Nintendo Switch's Voice Chat Is Stupid

[YamiYukiSenpai]

A Third Party's Look At The Nintendo Switch's Phone-Based Voice Chat Is A Technological Monstrosity | Forbes

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One simple question has dogged his idea from the start. If you’re relying on your phone for voice chat, how the hell do you listen to your game audio? One headphone from two different sets in each ear? That was originally a joke, but we’re now getting a look at what might be the actual solution, and it’s almost just as awkward.

The image...comes from HORI, a third party manufacturer who has assembled a Splatoon-themed headset and connection system that may be our first real look at how voice chat will work on the Switch running through a phone.

'Splatoon 2' voice chat leaves us asking: What exactly is Nintendo smoking? | Mashable

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The Switch doesn't feature any built-in support for the kinds of voice chat and grouped parties common to other gaming platforms. Instead, Nintendo is leaning on a piece of tech that most gamers have access to: smartphones.

 

I seriously need to know why the majority at Nintendo thought a solution like this is good.  For a game console that's supposed to be good for portability and on-the-go stuff, this set up is the complete opposite. Not only that, a setup like this won't work when the console is docked, unless you buy extension cables, dongles, etc.

 

When you're on the go, you're set up has to be clean.  When you're working with a laptop at a coffee shop or somewhere in public, you don't want wires surrounding you.  It's hard to keep track and it's plain messy.

 

If they think that offloading chat will save battery, then I'd prefer having battery banks charging the console than this solution.

 

This is 2017.  Something like voice chat on a game console should be part of the device. Especially if you want customers to pay for your online services.

 

Nintendo better explain themselves soon.  Cuz this is plain stupidity.

 

[Avcn42]

I love Nintendo but this kind of BS is unfortunately not a surprise at all. This is the expected level of online interaction on their consoles. 

[Railgun]

Did I just get cancer from looking at that? Seriously Nintendo just needs to learn to do some things normally for once

[linkboy]

I really wish Nintendo had made the Switch work with Bluetooth headsets. This is just a complicated setup for something that really isn't all that complicated.

[GoodBytes]

If I were to set this monstrosity thing up, I would end up using Skype, as I always did in the past. I highly doubt Nintendo would have decent voice quality, especially that the other console and Steam and many online games don't. So if I were to go to the whole trouble, might as well use Skype on my phone.

 

And that would also mean, for me: what is the point in paying for online then? I would be using Skype. And if you wonder, so far, all online games are voice chat only with friends. So either way I would have them on my Skype contact list.

[YamiYukiSenpai]

2 minutes ago, GoodBytes said:

If I were to set this monstrosity thing up, I would end up using Skype, as I always did in the past. I highly doubt Nintendo would have decent voice quality, especially that the other console and Steam and many online games don't. So if I were to go to the whole trouble, might as well use Skype on my phone.

 

There are a lot of good options out there.

 

And I think Nintendo's voice chat only works with friends, too.  Gonna look into it.

[GoodBytes]

2 minutes ago, linkboy said:

I really wish Nintendo had made the Switch work with Bluetooth headsets. This is just a complicated setup for something that really isn't all that complicated.

Even if Nintendo was stubborn and only allowed voice chat with their phone app. Bluetooth headphone support is a must. How can you play with headphones on the TV (The WiiU introduced that, by having a headphone plug on the Gamepad controller) or you don't want a wires on the go?

[Avcn42]

Also I just want to remind you that they're still using friend codes, which were already bad in 2006. Goddammit Nintendo. 

[The Sloth]

4 minutes ago, GoodBytes said:

point in paying for online then

the server cost and maintenance

 

4 minutes ago, GoodBytes said:

If I were to set this monstrosity thing up, I would end up using Skype, as I always did in the past. I highly doubt Nintendo would have decent voice quality, especially that the other console and Steam and many online games don't. So if I were to go to the whole trouble, might as well use Skype on my phone.

 

agree but something would have been better than nothing. 

[linkboy]

Just now, GoodBytes said:

Even if Nintendo was stubborn and only allowed voice chat with their phone app. Bluetooth headphone support is a must. How can you play with headphones on the TV (The WiiU introduced that, by having a headphone plug on the Gamepad controller) or you don't want a wires on the go?

My only guess as to why they didn't enable Bluetooth support is they didn't want any interference with the joycons (or Pro Controller). Even when connected to the Switch, the joycons are still using Bluetooth to connect to the system.

