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Impressions: all the Switch Stuff
We have successfully returned from vacation near a beach. One element of which included the introduction of the Switch (and games) to my kiddo. Impressions:
Nintendo Switch itself
I think there was technically a way to hook up a Switch to a TV and not need the dock, but I decided to bring the dock as well. I was extremely wary of the dock snapping in half somewhere – given its U shape – but it’s either stronger than it looks or I’m luckier than I look. Packing it in my carry-on instead of a checked bag probably helped. Everything else was in a travel case that held up beautifully.
And not to belabor the point much, but the Switch was very portable; I doubt anyone is packing a PS5 into a carry-on or whatever for a one-week trip. The last time I felt comfortable traveling with a “regular” game console somewhere was in the GameCube era, when I’d bring that to-and-fro over college breaks. If there was an appropriate use case, this was it.
For all the games we played, we exclusively used the… half controller (?) configuration. Pretty awkward controller for me, but it was OK for the types of games we were playing.
Mario Kart 8
Started out with Mario Kart to try and leave a good impression with a game that had a lot of replay value. Kid was ready to give it up after a couple circuits.
Near as I can tell, there are two degrees of Assist Mode when it comes to Mario Kart 8. The first appears to be a generalized “automatically stay on the track.” You can still fly off if struck by something while airborne, but I believe the game otherwise keeps you from getting turned around or going out of bounds. The second level of assist is acceleration. For sure, I had this turned off for myself, even though I’m not certain how. My son, meanwhile, was otherwise able to leisurely putter around with only minor course (mis)corrections when the mood struck him. I had heard from a friend that Assist Mode is sometimes able to win races all by itself, but I did not at all see that in the 50cc difficulty.
My own impressions of the game “for real” will have to wait for a later opportunity.
Super Mario Bros Wonder
This was the first real hit with the child.
The way two-player works is its own sort of Assist Mode. One player has the “crown” and the camera follows them, pushing the other(s) along if they go off-screen. If someone falls down a pit or hits an enemy, they return as a floating ghost with a 5-second timer. Connect with an alive player in time and they will respawn with no loss of lives. Additionally, if someone is controlling Yoshi or a rabbit-looking dude, they become immune to dying by enemies… but cannot transform with power-ups.
Overall, what I have come to realize is that platformers are, you know, kinda hard for kids. Somehow we all made it through back in the day, sure, but god damn. Hate to even think about what our parents had to go through listening to us die in the original Mario Bros. Maybe that’s why they beat us with belts and/or shut us outside until after dark?
Super Mario Bros Odyssey
Odyssey is what we played after Wonder, and is the clear favorite currently.
The Assist Mode for Odyssey is that there are blue arrows showing where the player should go next, and I think that the penalty for falling into a pit is more relaxed (just 1 less heart vs… something else). Additionally, the second player gets to control the hat, which can be pretty cool.
Unfortunately, the platforming is not especially designed for a 6-year old here either, so there are some sequences when he wanted me to take over. Even being the hat was tricky, as you have to contend with having your perspective change if Mario moves around. Plus, sometimes you have to use the hat right now to prevent damage or make the boss vulnerable, or whatever. It’s a big responsibility.
We’re getting pretty close to “Bowser Wowser” as he’s been christened though, and my guy is having more fun watching than playing sometimes. We’ll see how things shake out in a couple weeks/months.
Super Smash Bros Ultimate
Didn’t actually get around to this one, despite my asking him several times if he wanted to try a different game. My guess is that he could still have fun on a team with daddy against whatever the equivalent of a bunch of Level 1 CPU Jigglypuffs there are in this one. Probably still Jigglypuffs.
Switch On
I have been waffling on whether to get the Switch 2 or a regular Switch or nothing at all for quite some time. To a certain extent, the question itself was silly – if you weren’t going to get a console after seven years of its life, you clearly weren’t all that interested, yeah? Just let it go. And I was doing just that.
Then, my son was meeting some new friends and they asked if he played Minecraft.
