Japanese gamers trying the new game during the new console's unveiling 'Nintendo Switch' by Nintendo Co. on January 14, 2017 in Tokyo Big Sight, Japan. (Photo : Getty Images/ Richard Atrero de Guzman)
Nintendo is making a new video game console called the Nintendo Switch, a $300 home console/portable console hybrid. The game console comes for the first time since the Wii U launched and fizzled in 2012.
The new Nintendo Switch will enabled gamers to use the gaming console both at home and on-the-go. The console which looks like a tablet that a gamer slides into a dock can slide on the two Joy-Con controllers.
The Switch is scheduled to be launched on March 3 and as the time nears, Nintendo, a Japanese multinational company offered game lovers a chance to try the system during a Jan. 13 press event in New York City. In the event, fans had a first touch of the highly anticipated game and shared their thoughts on the experience.
According to Engadget, one of the highlights was the hardware itself. The $300 console-handheld hybrid is described as the latest Xbox or PlayStation. Its tablet does all the processing and acts as screen to the Switch console when it is away from any housebound dock and TV. Taking the tablet as the brains of Nintendo's new console, the heart is said to split between the two Joy-Con controllers.
The new Nintendo Switch console was earlier reported as a hybrid device with detachable controllers which is an evolution of what Nintendo Company tried with the Wii U. However, the idea has been better executed this time round with Nintendo planning to make its handheld and home consoles one single thing. As a result, the device ended up taking after either a futuristic toaster or a robot dog's face depending on the use case.
The Joy-Con grip is more comfortable and works as motion controllers too. Nintendo has upgraded them with some additional tricks as users can get a pair of them. Joy-Con, shipped with the base console, looks a little off-putting because of how square it looks like, Gizmodo reported.
The Joy-Con is surprisingly light and the layout works really well. Comparing it with Pro Controller, Joy-Con is preferred as the former is not on the level of the Xbox Elite and the stock standard Xbox One/PS4 controllers feel a little nicer to hold.
Joy-Con controllers will transform the gaming industry as they are equal parts peculiar and cool. Nintendo's console fans recall that the original Wii was loved because of its brave feature to reinvent the games controller. This added smart responsive control options that coaxed non-gamers into playing. Nintendo is now hoping to repeat that same trick.
Watch a video of Nintendo Switch first look here:
