The Switch really became the sweetheart of the indie devs and small studios.

[DC]

This has been known for a while, but watching the PC Gamer show and the Guerilla Collective over the weekend really strengthened this.

Now, there were a lot of games announced for the consoles along with the PC games shown, but I noticed that almost none of the indie games from smaller studios left switching off if they came to the consoles. In fact, I also noticed that some indies had just been announced as coming to PC and Switch and skipping XB1 and PS4 for the time being.

It's so crazy how many indies the Switch has prioritized over the other consoles. Looking back to 2013 when the PS4 was announced, and you wouldn't disagree with it if you said that the PS4 would be the console of choice for the Indians. Particularly with how everyone talked about the easy-to-develop-architecture and the fact that Sony was putting a ton of indie games on their stage. And maybe even if you thought it would be the XB1, considering the 360 's approach to indie games was pretty good at the time.

It was definitely a surprise when the switch came in, and suddenly there was an indie powerhouse. I think I 'm talking to a lot of people when I say I didn't see that coming 3 years ago.

[The Blackangel]

I have a ton of DDL games on my Switch, and almost all of them are indie games. Actually I only have a couple games for it that aren't indie games. Switch has broadened my horizons exponentially.

[Demon_skeith]

I hear it's mostly because the Switch is easy to make games for, plus Nintendo seems to be pretty open to bringing over small game companies. Though this has caused a lot of junk to appear on the eshop.

[DylanC]

I remember hearing from devs back when the Switch first launched, that if they released their indie game on the handheld/hybrid, it would sell around 10x as many copies there than on its PS4, XB1 and PC counterparts, respectively. I think this demand has seemingly dropped off now, but Switch is still one of the most viable platforms for indie devs, for sure. A lot of it comes down to the buying power of the core audience of the Switch. It's a younger demographic, and the buying power of younger kids/affluent parents is pretty strong compared to more mature gamers who often buy just AAA games. Also younger gamers often buy indie games that "look cool" rather than reading reviews, looking at Metacritic etc. 

[The Blackangel]

I'm 38 and, as already stated, have bought many games from the eShop. Also I have met many people my age and older who have gotten their majority of games from the eShop, the same as me. You were incorrect saying that it's a younger demographic. You were also incorrect saying that affluence plays a part. Some of the best games on the entire eShop cost less than $2. And I'm not the only one saying that. Also games go on sale quite often. That also includes big names like Mario Odyssey, and Zelda BOTW. I have personally seen them on sale more than once. But since I already had the cartridges, I had no reason to buy them.

The games in the eShop appeal to more than kids. Many are not intended for younger audiences, and are only available as DDL's. One that I have is Layers Of Fear: Legacy. That one is in no way for children.

[DylanC]

On 6/17/2020 at 7:05 PM, The Blackangel said:

I'm 38 and, as already stated, have bought many games from the eShop. Also I have met many people my age and older who have gotten their majority of games from the eShop, the same as me. You were incorrect saying that it's a younger demographic. You were also incorrect saying that affluence plays a part. Some of the best games on the entire eShop cost less than $2. And I'm not the only one saying that. Also games go on sale quite often. That also includes big names like Mario Odyssey, and Zelda BOTW. I have personally seen them on sale more than once. But since I already had the cartridges, I had no reason to buy them.

The games in the eShop appeal to more than kids. Many are not intended for younger audiences, and are only available as DDL's. One that I have is Layers Of Fear: Legacy. That one is in no way for children.

I'm not saying that there are no adults buying games on Switch, just that the overall average age of players skews slightly younger on Switch than XB1 and PS4. For example, there are about 2% more gamers aged 24 or lower on Switch than PS4/XB1 - which is interestingly lower than the average of other Nintendo consoles - but it makes a difference. In other words, though the Switch is Nintendo's most "adult" console yet, it still attracts a lot of younger gamers thanks to its family friendly nature/branding. What I was saying is that Indie devs can - and have - benefited from this. However, diminishing returns have now begun to set in due to the sheer amount of indies on the eShop.

Source: https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2019-02-11-eedar-nintendo-switch-attracting-more-women-wider-age-ranges-over-time

[The Blackangel]

I hadn't thought of that. Nintendo being so much older, it is generally looked at as a family system. you're right on the money there. I remember when PS1 and Xbox came out, they were looked at instantly as adult themed systems due to the games that were released on them. People thought they weren't intended for children. Then when games like GTA and COD started coming out on PS2 and Xbox 360, people "knew for a fact" that those systems were strictly for adults. They didn't have mascot games like Mario and Sonic.

So you're right on this one.

[skyfire]

I have no idea why the devs and indie gamers are pushing for the games on Switch considering Android and iOS are lot better platform on profit level. I can understand family specific games but any random game on switch does not make sense to me. 

[The Blackangel]

I mentioned this somewhere else on the forum, but it all boils down to the simple fact that the Switch was designed to play games, whereas android and iOS were not. They were designed as phones primarily, but the Switch is a gaming hub. And quite frankly, they make a lot of money selling the games on the eShop. The digital versions go for more than the physical ones do. For example, Mario Odyssey goes for $50 for the physical cart, but the DDL goes for $60. I've checked that on other games as well that are offered on multiple platforms. They make just as much, if not more by selling on Switch.

[skyfire]

Yeah the thing is as long as gamers find the device useful who are we to object. I guess the Nintendo will continue as long as gamers choose to vote with the wallet. I think we will see some interesting devices in near future.