un-boxing process.
The tablet of the Nintendo Switch. It’s has a nice reflective screen, as you can see by my reflection.
The rear view of the Switch’s tablet. Note the bananas in the background. Our dog likes bananas, too.
The Switch in docked mode. It’s not plugged in yet, obviously.
The Switch in docked mode, with the JoyCon controllers attached.
How heavy is the switch in handheld mode? And do you think the switch is going to be successful like the original Nintendo Wii was?
It’s noticeable but not unwieldy – I haven’t had a real session with it yet. Whether it’ll be as successful as the original Wii depends on the strength of its software, I think. I think the tablet/portable mode, though, is a nice point of difference that will appeal to gamers. Time will tell.
I am keen, but need to make friends with Nintendo PR first…