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Nintendo's Switch 2 got off to a roaring start but demand has started to sag, particularly in the US. Where are the big games to reverse this?

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[–] nao@sh.itjust.works 3 points 29 minutes ago

Wasn't it the fastest selling console, at least for some time? So many people who wanted one will already have one.

[–] OnfireNFS@lemmy.world 3 points 1 hour ago

My favorite part of the steam deck is how I didn't have to pay to "upgrade" the games I already own.

Oh and how I didn't have to buy my game library again

[–] RightHandOfIkaros@lemmy.world 9 points 2 hours ago* (last edited 2 hours ago)

Nintendo definitely learning the wrong lesson from this:

  • The Right Lesson: Maybe we shouldn't released an expensive console, with only a handful of new games and tons of repeat releases that are $70 (and suck) especially in a really bad global economy, and some of those games dont even have a real physical copy, and stop treating our fans like they are literally Hitler because they are passionate about our products.

  • The Wrong Lesson: People must not want powerful hardware and physical games anymore.

[–] Drusas@fedia.io 6 points 3 hours ago

My friend has been liking his but even moreso misses the Steam Deck he had stolen. And now can't replace.

[–] Gerudo@lemmy.zip 14 points 5 hours ago (3 children)

I loved my Switch but wasn't planning on getting a 2 due to cost of device and new games. I was gifted one for Xmas, and while I enjoy it, outside Mario Kart (that came with it) I haven't found a new title made specifically for S2 that I wouldn't buy for the other consoles or PC. I'm just playing some older catalog stuff, or games that I would prefer on the go. There's no new Zelda, Mario, Splatoon, nothing 1st party to keep driving a console. It boggles my mind they didn't have more 1st party lined up for the first year of launch

[–] jefferyjefferson@lemmy.org 6 points 3 hours ago* (last edited 2 hours ago) (2 children)

You can, and should, just get used to downloading games for free on an open device like the Steam Deck or just a regular PC/gaming laptop.

We need to stop giving power to the companies that only use it to take advantage of us.

[–] agingelderly@lemmy.world 1 points 41 minutes ago

Where/how do I get them on my steam deck? I'm old and confused

[–] Gerudo@lemmy.zip 2 points 1 hour ago

Oh I have an Ally. One of the big reasons I wasn't going to get an S2. I was just about to get a bigger battery for it when I got the S2 gifted to me.

[–] SparroHawc@lemmy.zip 3 points 2 hours ago

I was tempted to get it for the Metroid Prime game, but after reviews (and having to lower my discretionary budget because EVERYTHING COSTS MORE) I've decided to hold off. The Mario Mafia is definitely souring my opinion of the Big N, and the fact that their titles practically never go on sale means I wouldn't buy many games for it anyways. Meanwhile my PC (and by extension my Steam Deck) continues to be my favorite gaming platform.

[–] piyuv@lemmy.world 9 points 4 hours ago (2 children)

Pokopia, Bananza? It’s better than PS5 launch imo

[–] GiantChickDicks@lemmy.ml 1 points 42 minutes ago

I was just gifted a Switch 2 for my birthday, and Bonanza was what I was most looking forward to playing. I'm enjoying it a lot, but so far I'm glad I didn't spend the money myself.

[–] cheat700000007@lemmy.world 4 points 4 hours ago

Bananza feels so pointless, pokopia is the first thing so far that feels worthwhile.

Meanwhile ps5 launch had demons souls, and was the high end thing so multiplats made sense there like cyberpunk and asscreed Valhalla.

Ultimately; they're both sad launch lineups

[–] FRYD@sh.itjust.works 51 points 8 hours ago (1 children)

I’d love to get a Switch 2, but $500 + $70/per game is just too steep for me.

[–] cattywampas@lemmy.world 44 points 8 hours ago (1 children)

People ain't got no money.

[–] Caesium@lemmy.world 13 points 6 hours ago

personally, I've been hesitant to buy because Nintendo is willing to brick consoles for people using 3rd party software. otherwise, I'm just waiting for splatoon 4 to come out to buy it. I can wait for an emulator for anything else :p

[–] AWizard_ATrueStar@lemmy.world 30 points 8 hours ago (1 children)

As a long time Nintendo fan since the NES, Switch 2 is the first Nintendo console (except Virtual Boy, I suppose) that I did not go out and purchase day 1. I still have no real interest.

