Switch might need a smartphone app for matchmaking services and VoIP. What?

[Master Disaster]

Yep, you did read it  right, Nintendo Of America CEO Reggie Fils-Aime has made an implication that the switch will need to have a smartphone connected to the device in order to play online and use VoIP features.

Quote

The Nintendo Switch companion app is fast turning into a pretty essential part of the Switch. 

 

As well as the previously announced news that you’ll need to use the app in order to enable voice-chat on the console, in a recent interview Nintendo of America’s President Reggie Fils-Aime suggested that the app would be used for a lot more besides voice chat. 

 

In fact, the app’s functionality actually goes as far as enabling matchmaking and allowing you to create lobbies, suggesting that your online options are going to be pretty slim without your smartphone. 

In his statement he justified the move by saying players will always have a smartphone with them when playing the switch so it makes sense to utilise the functions built into the smartphone instead of adding them to the Switch

Quote

Fils-Aime justified the decision to rely on the app for voice chat by saying that most people will have a headset that connects to their phone on them at all times. 

As such using the phone for voice chat makes sense, as it means you don’t have to carry around an extra Switch-specific headset. 

 

But while these justifications make a certain amount of sense for using the console while on the go, the same can’t be said for docked play, where people are used to having a dedicated headset and a console that can handle everything without needing accessories. 

 

Fils-Aime’s use of the word ‘hotspot’ also suggests that Nintendo expects people to tether their console to their phone to get online while on the go, which might prove challenging for anyone with a limited amount of data. 

http://www.techradar.com/news/the-nintendo-switch-will-need-its-smartphone-app-for-online-matchmaking

 

LOL, and so it begins. Nintendo are being Nintendo and making baffling decisions that hinder players and ruin any chance of the switch becoming a success. I'm sorry but having my phone permantently tethered to my console and having to take my phone with me everywhere I take this "portable" console is just not practical. Plus that explains how they managed upto 6 hours of battery on the console, because they're forcing users to share battery between the console and smartphone.

 

 

[That Norwegian Guy]

It makes sense, since if you want to play online while in portable mode you need something to connect to anyway. I'm sure you don't expect the Switch to have 4G and a sim slot?

 

Also, I'm pretty sure this means Bluetooth, whether you're docked or not.

 

However, it's pretty fucking stupid to not have online functionality while docked anyway. I expect this to be motivated like Discord: honeypot for snooping.

[Guest]

Switch need a phone dock now. This is stupid

[vanished]

Id like to see a Switch app for the Shield TV that basically turns it into a Switch... I mean, it's got the same or better hardware already  

[suicidalfranco]

which makes the pay2online even more ludicrous 

[Ashaira]

1 hour ago, suicidalfranco said:

which makes the pay2online even more ludicrous 

what? you mean you don't want to pay to use your phone and your internet to talk to people who also need to pay?

[suicidalfranco]

11 minutes ago, Ashaira said:

what? you mean you don't want to pay to use your phone and your internet to talk to people who also need to pay?

and play games that will most likely use the publishers servers instead of ours? gosh you almost make it sound as pay2online services on consoles are a highway robbery or something 

[ThreePinkApples]

I can understand their thought process, but I don't feel like that explanation is all. I am theorising that another reason for this is so that the SwitchOS can keep as little resource as possible as hostage, giving the games as much as possible. With both the PS4 and Xbone we initially got the specs about 8 cores etc., but then later on we learned that the OS kept 1 or 2 of them for it self, and also 2GB of the 8GB of RAM, although this has been reduced in later updates to now only be 1 core and 1GB of RAM, iirc. So naturally the Switch would also have to have some resources kept to itself for the OS functions, but with the limited resources the Switch has, the more they can give to the game, the better. 

[Pheelo]

Expensive console, expensive monthly cost for online access, expensive cost for smartphone internet. This is going to be quite expensive Nintendo.

[Master Disaster]

2 hours ago, That Norwegian Guy said:

It makes sense, since if you want to play online while in portable mode you need something to connect to anyway. I'm sure you don't expect the Switch to have 4G and a sim slot?

 

Also, I'm pretty sure this means Bluetooth, whether you're docked or not.

 

However, it's pretty fucking stupid to not have online functionality while docked anyway. I expect this to be motivated like Discord: honeypot for snooping.

Nope, I'd expect WiFi when docked then ad hoc when on the go for lan only multiplayer just like the DS. No one in their right mind is expecting full online MP in portable mode and Nintendo's decision to tether users that want MP to a phone at all times is absurd. Now Switch owners have the cost of mobile data and the battery control of their phones to worry about on top of the cost of the device and whatever Nintendo decide to charge for MP services.

 

This news has updated my expectations of Switch, instead of suspecting the thing will be dead by Christmas I'm now certain of it.

 

The higher you rise the further you have to fall and Nintendo have fallen pretty fucking far from the SNES days.

[Master Disaster]

23 minutes ago, aerandir92 said:

I can understand their thought process, but I don't feel like that explanation is all. I am theorising that another reason for this is so that the SwitchOS can keep as little resource as possible as hostage, giving the games as much as possible. With both the PS4 and Xbone we initially got the specs about 8 cores etc., but then later on we learned that the OS kept 1 or 2 of them for it self, and also 2GB of the 8GB of RAM, although this has been reduced in later updates to now only be 1 core and 1GB of RAM, iirc. So naturally the Switch would also have to have some resources kept to itself for the OS functions, but with the limited resources the Switch has, the more they can give to the game, the better. 

