Not for the first time in its history, there were those who believed Nintendo was doomed in light of the Wii U's struggles, and that its only option was to become a third-party developer, a la Sega. The Nintendo Switch has silenced many of those critiques: It has been routinely sold out since its launch back in March, surpassing sales projections and helping to boost Nintendo's market value to levels only exceeded during the heyday of the Wii.
And all of that is not without reason: the Nintendo Switch is great! Provided you have some use for removing it from the dock--whether it be to take it to work, school, bed, or, let's be honest, the bathroom--it provides an experience unlike quite anything else. It's also quietly built up an excellent library of games in just six months, even setting aside big hitters like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Splatoon 2.
But there's also room for improvement. Areas in which Nintendo has historically struggled are present and need to be addressed, and there are other spots that this already solid system could be made even better. Let's run through what we want to see.
More (And Better) Game Sales on the Eshop
As the Switch's library continues to grow, it would be nice if it were easier to dip back into older titles at a discount every now and then. To date, we've seen only a few games go on sale on the Eshop, and in those cases the price cuts were not as substantial as those on other platforms. Switch is an ideal system with which to go all digital--having every game downloaded and with you wherever you go is a delight. But it can be difficult to justify given the cost, with physical games going on sale more routinely (and with the added discount from things like Best Buy's Gamers Club Unlocked).
This is not an issue that's exclusive to digital games on Switch by any means, and I know better than to expect Nintendo's first-party games to be discounted significantly. But in light of the system's nature, more aggressive Eshop pricing in general would be extremely welcome.
Folders and Game Management
Whether we get those cheaper prices or not, we're all inevitably going to continue buying more games. Those like myself who have already accumulated a large collection of digital games know Switch is not well-equipped to handle this. The system's main navigation bar doesn't scroll infinitely, and eventually you do hit the point where you get an "All Software" button that displays everything installed. But there's no level of control over how things are displayed--you can't sort the games in any specific way (everything is shown based on what was opened most recently).
Worse, you can't pin specific games to the main navigation bar or create folders, which would help to alleviate all of this. Nintendo might have been able to argue folders weren't necessary at launch, but as the number of worthwhile games continues to grow, it's time for them to be introduced.
Customizable Wallpaper
Switch features two different color schemes for its main menu, and while I appreciate not having to suffer the eye-searing white while playing late at night, it's not enough. Vita has allowed you to use custom images as backgrounds since it launched more than five years ago, so why shouldn't I be able to Twin Peaks-ify my Switch in 2017? Pre-designed themes, like those available on 3DS, would also be a welcome addition to the system. Considering they would likely cost money, though, having both those and custom wallpapers would be best.
HD Rumble Settings
HD Rumble is great--when it's used right. There's nothing quite like 1-2-Switch's ball-rolling mini-game, and TumbleSeed makes good use of the advanced vibration technology. But we've also seen multiple games go overboard, pushing the rumble effect well beyond the point of comfort. Having a system-level setting that can override rumble strength would help to mitigate this unpleasantness.
Web Browser and Media Apps
At launch, Nintendo may have wanted to emphasize that the Switch was a game machine first and foremost, and thus left out non-game functionality to accomplish that. Fine. The point has been made, and I don't think that the ability to watch Netflix and YouTube videos or visit a website is going to chill demand for the console. It didn't hurt the Wii, and frankly, it's silly to consider that a console that had outdated hardware a decade ago could do anything that the Switch can't today. Adding these features would also give Nintendo a way to leverage the right Joy-Con's little-used IR pointer--which I suspect many people don't even know exists. Pointing a Joy-Con at your TV would be even better than navigating with a controller, as you do on Xbox One or PS4.
More Demos
Considering the number of games now available on the Eshop--there are more than 100, believe it or not--there are decidedly few with demos accompanying them. Permitting players the opportunity to try out a game, be it through a specially designed demo or a system that lets you play a fixed portion of the full game, is a wise move if you're confident in the quality of your game. We've highlighted many of the quality games on Switch that may not have caught your attention, but if the Eshop simply invited you to try more for yourself, it would be a real boon for sales of smaller games in particular.
Better Eshop
Of course, even if there were more demos, they wouldn't necessarily be easy to find. That's because the Eshop is a mess. The system itself struggles to house a fraction of the games available, but the Eshop has to hold them all, and it does so poorly. You can search manually, look at recent releases or best sellers, or check out a full list. That's it. There's no easy way to see what's on sale or which games have demos; the system seems to be leaning on its News channel to highlight these things, and that's just not a setup that works well. Building a store is no easy task--just see the more extreme, but similar problems Valve faces with Steam--but there is basic, core functionality that is missing here.
Oh, and one more thing: BRING BACK THE WII ESHOP MUSIC. Scientific studies I have definitely conducted show a guaranteed 1,000% increase in sales if people are visiting the store just to listen to the music.