I like physical carts and the idea that a cart is really just a license key to download a game is a no-go for me right from the start. $80 games. So heavily tied to the online account that any ban, accidental or otherwise, effectively bricks the console. No games that interst me (other than Metroid, which I just bought for Switch 1).

Add all that together and I don’t know if/when I will ever get a S2 at this point. Maybe in a few years second hand. We’ll see.

[–] samus12345@sh.itjust.works 4 points 5 hours ago* (last edited 5 hours ago)

Same boat. Nintendo fan since the NES, this is the first one I don't want to buy (I even had a Virtual Boy, although I got it cheap on clearance). The quality of their games has dropped while the cost of their games and hardware have gone up. I'm sure I'll play the good games they release that I missed eventually, whether via emulation or a cheap used one MANY years from now.

[–] ampersandrew@lemmy.world 74 points 9 hours ago (2 children)

I'm rooting for the demise of what Nintendo currently is, but this isn't so much of a story. They had lofty projections for sales and manufacturing to make sure that they could meet demand, they've met that demand, and it's high. This is revising one quarter's production down from 6M to 4M. It's still doing well for them.

[–] Khanzarate@lemmy.world 31 points 9 hours ago

Right? They specifically set out to make sure it wouldn't be scalped to hell and back after repeated complaints.

They did that, and now the product is real, and market predictions on existing products are much more reliable. The initial production wasn't sustainable but wasn't meant to be sustained, either.

[–] catalyst@lemmy.world 9 points 7 hours ago (1 children)

Agreed, this feels like making a story out of nothing for clicks.

[–] Zoomboingding@lemmy.world 4 points 5 hours ago

Just look at this comment section, it's popular to hate Nintendo. It's mostly justified, but this story isn't.

[–] Errorcode7@programming.dev 27 points 9 hours ago (2 children)

Games costing $70+ is a giant turn off for me with that console. I would like portable cyberpunk, but I'm not buying that several year old game for $70

[–] Regrettable_incident@lemmy.world 13 points 7 hours ago (1 children)

I played cyberpunk on my steam deck - it's my only device. I picked it up on sale for £22

[–] sp3ctr4l@lemmy.dbzer0.com 5 points 4 hours ago* (last edited 4 hours ago) (1 children)

As of 2 days ago, FSR 4 works on a Steam Deck, w/Cyberpunk:

https://youtube.com/watch?v=0er-7pyMr3Q

FSR4 INT8

OptiScaler PreRelease

This will also work on AMD 6000s and 7000s series cards.

And if you'd like a linux native mod manager:

Limo

Cool! I've been meaning to give cyberpunk another playthrough when I get time.

[–] lemmyng@lemmy.world 4 points 8 hours ago (1 children)

That's why you buy a Steam Deck instead, pirate Cyberpunk and be able to play it with mods for much better performance than on the Switch 2. Plus, you can pirate a shit ton of other games. Proton on Steam Deck has come a VERY long way.

[–] samus12345@sh.itjust.works 4 points 5 hours ago

buy a Steam Deck

Yeah, not really an option now, unless you want to pay scalper prices.

[–] devolution@lemmy.world 12 points 8 hours ago (2 children)

Expensive console + $80 games - decent amount of games = Fuck Nintendo???

[–] Zoomboingding@lemmy.world 5 points 5 hours ago

Switch 2 had record-breaking sales FYI. This story is really about the overall economy and how fans already bought it.

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[–] ALoafOfBread@lemmy.ml 19 points 9 hours ago* (last edited 9 hours ago) (8 children)

The value proposition just isn't there. Much more expensive for better performance and... pokemon pokopia? There aren't any games really taking advantage of that increased performance that I am aware of. My switch 1 still works. I'd like better performance, but not for $500

I would take a new fire emblem game, but certainly not a full upgrade for it.

I upgraded to the OLED model years back and it works fine for me.