 

You'd get a lot of potential interference, especially if doing multiplayer and everyone was using Bluetooth headsets.

 

 

[Blebekblebek]

23 minutes ago, nerdslayer1 said:

the server cost and maintenance

 

 

Most nintendo games are P2P
Even if it's not P2P most publisher pay their own bill for their server games.

 

It's just the usual nintendo thing

If they can sell Amiibo they would make anything proprietary to them and charge consumers for it.

 

Also Bluetooth and Joyconn issue?

This problems exist because they made it up

how is this still argument when every phones already had Bluetooth and wireless on a same chip.

Wireless audio and input controller doesn't require high bandwith.

If they worried about interference how adding RJ45 to the dock instead forcing consumers to use wireless for Internet.

[mynameisjuan]

Can we go back to not needing a smart phone to use every fucking device nowadays? Especially on devices that are more than capable of not needing them.

[JoeCoke]

As much as I love (or want to love) Nintendo, this shit is just every day Nintendo. They avoid doing things the normal way, even if it's the inferior way. They have to do everything in their own "special" way, it's been that way ever since the Wii.

[Eazy Cheezy]

 That has to be the absolute most idiotic setup I think I've ever seen as far as voice chat goes! Such a shame to see a platform with so much potential be handicapped by this design flaw. 

[Spenser1337]

47 minutes ago, nerdslayer1 said:

the server cost and maintenance

 

agree but something would have been better than nothing. 

Game devs pay for servers, not Nintendo. Unless it's a Nintendo sponsored title obviously, paid online another reason to not buy this already trash console 

[Sniperfox47]

I have to assume that this is an artifact of the switch being designed for their Japanese audience and us just getting the leftovers.

 

I have to assume that on-the-go online gameplay is going to be a much bigger thing in Japan, considering how many more events and real-world interactions there are.

 

It makes sense that if you need your phone's LTE on the go for an internet connection anyways, that you'd use the phone for voice chat.

 

Otherwise you're pretty much tripling the power consumption of the voice data between the two devices (wifi up on the switch and both hotspot down and LTE up on the phone).

 

Likewise mobile phone chips (SoC, DAC, ADC, Sensor Hub, etc) are typically pretty well optimized for RTC apps. There's no reason why the audio quality couldn't be *very* comparable to Skype without causing too much of an issue on your battery.

 

At home it makes less sense.

[TidaLWaveZ]

I'm just here because I enjoy the thread title.

 

I'd be ecstatic if the LTT community would begin naming threads like this whenever possible, even if a subtitle is necessary.

 

By that I mean simply calling a product/service "stupid" when deserved.

 

No this is not sarcasm.

[The Sloth]

10 minutes ago, Spenser1337 said:

Game devs pay for servers, not Nintendo. Unless it's a Nintendo sponsored title obviously, paid online another reason to not buy this already trash console 

thanks for the info," trash console" is an opinion, not a fact, in my opinion, the switch is one of the best console out right now, i have played more switch than any other console since it's release. 

[Kobathor]

The name of this thread looks like a ReviewTechUSA video title.

[PlayStation 2]

It would be better just to use Discord. Probably cheaper and less painful than that.

[Sniperfox47]

1 minute ago, Dan Castellaneta said:

It would be better just to use Discord. Probably cheaper and less painful than that.

The nintendo voice chat for switch is included as part of the subscription cost to play games online in the first place.

[PlayStation 2]

Just now, Sniperfox47 said:

The nintendo voice chat for switch is included as part of the subscription cost to play games online in the first place.

 

3 minutes ago, Dan Castellaneta said:

It would be better just to use Discord. Probably cheaper and less painful than that.

 

[Spenser1337]

1 hour ago, nerdslayer1 said:

thanks for the info," trash console" is an opinion, not a fact, in my opinion, the switch is one of the best console out right now, i have played more switch than any other console since it's release. 

 It's just not for me, I understand the appeal though 

[Master Disaster]

3 hours ago, Andrevcn said:

Also I just want to remind you that they're still using friend codes, which were already bad in 2006. Goddammit Nintendo. 

Friend codes are going when the full online service is launched in Autumn, that's already been confirmed.

 

As for the original post, WTF Nintendo. Talk about coming up with a worse solution to a problem no one else ever had. The fucking thing supports Bluetooth anyway????

[Master Disaster]

2 hours ago, Kobathor said:

The name of this thread looks like a ReviewTechUSA video title.

But it ain't wrong though