Should Nintendo focus more on having powerful hardware?

[The Blackangel]

I think the allure of having a console that can be played on TV like a typical console or taken on the go, was enough allure to keep their fans, and bring in new ones. Especially since it had a lot of the same games that other consoles had like Skyrim and Witcher 3. And if you save your progress in those games to cloud, you could just log in from your Switch and continue from where you left off.

They really hit a home run with this one.

[killamch89]

It doesn't have to because Nintendo is competing in its own category and will always have a huge fanbase provided they don't screw their fans over massively.

[JennyorAlice]

I think Nintendo has been ahead of the curve on other things.  Like handhelds for instance.  Nintendo has the market on handhelds (in my opinion).  Sony tried it with the PSP and the Vita but they didn't sell as well and Microsoft never even got into that market. 

Also, I think Nintendo was the first to come out with a wireless controller if I'm not mistaken. 

Moral of the story is Nintendo has other things that they are good at and I think they are focusing on what they are good at. 

[Kane99]

1 hour ago, JennyorAlice said:

I think Nintendo has been ahead of the curve on other things.  Like handhelds for instance.  Nintendo has the market on handhelds (in my opinion).  Sony tried it with the PSP and the Vita but they didn't sell as well and Microsoft never even got into that market. 

Also, I think Nintendo was the first to come out with a wireless controller if I'm not mistaken. 

Moral of the story is Nintendo has other things that they are good at and I think they are focusing on what they are good at. 

They do have the market on handhelds, but that market has opened up a bit, because now we have the Steam Deck which could become the next hot thing, if it hasn't already. Especially for the price. Anyway, they will have the market for a while, but stuff like the Steam Deck coming out, may put a dent in things. Which I think will in turn result in Nintendo having to up the ante and make sure to produce devices with better hardware. 

Nintendo has to eventually adapt their hardware to match somewhat. Right now they don't have to. But I feel like in the coming years they will have to, especially if we start to see more handhelds like the Steam deck coming out. 

[runswithspatulas]

i just wish the switch lite was more capable of handling shooter games. it is very difficult to be competitive in a shooter game with a switch. for example pitting someone in fortnite with a switch lite with only 30 fps against someone on a pc with 300 fps. 

Edited July 20, 2022 by runswithspatulas

[Withywarlock]

The hardware is as powerful as it needs to be, its Nintendo's third party developers who don't quite get the architecture to push it to its necessary limits. The first party lineup features consistently high frame-rates with astonishing graphical fidelity. I suppose that's only a problem if you want more from the third party lineup, which I did, and it's why I quickly got rid of the console. I had my fun but wanted more games and at the time weren't available. I'll definitely pick up the Switch in the future when just about all its first party titles are released.

8 hours ago, runswithspatulas said:

i just wish the switch lite was more capable of handling shooter games. it is very difficult to be competitive in a shooter game with a switch. for example pitting someone in fortnite with a switch lite with only 30 fps against someone on a pc with 300 fps. 

I wouldn't buy a Switch of any kind to be "competitive" unless it was for a Nintendo-exclusive game like Mario Kart or Super Smash Bros (even then the latter may benefit from third party fighting game controllers). The console and its controls are serviceable but aren't as precise as a mouse, even if both were playing at 30 FPS.

That said this may be the beginnings of a good argument for graphical settings on console games, which I think has become a thing recently with different presets (performance versus graphical fidelity). That's for another thread though, I'll not derail this one.

[Crazycrab]

25 minutes ago, Withywarlock said:

I wouldn't buy a Switch of any kind to be "competitive" unless it was for a Nintendo-exclusive game like Mario Kart or Super Smash Bros (even then the latter may benefit from third party fighting game controllers). The console and its controls are serviceable but aren't as precise as a mouse, even if both were playing at 30 FPS.

 

I agree that Nintendo are kinda in their own bubble and don't necessarily need the same amount of third party support as the others.  With that being said the Switch's hardware is getting a bit dated and as developers start to move away from the outgoing PS4 and XBox One in favour of the PS5 and XBox Series X/S third party support is going to be a problem.