[–] A_Union_of_Kobolds@lemmy.world 7 points 8 hours ago (1 children)

My Switch Lite with Diablo 2, Brotato and Balatro will last me till heat death

[–] ALoafOfBread@lemmy.ml 6 points 8 hours ago* (last edited 7 hours ago) (1 children)

That's why most people I know got the switch. They got it in spite of bad performance to play older 3rd party games on a portable, social format. Can play with friends, on the bus, on the couch. Don't really need better specs to do that. Even hardcore gamers may own a switch to do that - the appeal and accessibility is very broad.

The nintendo games are largely just a bonus, imo. They're very expensive and I personally wouldn't seek them out if I didn't also own a switch. If I had kids or was a kid that'd be a different story, probably. The modern legend of zelda games, mario kart, and super smash were great though.

A bunch of the other nintendo titles were fun, but many of them feel weirdly like mobile games with way more content or something to me - hard to explain, but they don't feel like $60 or $70 games (to me). Something to do with the repetitive gameplay loops, visual style, and design built around levels rather than exploration/open world. Animal crossing 100% feels like less of a game than the gamecube version did - more repetitive, basically the same appearance, feels less complex.

[–] A_Union_of_Kobolds@lemmy.world 1 points 5 hours ago* (last edited 5 hours ago)

Exactly. Until the last year or so, it was simply the best handheld you could get for the money. Is it good as a current-gen console, obviously not. But you could play nearly anything on it, and the Lite is surprisingly reliable compared to the standard's issues with stick drift etc

The only thing the Switch 2 has over similarly priced Linux-based handheld PCs these days is The Duskbloods, which i wont lie is tempting but not tempting enough

[–] NOT_RICK@lemmy.world 8 points 8 hours ago* (last edited 8 hours ago)

DK Bananza is fun but I don’t think it’s worthy of buying a new system. It’s also pretty cool running Cyberpunk on such a slim system but there’s plenty of ways to play that. It’s got a strong third party base already, but I do think this calendar year’s first party releases will be really important for the system.

They also released an update so all switch 1 games can run in docked mode when the switch 2 is in portable mode, but that only benefits those that use the system portably often.

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[–] Ashelyn@lemmy.blahaj.zone 14 points 9 hours ago (1 children)

The switch 2 costs considerably more in the US than elsewhere thanks to the tariffs. That tax is going to suppress sales no matter what, and there are other economic pressures that harm most people's buying power as well

[–] carotte@lemmy.blahaj.zone 13 points 8 hours ago (10 children)

it doesn't, in fact the switch 2 seems to be cheaper in the us than anywhere else (except maybe japan)

msrp is 450$ usd in the us, 630$ cad (458$ usd) in canada, 396£ (530$ usd) in the uk, 700$ aud (487$ usd) in australia, and 470€ (545$ usd) in france

i don't think the tariffs are having much of an impact, or more likely nintendo is charging everyone to cover them

[–] cheat700000007@lemmy.world 3 points 6 hours ago* (last edited 6 hours ago) (1 children)

The games are $99.99 on the shelf for Canada too. Just seeing that is immediately revolting. $110 for the "switch 2 upgrade pack" versions of games, like BOTW. A fucking switch 1 launch title that is currently 9 years old.

Before tax. So add another 5-15% depending on province.

[–] caseofthematts@lemmy.world 3 points 5 hours ago (1 children)

Yea, honestly I don't know anyone that has bought or plans on buying a Switch 2, but I know a lot of people that bought or have Switch 1. Of course, that's anecdotal, but shits just way too pricey. I and most that I know got into the Switch because of the affordability and on-the-go console play. Half of that equation is gone, and we already have the on-the-go console play with Switch 1.

[–] cheat700000007@lemmy.world 1 points 4 hours ago

And now the price point competes with handheld pcs

[–] PonyOfWar@pawb.social 9 points 8 hours ago* (last edited 8 hours ago)

Keep in mind though that US prices don't include VAT, whereas in most countries they do. But you're right that it's not significantly more expensive in the US, it's pretty similar to other regions.

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[–] QuentinCallaghan@sopuli.xyz 5 points 8 hours ago

There aren't enough appealing Switch 2 games at least for me, the price should go down and I rather wait for that EU model with easier battery-swapping.

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