We Got a Switch!

Upgrading to a Nintendo Siwtch

Okay, so we upgraded from our Nintendo Wii-U, which we didn't play a lot. Why upgrade? Well, the kids are a little bit older and it was snowy and cold outside. The Switch has been out for a just under a year. Until Christmas, it was very hard to get a Switch anywhere. As of a week or so ago, the Nintendo Switch has outsold the entire run of the Wii-U, which was 5 years long. The Switch has a long way to go until it can outsell the original Wii, which sold over 100 million units in its 6 year run. But, since the Switch is both a home and a portable game console, thoughts are that people are buying multiple console so that everybody in the household can have their own Switch. Well, for now, we are going to have only 1 Switch.

The Switch console as a portable console is about the size of a small tablet. The sound isn't that great, but you can connect a headphone, which is how you will probably play it anyway. I don't see too many people trying to do multiplayer on the tablet version. You can connect multiple Switch together for multiplayer, with each player with their own screen, which is probably the ideal way of playing. And of course, when it is docked in the console connected to your TV, you can play on your TV.

The console has a kickstand for playing in portable mode, which also hides a slot for a Micro SD card. The micro SD card allows for extra storage, including taking screen and video captures. That feature is how I added image to the end of my video and plan on using for game reviews, if the software allows for it.

The console comes with 2 controllers, called Joy Cons. They don't have the infrared functionality of the Wii controllers, but they still have motion detection and HD audio. The HD audio allows you to do things like play a game that simulates marbles rolling in your hand, so that you can try to count how many are there. I'm guessing that will be useful in some games.

We bought an extra set of controllers and 4 steering wheels, which come in a two-pack from companies like YoK. I also about a Dobe controller charger. You can charge two controllers when the Switch is in the dock, but the Dobe controller has LED light bars to let you know if the controllers are fully charged or not. The final accessory we bought was a screen saver, because putting the Switch in the dock can possibly cause scratching, if you don't do it carefully.

We bought Mario Kart 8 to play, since it was an easy enough game for the kids to play. Finding games for the kids will be the hard part. The original Wii came with Wii Sports, which is a great set of games that the entire family can play. I really wish that they would have made a version for the Switch. The Switch games are on cards, that look like fat SD cards, so you can't play old Wii or Wii-U games.

I'm hoping that the family will get a lot of fun from the Switch and I hope to share our fun.