Well then maybe they should ditch the stupid effort to make gold out of poo and make an actual console with real hardware that can handle its job on its own without the need to proxy essential system tasks to other hardware.

[That Norwegian Guy]

1 hour ago, Master Disaster said:

Nope, I'd expect WiFi when docked then ad hoc when on the go for lan only multiplayer just like the DS. No one in their right mind is expecting full online MP in portable mode and Nintendo's decision to tether users that want MP to a phone at all times is absurd. Now Switch owners have the cost of mobile data and the battery control of their phones to worry about on top of the cost of the device and whatever Nintendo decide to charge for MP services.

 

This news has updated my expectations of Switch, instead of suspecting the thing will be dead by Christmas I'm now certain of it.

I would expect full online MP in portable mode. Why not? The technology is there.

 

Also, the Switch won't fail, Nintendo fans can be mindbogglingly stupid, just look at how that piece of shit mini NES is sold out everywhere with its $0.50 production cost, $3.50 game library value and $60 MSRP. (an MSRP you will never see it at, more likely over double)

[CyanideInsanity]

People always say nintendo does it backwards and don't understand the whole online gaming thing. I don't think  its that at all. I think its that nintendo donesn't want to understand it. There is no reason for phones to be THE online gaming hub...

[Puddleuk]

Didn't want to get involved in any of this stuff but the level of misinterpretation of the quote is astonishing. 

 

You can use your mobile data to play matches online when you are away from your home network. 

You can still connect to your home network to play online when you are at home, your smartphone would also be connected at this point so no data is being used.

You can still send messages through the switch device itself, on the UI there is clearly a message icon with a notification.

 

The app is required for voice chat but truthfully how many games use voice chat on Nintendo consoles. Personally (and this is just my opinion) I like the idea of being able to play online when I'm on the go, not that I would ever really do it except on rare occasions. 

 

So for those worried, you won't be using any mobile data unless you choose to.

[Master Disaster]

1 hour ago, That Norwegian Guy said:

I would expect full online MP in portable mode. Why not? The technology is there.

The technology is there? Last time I check mobile data networks have huge pings and cost a fair bit of money plus expecting current battery technology to withstand full online gaming on the go is frankly ridiculous, there's a reason why gaming laptops have silly power requirements like 2 external bricks.

[That Norwegian Guy]

2 minutes ago, Master Disaster said:

The technology is there? Last time I check mobile data networks have huge pings

Maybe in USA, on my Norwegian 4G I get 30-50 ping to EU Rocket League servers (only game I've tried it on whenever my home internet went down) using my phone as a modem.

 

And I live very far north in the country, not in any big city.

[ashypanda]

why not just use free public Wi-Fi, that'd be cheaper and easier, and it's pretty obvious that you'd need an internet connection for online MP, but it'd be nice if the console could create an AD-HOC network for local MP, as at least then you don't need to rely on a phone or router to be able to connect, but it sounds like it might be an always on online connection to able to use MP, so it'd need to handshake with nintendo's servers before allowing you to access the MP functions, which is just dumb.

[JoseGuya]

When did Apple buy Nintendo? 

[MSWindowsinside]

I already didn't really want the Switch, now I don't want it at all.

[Drak3]

1 hour ago, That Norwegian Guy said:

just look at how that piece of shit mini NES is sold out everywhere with its $0.50 production cost, $3.50 game library value and $60 MSRP.

The NES Classic isn't that horrible, especially now that people know how to get more games on it. For those that don't know about emulators, don't trust them, or don't have systems that can run them decently, it's a nice alternative to have.

[That Norwegian Guy]

1 minute ago, Drak3 said:

The NES Classic isn't that horrible

It's not about being good or bad, it's about being a 20X profit margin money printing scheme of scum and villainy.

 

I would never buy a product if the company was making even 3 times profit, even if it was demonstrably curing every known disease.

[Drak3]

1 minute ago, That Norwegian Guy said:

It's not about being good or bad, it's about being a 20X profit margin money printing scheme of scum and villainy.

 

I would never buy a product if the company was making even 3 times profit, even if it was demonstrably curing every known disease.

Cost of manufacturing aside, Nintendo also has administrative costs and developer costs that go into making the NES Classic. Few products are actually profitable early in their run, and the NES Classic's profit also doesn't go straight into the CEO's pocket, it's used to fund future endeavors, developing games and manufacturing the Switch isn't exactly cheap.

 

[TetraSky]

Eh, makes sense to me.

Though I'd prefer if the Switch had a SIM card slot instead of relying on a smartphone's.
But like 2 or 3 of you said already, it obviously won't be using your mobile data when you're at home on your own wifi network. This is only for ON THE GO. Which is perfectly normal if you want to play online outside of the house. Or what, you expected the Switch to just have network connectivity regardless of where you were because they will charge for online play now?

And lets face it, how many of you would actually bring that console with you anywhere that doesn't have free wifi.

[Senzelian]

3 hours ago, That Norwegian Guy said:

I would expect full online MP in portable mode. Why not? The technology is there.

 

Also, the Switch won't fail, Nintendo fans can be mindbogglingly stupid, just look at how that piece of shit mini NES is sold out everywhere with its $0.50 production cost, $3.50 game library value and $60 MSRP. (an MSRP you will never see it at, more likely over double)

We sell the NES Mini for 49.99EUR and we still have two in stock. Welcome to Germany.

[YamiYukiSenpai]

Having to use another device would be a complete pain in the ass.  How are we supposed to listen to the in-game audio?

 

I seriously hope this isn't as bad as it seems.  If it is, then they didn't do their basic research and their job right.