[Kane99]

Honestly, thinking this over a bit more, I don't think Nintendo needs better hardware. I mean, with each new release sure, they should up that hardware, but I don't think it's needed right away. Eventually they will have to make a new Switch or console. And it will have to have fairly decent hardware. But, I think with the Switch, they don't expect super big games to be on it. Like, you're not going to see games that run and look like The Last of Us 2 for example. 

Either way, I think most games will work and look just fine. 

[Clasher]

Judging from the size of the Nintendo switch handheld not been too bigger than a Samsung phone or tablet in some cases and the later  usually comes with high functionality and usage function, gives us more reason to state that Nintendo switch is not doing so much In terms of hard ware and software alike.

There is enough technology available now to upgrade the Nintendo handhelds and switch and give us more better performing platformer games as well cross platform games.

The Nintendo switch OLED version performs Better compared to previous Nintendo handhelds.

[Kane99]

55 minutes ago, Clasher said:

Judging from the size of the Nintendo switch handheld not been too bigger than a Samsung phone or tablet in some cases and the later  usually comes with high functionality and usage function, gives us more reason to state that Nintendo switch is not doing so much In terms of hard ware and software alike.

There is enough technology available now to upgrade the Nintendo handhelds and switch and give us more better performing platformer games as well cross platform games.

The Nintendo switch OLED version performs Better compared to previous Nintendo handhelds.

The OLED version is just that, a bigger and better screen. There is no difference in terms of performance as the hardware otherwise is the same. But I agree, a new upgraded version with better hardware would be awesome, and it can be done. Devices are getting more advanced these days, especially handhelds and smartphones, so there's always a chance that a future Switch model could up the hardware. 

[Clasher]

1 hour ago, Kane99 said:

The OLED version is just that, a bigger and better screen. There is no difference in terms of performance as the hardware otherwise is the same. But I agree, a new upgraded version with better hardware would be awesome, and it can be done. Devices are getting more advanced these days, especially handhelds and smartphones, so there's always a chance that a future Switch model could up the hardware. 

The OLED version doesn't just come with bigger screens but it is really durable for co-op or multiplayer games, the controls on the sides of the screen can be detached and used individually by two different players while the screen is placed on a different platform so both players can sit and play comfortably.

And I am quite sure that the OLED has been the  only Nintendo handheld to incorporate such a feature.

[runswithspatulas]

I feel like Nintendo Switch isn't powerful enough to play certain games yet if they were then we would lack even more in graphics. Fortnite for instance on the Switch...I can be watching my streamer friends screen and see all the different skins but, on the Switch they're all the same skin. I'd like to be able to see their skins. Sometimes I can't even see them in gameplay to describe what skin it is that killed me. Doesn't keep me from playing the game though. LOL!

I feel like they're trying to give us both power and graphics but they can only do so much on this platform. I don't know if it makes a difference if it's on the tv. 

[Kane99]

51 minutes ago, runswithspatulas said:

I feel like Nintendo Switch isn't powerful enough to play certain games yet if they were then we would lack even more in graphics. Fortnite for instance on the Switch...I can be watching my streamer friends screen and see all the different skins but, on the Switch they're all the same skin. I'd like to be able to see their skins. Sometimes I can't even see them in gameplay to describe what skin it is that killed me. Doesn't keep me from playing the game though. LOL!

I feel like they're trying to give us both power and graphics but they can only do so much on this platform. I don't know if it makes a difference if it's on the tv. 

Well yeah, Nintendo has been behind in terms of hardware since the GameCube maybe, but mostly the wii. But they survived so far on gimmick ideas, like the motion controls of the wii and now the joycon/ switch hybrid console. But they make their money on said gimmicks. 

But, I think they still need to advance the switch to become more advanced, to at least come a little closer to current hardware out there. 

[NightmareFarm]

If they did it would greatly benefit the diehard nintendo fans but they won't because of the success of the switch. They're going to stick to hybrids from now on.

[runswithspatulas]

11 hours ago, NightmareFarm said:

If they did it would greatly benefit the diehard nintendo fans but they won't because of the success of the switch. They're going to stick to hybrids from now on.

why can't they offer more in hardware for a console hybrid? is there not enough room inside of it for the needed parts or what?