(Game)boy did good! So far at least…
This time last year, observers were cautiously optimistic about the prospects of Nintendo’s latest offering. The Switch looked in theory at least, like a certified winner. The dream of its predecessor, the Wii U, born manifest. But concerns surrounding the Apple-esque pricing of the base machine and its accessories, combined with an atypical reliance on polished up re-releases of last-generation software threatened to sour the otherwise sweet, sweet taste we’d come to expect when devouring a new Nintendo hardware announcement.
I of course never doubted the big N for a moment…
Now, ten months on from the Switch’s launch no one – myself begrudgingly included – seems to care. The console and every piece of hardware related to it are still comically priced. Yet in less than one year, the Switch has sold more units than its predecessor managed in five. At one point, Nintendo had sold more copies of its flagship launch title, Zelda: Breath of the Wild, than it had done actual machines to play it on. Said game also went on to sweep up just about every Game of the Year award on the planet, consistently earning review scores that place it firmly in the bracket of ‘masterpiece’. And while a great number of the titles released to date have been, at this point years old ports from other platforms, Nintendo’s renewed courtship of third-party publishers and indie developers alike has demonstrated the viability of the Switch as a household’s primary source of video-game entertainment.
So all in all then, it’s all good yeah? Nothing to complain about thus far?
Hmmm…
I suppose that kind of depends…
#NintendoSwitch Online will launch in September 2018! pic.twitter.com/h3Rpeyymsx
— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) February 1, 2018
Because Nintendo’s reputation thus far when it comes to online services has been less than stellar… #justsaying
Wat i Fink & Dat... 