Over the last several weeks, a lot of stuff has been going on in the world of video games when it comes to the topic of VR. Virtual reality headsets have been a huge developing part of the gaming world over the past few years, a fact which seems to have come to a head in 2016, with stuff like Playstation VR now readily available, and several headset brands ready for try-on and demo at stores and conventions. A lot of people feel that VR is the future of gaming.
Then, last week, Nintendo made a rather important announcement regarding their own future in the form of a trailer, showing off their new game console. Code-named "Project NX" for over a year now, the machine is now known as the Nintendo Switch, and sports some of the exact capabilities it was long rumored to have had. As soon as I saw the trailer, I had the same response to it that most do to VR. I'll let the trailer do the talking, in case you haven't seen it.
As the video shows, the Nintendo Switch basically functions as both a home console and an on-the-go handheld device, all in one. The box that gets hooked into the TV has an actual tablet inside that players can pop out and take on the go, with a few different ways to bring the controller along as well. Personally, this thing is wish fulfillment central for me.
When I was a little kid, I would have those conversations with my friends that I think a lot of children do, where we would throw around "what-ifs" related to jobs we might have someday. Sure, we had ones like "I'm gonna be an inventor and invent a wristwatch that can turn you into a dog", but we also had a recurring one. The general theme was that if we one day became game designers, we would make a game console with controllers that could be taken anywhere and be used to play the game just as well as the box hooked up to the TV could. I think we used game boys as a point of reference, but you get the idea. This idea of streamlined play has been something video game nerds such as myself have always wanted, and will finally have if the Switch follows through on the capabilities Nintendo is promising.
Other companies have tried to streamline things; or sort of, at least. The Playstation 3 and Playstation 4 consoles have cross save functionality with the PS Vita, SONY's semi-neglected handheld device. This means that with the click of a couple buttons, players can upload their game from their console at home into the cloud, bring that data onto their handheld, and resume the game on there. Not all games support this function, though; in fact, the library of titles that do is comparatively small and niche. With the Switch, there are no uploads, no wait time, no anything. Just a quick pick up and go.
There's room for both. Of course there's room for both. But here's where I stand, basically. As a college student with classes, activities, and something resembling a social life, it's a rare day when I'm at home for an extended enough period of time to play many video games anymore. I spend a lot of time at friends houses or public places, or riding mass transit. This way I can play something console-quality on the go, while not worrying about missing out on half of the games I want to play. When I do get a chance at home, in the tablet can go, and away I shall play.
Oh, and in those same conversations, I seem to remember my friend and I deciding the game discs would be triangular. Illuminati confirmed for Nintendo Switch.