More Wii U Ports
Any system could use more games, and while I hope to see worthwhile original ones continue to roll out at a regular cadence, that doesn't mean the Wii U ports need to stop. Already we've seen Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and soon we'll have Pokken Tournament DX, but why stop there? There are plenty of quality games on Wii U that never got the attention they deserved due to low adoption of the system, so let's keep them coming. From Bayonetta 2 and Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker to Super Smash Bros. and Super Mario Maker, there are a wide variety of genres that could be bolstered on Switch with improved versions of Wii U games. The hard work is already done, with these games already being great--now let's hope Nintendo makes good on what it's already teased by sprinkling in more deluxe ports over the next few years.
Let Me Preserve My Saves
Switch feels like a modern console in many ways; having one system that can play a game like Breath of the Wild on your giant TV or in the backseat of a car is positively magical. And yet numerous aspects of the system lack the type of functionality you'd expect from a system released even several years ago, let alone in 2017. The inability to back up save files has me perpetually in fear. For a system whose marquee game can consume hundreds of hours of your time and would cause tears to be shed if your save were lost, the absence of save backups is absurd. My hope is that Nintendo is developing a seamless cloud-based save backup system (unlikely, I know), but there's no good reason for the lack of a basic backup option in the meantime.
Better Online Support
Similarly, Switch's online support is poor. The fact that friend codes still exist is frankly staggering. There's no way to message friends or create a profile for yourself (or, in lieu of that, a nickname for people on your friends list to help keep track of who is who). And while it's easy enough to boot up a simple online match of Splatoon 2, the official voice chat solution is nothing short of laughable. Nintendo's premium online service has been delayed while it continues to ensure it's up to snuff, but there are numerous ways in which the overall experience--paid or not--needs to improve.
Video Recording
Switch makes it easy to snap screenshots, but the ability to capture video clips remains an unfulfilled promise. Once again, Breath of the Wild demonstrates why this is sorely missed: How many times have you described an ingenious, awe-inspiring, or otherwise amazing moment to a friend but been unable to actually show them? Without an easy way to record video, countless wonderful moments that we've become accustomed to being able to save on PS4, Xbox One, and PC have been rendered nothing more than fading memories.
Bring Back the Activity Log
I am admittedly a strange person, and one odd pleasure of mine (and others! There are dozens of us!) is taking a look at how much time I've spent playing games. Nintendo embraced this desire with the 3DS and Wii U's Activity Log, which broke down exactly when and how much specific games were played. Switch only presents a rudimentary version of this. You can see some information in the mobile parental controls app or view your online profile to get a fairly non-specific hour count (assuming you aren't in the dreaded "Played for a little while" range). If the system is bothering to count, just give us that cold, raw data.
HDMI Output in Handheld Mode
The only official way to play your Switch on a TV is to drop it into the dock, but what I'd love is the ability to cut out that middle man and output video to a TV from handheld mode. The most obvious benefit would be not needing to buy an additional, pricey dock for a second room you want to play in (which may be one reason Nintendo doesn't offer this option). But it would also make it significantly easier to take a Switch to someone else's house for some multiplayer action. I've brought my Switch to family gatherings, and we were forced to endure multiplayer on the Switch's screen, which is just not big enough for some games, like Fast RMX. Perhaps I should have had the foresight to pack my dock, but that runs contrary to the idea of being able to pick up the system and walk out the door.
Different Kinds of Joy-Cons
Image credit: ryansalamanda on Twitter
It's a concept that fans immediately imagined after the Switch's design was revealed: alternative Joy-Cons. We've seen some different colors announced--and there are still a lot of possibilities there; I'd love a Super Famicom one--but functionally different Joy-Cons is where the real potential lies. Hardcore Super Smash Bros. fans would undoubtedly like to see a GameCube controller essentially cut in half and Joy-Con-ified, while others have proposed those that lend themselves to shooting games or even specific titles, like Yo-Kai Watch. Nintendo could run the risk of flooding stores and demanding too much shelf space, but it's exciting to think about what's possible.
Virtual Console (With Cross-Buy Support)
Here's the biggest one of all. Switch is already home to numerous Neo Geo games, but there is a vast library of classic games that I'm dying to be able to play on the system. The success of the NES Classic (and strong demand for the SNES Classic) may have incentivized Nintendo to wait or drop Virtual Console plans altogether, but I remain hopeful that it's on the way in full. More than just the ability to boot up classic games, I hope Nintendo doesn't ignore the money fans have invested in Virtual Console on its older platforms. Cross-Buy support that brings your existing collection of VC games to Switch would be a dream come true and make the Switch even more appealing than it already is. Let's just hope that, by the time Nintendo decides to dump these hundreds of games on the Eshop, it also overhauls the store's layout.
And don't forget about that music.
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