Nintendo just announced a bunch of new info about their new console, the Nintendo Switch. Here’s what we learned during the big show.
THE DATE AND PRICE
The Nintendo Switch will launch worldwide on March 3, 2017 and will cost $300 in the United States.
Here’s what that $300 will get you:
The Switch, one of two options for Joy-Con, the Switch Dock, the Joy-Con Grip, two Joy-Con straps, an AC Adapter, and an HDMI cable.
THE CONSOLE
The Switch is a hybrid handheld/set-top gaming device that you can play on your TV or on the go. We got our first official look back in October, though various facts about the console had been heavily rumored over the course of 2016.
At launch, you’ll be able to buy one of two different versions: a Switch with grey Joy-Con controllers, and one with multi-colored controllers.
The Nintendo Switch Dock will allow the Switch to plug directly into your TV, using either a separate Nintendo Switch Pro Controller or the included Joy-Con controllers to play it like you would a normal set-top console.
What sets the Switch apart from other consoles is the fact that you can remove it from the dock at any time and immediately resume playing on the go.
While in handheld mode, you can also connect up to eight Switch consoles locally via wifi for local multiplayer games like Mario Kart 8 and Splatoon 2.
THE ONLINE SERVICE
The Switch will launch with a new online service. It’ll be free at launch, but in fall of 2017 Nintendo will start to charge for it. According to Nintendo, subscribers will get to download and play a NES or Super Nintendo game “for free for a month,” and those games will have newly-added online features.
The Switch network also have some sort of smart-device integration. Per a Nintendo press release:
The service includes a smart-device application available in Summer 2017 that will let users invite friends to play online, set play appointments and chat with one another as they play compatible games.
THE SCREEN
In handheld mode, the Switch will output video to its built-in 6.2-inch, 720p display. The screen also uses a capacitive touch panel.
THE BATTERY LIFE
Nintendo claims the Switch can get up to 6 hours of battery life, but “will vary depending on the software and usage conditions.” As a for-instance, they say The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild can be played for 3 hours on a single charge. The handheld Switch can be charged while you’re playing with the Switch’s included AC adapter, which goes into a USB-C plug on the handheld unit.
THE STORAGE CAPACITY
The Nintendo Switch will come with 32GB of internal memory. (Gasp!) However, it can be easily expanded using microSDXC cards. (Phew!)
THE CONTROLLERS
The detachable Joy-Con controllers have a pretty silly name, and hopefully we’ll just start calling them Switch Controllers before too long. For now, though, Joy-Con it is. (Per Nintendo, the plural of Joy-Con appears to be “Joy-Con.”)
You can also use a Nintendo Switch Pro Controller, which will go for $69.99. You can buy a second set of Joy-Con for $79.99. Individual Joy-Con go for $49.99. They ain’t cheap.
The Joy-Con can be popped off the side of the Switch like so and used to play two-player games.
Each Joy-Con has a joystick, four face buttons, an accelerometer, and two tiny cute little L and R shoulder buttons.
The right Joy-Con has an AR camera that can tell how far your hand is away from it—for example, it can tell the difference between a hand making rock, paper, or scissors. It also has a NFC reader/writer, which can read Amiibo data. The left Joy-Con has a “capture” button similar to the PS4, which will let you capture screenshots as well as, eventually, video. Both Joy-Con have got some allegedly nifty vibration features, and the Nintendo demonstrator was pretty high on what he called “HD Rumble.”
The Joy-Con can be attached to a Joy-Con Strap that slides over the long end, adding a wrist-strap and more prominent L and R buttons. They can also be combined with a Joy-Con Grip in the middle to form a single controller with the same number of thumbsticks and buttons you’d find on a Nintendo Pro Controller.
THE LACK OF REGION LOCKING
Unlike past Nintendo consoles, Nintendo Switch will not have software region locking. Rejoice!
Quelle