*cue MGS guard exclamation mark sound*
To be clear, my son hasn’t actually played Minecraft… or any formal videogames at all. There’s been some “educational” apps and the Nex Playground sort of things, but nothing what I would consider serious. Indeed, I had actually been waiting since his conception for a time when he would be ready to ascend to the P2 position (or technically P3). So, sensing some weakness in my somewhat-crunchy wife’s protective shell, I decided to turn up the heat.*
The funny thing is, I didn’t know how my son would play Minecraft. I bought it ages ago on PC but there’s no way he’s going to play it there. Of course, Minecraft has been ported to literally everything, so we’re technically spoiled for choice. But how could we play it together? Sure, there are probably some workarounds like cross-play from a tablet to the PC or phone to tablet. Or, you know, a game console.
So, yeah, this past Prime Day I bought an OLED Switch.
As pictured, it was a new OLED Switch with Mario Kart 8 Deluxe for $275 from Woot. I legitimately thought about trying to do some legwork and find a Switch 2 bundle someplace despite it costing double – you know, for future-proofing – but on the whole this “experiment” seemed safer anyway with a 6-year old. Besides, I had sorta regretted not getting a retro handheld with an analog stick and, well, here one is. Playing N64 games would require a subscription, but ehhhh it’s probably fine.
The funny/sad thing is that, at the same time as all the other frantic research being done before the end of the Woot sale, I actually got around to figuring out and executing on Switch emulation on my PC. So… maybe I didn’t need to be buying anything, really. Still, overall I feel like a legit Switch would be a good family-room style option to have. If it doesn’t work out in a couple of years, hey, Nintendo gear does appear to retain a lot of its value based on my eBay searching.
[Fake Edit] I’m going a little bit overboard, I think. Purchased the following:
- Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild [$45 via Costco voucher]
- Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom [$45 voucher trick above]
- Super Mario Bros Wonder [$38 eBay]
- Super Mario Party Jamboree [$45 Woot]
- Super Smash Bros Ultimate [$44 Woot]
- Super Mario Bros Odyssey [$40 Walmart]
That’s… a lot. Aside from the two Zelda games though, everything else are physical cartridges. I technically would have preferred digital games – who really cares for possibly losing cartridges around the house? – but the thought process is that physical games would retain some amount of resell value into the future. I’m positive that any of those Mario games would sell instantly on eBay for $30, for example. Will they continue to do so 5 years into the future or whatever? We shall see.
Something something, treat yo self.
…oh, and I’ll probably need Minecraft at some point too.
* I talked everything over with my wife beforehand, of course. Give me some credit.
Thought Process: OG Switch
Woot currently has a deal up for a brand new OLED Switch for $250. The sale is going until June 18th, or until they sell out, the latter of which seems more likely. Should I pull the trigger?
First question: why?
It’s a good question. For one thing, the Switch 2 just came out and it costs “only” $450. Right now, there aren’t very many actual Switch 2 games beyond Mario Kart World, so no real killer apps. Also, I have clearly sat out the entirety of the Switch’s original lifespan, so why jump in now? Also also, the Switch Lite appears to retail for around $180ish, which is even less, if it were somehow super important for me to play Switch games. Then again, $70 is probably reasonably enough to justify an OLED upgrade plus being able to dock it to a TV.
Not for nothing, the Retroid Pocket 5 can be bought from Amazon for $260. It would be even cheaper if not for the tariffs. It can emulate everything up through Gamecube, and even a few Switch titles. However, the process by which one acquires emulation-ready Switch games is the same for just playing them on the PC, so the only real benefit of one over the other is for gaming on the go. Which, as it turns out, I generally don’t do.
Second question: what would I play?
There are a few titles that immediately come to mind:
- Zelda: Breath of the Wild
- Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
- Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
- …?
When I was trying to think about the last Mario game I played, I realized that I hadn’t played one for a long time. The last Nintendo console I bought was Gamecube back in my college days, but it was primarily to play Super Smash Bros Melee and Mario Kart Double Dash. So, Super Mario… Sunshine, I never played. Nor Galaxy or Galaxy 2. Presumably they would be fun. But fun enough to justify $40 purchases of decades-old games? Ehhhh. Nintendo does have a subscription feature with classic games to play, but the Gamecube offerings right now are like 3 games (only for Switch 2).
Final question: what will I do?
After a long, exhaustive mental exercise, the answer is… Nothing. I will do nothing. I am not super convinced the OLED Switch will get any less expensive in the future, but that does not seem to matter much to me. Which makes sense, given all of my other gaming “obligations.” If anything, I would be more inclined for the Switch 2 simply because Mario Kart World does seem fun, and it’s backwards compatible, etc. Or the Retroid Pocket 5, honestly.
