Nintendo Switch
Nintendo Switch | |
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Manufacturer | Nintendo |
Type | Hybrid video game console |
Generation | Eighth generation era |
First available | Worldwide: March 3, 2017 |
CPU | Quad-core (4×ARM Cortex-A57) |
GPU | Nvidia GM20B Maxwell |
Media | ROM Cartridge Digital distribution (Nintendo eShop) |
System storage | Internal flash memory: 32 GB microSD/microSDHC/microSDXC up to 2 TB |
Controller input | Joy-Con Nintendo Switch Pro Controller Capacitive touchscreen GameCube controller (via an adapter) |
Connectivity | 2.4/5 GHz 802.11ac Wi-Fi Bluetooth 4.1 1 × USB 3.0 (on dock) 2 × USB 2.0 (on dock) 1 × USB-C (on unit) |
Online service | Nintendo Switch Online (Payment required) |
Predecessor | Wii U |
Article on Nintendo Wiki | Nintendo Switch |
- For the smasher, see Smasher:Switch.
The Nintendo Switch (ニンテンドースイッチ) is the seventh home video game console released by Nintendo. The console is the successor to the Wii U and it competes with Sony's PlayStation 4 and Microsoft's Xbox One console in the 8th generation of video game systems.
Known in development by its codename NX, it was unveiled in October 2016, subsequently revealed as the Switch in January 2017, and was released worldwide on March 3rd, 2017. The Switch is considered a "hybrid" console; it is designed primarily as a home console, with the main unit inserted onto a docking station to connect to a television or monitor. Alternatively, it can be removed from the dock and used similarly to a mobile tablet, or placed in a standalone tabletop position visible to several players. The Switch uses Joy-Con wireless controllers, which include standard buttons and a directional joystick for user input, motion sensing, and high-definition tactile feedback. Switch games and software are available on both physical flash ROM cartridges and digital distribution and do not use region locking.
A second model of the Nintendo Switch, the Nintendo Switch Lite, was announced on July 10th, 2019, and was released worldwide on September 20th, 2019. It is a handheld-focused revision of the system, integrating the Joy-Con as part of the main unit's hardware, and has a smaller screen and a larger battery capacity. Additionally, a regular directional pad replaced the four directional buttons on the integrated left Joy-Con. However, due to the integration of the Joy-Con into the system, they cannot be removed, and thus, the HD Rumble and IR camera features have been removed. The Switch Lite only directly supports games that can be played in handheld mode, retaining features like the Switch's gyroscopic sensors and Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and NFC communication compatibility. Some tabletop games that require the HD Rumble or IR camera features will require players to use separate Joy-Con with the Switch Lite. The system does not support any docking or connectivity to a television, so it is incompatible with games that require television mode. Players who attempt to purchase games that require television or tabletop mode via the eShop on the Switch Lite will be notified of the incompatibility. In addition to other normal Joy-Con, the Switch Lite does support external controllers otherwise compatible with the Switch.
An updated version of the Nintendo Switch, featuring a longer battery life than the original of 4.5–9 hours, was announced on July 17th, 2019, and was released in Japan and North America in mid-August 2019, and released in the United Kingdom in September 2019. This revision of the Switch primarily features a change in both the main CPU and GPU that leads to lower power consumption while otherwise maintaining the same battery, which extends the battery life.
Features
Hardware
The Switch console is solely based on the tablet. Everything else operates in tandem with the device. The Dock serves as a means to connect the tablet to a television, as well as charging it and any attached controllers. The console itself has 32 Gigabytes of on-system storage and has a slot for optional microSD card memory expansion of up to 2 Terabytes. The console is capable of 720p output in tablet and tabletop mode with an adaptive resolution and can go as high as 1080p while docked.
The Joy-Con controllers are wireless, Bluetooth-based and the right Joycon is equipped with an infrared camera on the bottom which allows gyroscopic data (among other things) to be surveyed to the Switch, allowing for Wiimote-like motion controls in various games. The Joy-Cons can be used in tandem with each other in various ways. They can be equipped to a grip to make a whole controller, be held separately, or can be held horizontally and played as their own controllers. Additionally, a more traditional controller, called the Pro Controller, is also available, which also has built-in gyroscopic controls. All controllers feature HD Rumble, an advanced form of haptic feedback that enables the system to replicate every single tap and sensation in-game, with much more realism and efficiency than traditional haptic motors.
The physical media for the console consists of proprietary cartridges as opposed to the optical Blu-Ray discs of its direct competitors. The cartridges are not region-locked, though they do require a profile on the console that matches the region the games were purchased in order to play them. The cartridge plastic has been coated in an extremely bitter, non-toxic substance to prevent children from swallowing them.
Online
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate has the absolute worst online multiplayer experience of any game ever. please just go play melee.
Nintendo Switch Online app=
The Nintendo Switch Online app is a mobile app given to download with the Nintendo Switch Online service. Some sub-sections can appear in the app, corresponding to the owner-owned games.
Here is the list of all compatible games and their global features:
- Splatoon 2: Players have access to SplatNet 2.
- Super Smash Bros. Ultimate: Players have access to Smash World.
- Animal Crossing: New Horizons: Players have access to NookLink.
In the Super Smash Bros. series
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate was released for the Nintendo Switch on December 7th, 2018 worldwide. The game was first teased at the end of the March 8th, 2018 Nintendo Direct, little over a year after the system had launched, and was officially revealed at Nintendo's E3 2018 presentation.
Gallery
Trivia
- The Switch is the third Nintendo console to have a Super Smash Bros. game on a cartridge, after Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS on the Nintendo 3DS and Super Smash Bros. on the Nintendo 64.
- The Nintendo Switch is the fourth consecutive Nintendo console to have support for the GameCube controller, after the Wii U, Wii, and GameCube.
Nintendo consoles | |
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Home consoles | Color TV-Game 15 · Nintendo Entertainment System · Super Nintendo Entertainment System · Virtual Boy · Nintendo 64 · Nintendo GameCube · Wii · Wii U |
Handheld consoles | Game & Watch · Game Boy · Game Boy Color · Game Boy Advance · Nintendo DS · Nintendo 3DS |
Hybrid consoles | Nintendo Switch |