Or I can just continue to do waffle and whaff and do nothing until/unless some other solution releases that makes things more obviously clear. Like maybe a Steam Deck 2 or something.
It Gets Easier
In years past, I always experienced surprise when coming out of a holiday season sans holiday loot. Maybe it is because I’m older, maybe it’s because I have exactly two hours of “free” time each day now (in which I also have to fit chores), or maybe things like Humble Bundle and sales in general have spoiled me, but… it’s easier than ever to let things slide right on by.
My decision point this past Black Cyber Fronday was two-fold: PS4 or Switch. The PS4 had a lot going for it… sorta. There are basically five games I want to play that are PS4 exclusive, and two of them haven’t released yet. Given how the console deals have actually gotten worse over the years, it stood to reason that I could just continue to wait. All the way into March, if necessary.
The Switch is not something I talk much about here, which makes some kind of sense considering I do not own the machine. Nor any Nintendo console since the GameCube and the DS, really. I don’t have anything in particular against Nintendo, I just don’t have friends coming over to play games anymore. I guess Mario Kart and Smash Brothers can still be fun solo, but having the possibility of 2P, 3P, and 4P joining the field is what sets the value over the top. Without that bonus, you have a console that costs the same as it did three years ago and ports of Wii U games that grab headlines when they hit 50% off.
Despite all that, I was very sorely tempted by the Switch Lite when it was going for $163. I don’t have commutes in which I could reliably play it, or really even any opportunity to play at all that would not also allow me to play PC games instead. Still… how else will I ever experience Zelda: Breath of the Wild?
Then a thought occurred to me. “I know some Rent-A-Centers nearby. I wonder what they charge?”
Holy shit
Technically there is a non-bundle version with just the console for the low, low price of $19.99/week. Which might even be a “deal” compared with old-school Blockbuster prices back in the day. But holy shit, you guys, the fine print says that actually renting to own this bundle is $1,949.35 (65 total payments of $29.99). Meanwhile at GameStop, that bastion of charity, you can resell a PS4 1TB console for $150 store credit as of today. So, conceivably, buy a used one for $190 and even if you turn around and trade it in two weeks later, you’re getting at least as good of a deal.
Or, you know, continue doing nothing but playing the same games you were already playing for $0-$15/month. Sometimes analysis paralysis pays off.
In An Age 
Sorta Black Friday, 2025 Edition
Dec 1
Posted by Azuriel
I started writing a list of games I had an eye on at the start of the holidays, and it has since passed me by with nary a thing purchased. At least, not from this list. Regardless, here it is for posterity:
On reflection, it’s pretty much just a list of every mainstream game released in the last 5 years. My actual wishlist is longer, but I sometimes forget that Steam doesn’t consider Black Friday to be a real holiday – most everything was not on sale, as it would normally be during the Winter Sale, for example.
What I did end up ordering this “holiday” season were technically two more Switch accessories. First was the 8Bitdo Lite 2 controller ($21), as a smaller controller for the Little Man. The normal Switch joy-cons sorta work for his hands already – using just one when playing Mario Kart 8, for example – but honestly I don’t like them all that much. If I want him to get more coordinated and better at videogames, getting used to a somewhat more “real” controller makes more sense. Plus, worst-case scenario, the controller itself works on Android devices.
The second item is the GameSir G8 Plus ($49 AliExpress), which is a telescoping bluetooth controller. While it can work with phones and even smaller tablets, the primary use-case is the Switch itself. There was a cheaper, Switch-specific option available, but again, I’m all about accounting for worst-case scenarios. To date, I have not played the Switch outside of Little Man co-op sessions in the living room, which means no Breath of the Wild (etc). If I’m being honest, I do not anticipate this purchase immediately solving that issue, but at least it eases some of the (future) potential friction.
Aside from all that, I am just continuing to quietly play Guild Wars 2 and Outer Worlds 2. Once the latter is finished, my plan is to move onto the last (hopefully) 10% of Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, so as to free up 154 GB of space. After that… who knows. Baldur’s Gate 3 is right there. Death Stranding, too. Red Dead Redemption 2 as well. Or, you know, all of those Switch games I was talking about earlier.
Oh, or maybe Expedition 33! It is on Game Pass already…
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Tags: Black Friday, Consumers, Controller, Sales, Switch