Before we get into the crux of this post I should preface it by saying that on the whole, I think the Switch is a great, extremely innovative console. Having said this, the Switch definitely has some flaws and coming up I’ll be running you through the ones which prove the most detrimental to the user experience.
1. Joy-Con Drift
Joy-Con Drift Number one’s the big one: Joy-Con drift! If you’re a Switch owner and you haven’t heard of Joy-Con drift count yourself lucky as, for the time being at least, you’ve dodged a proverbial bullet. This bullet being the console detecting movement of the thumbsticks on the Joy-Con that the player is not inputting. In other words, the Switch is thinking that you’re moving the thumbstick in some random direction when you’re not touching it at all or moving it in a completely different direction. As you can expect, this renders the Switch basically unplayable when Mario spontaneously jumps off of a building in Super Mario Odyssey or the camera starts panning uncontrollably when you’re trying to land a headshot in Overwatch. Even minor drift, whilst perhaps not being game ruining is still more than enough to be noticeable and aggravating to a player when they bought a Switch to play games and not have the console play those games for them of its own accord. Nintendo has said to players experiencing the issue that they will fix it free of charge, however having to send the console off to Nintendo and be without it for however long it takes to be fixed is undoubtedly a frustrating inconvenience. There are even reports of the Switch Lite, which let’s not forget does not even have Joy-Cons (instead the controls are fixed to the console), suffering from the issue and it really brings into question how Nintendo have not managed to eradicate the problem which still persists in 2020 despite being identified not long after the system launched. I view the issue as the Switch’s key flaw and remain hopeful, albeit doubtful, that Nintendo can eradicate the problem fully with future revisions of the Joy-Cons and the Switch itself.
2. Lack of processing power
Credit: https://www.eteknix.com/ Nintendo played it very safe with the internals of the Switch, opting for a not so powerful mobile processor in the form of the Tegra X1 even by 2017 standards when the system launched, instead of something more ambitious. Graphically, the Tegra X1 packs in a Maxwell-based GPU which runs at 768MHz in docked mode but, along with the memory clock speed, this is downclocked to 307.2 MHz in handheld mode. CPU clock speed is fixed at 1.02GHz both docked and undocked. This means that rather than the dock featuring some form of upscaling technology that enables the processor to be overclocked like was theorised prior to the Switch’s launch, in docked mode the processor is actually just running at its standard clock speeds, with it being downclocked in handheld mode. The dock’s somewhat minor impact on performance has led to many games actually looking worse in docked mode when played on the TV as it exposes graphical infidelities that the switch’s small screen hides when played portably. Nintendo played it safe on the power standpoint so to launch the switch ASAP and keep its price low for when they did following the disaster that was the Wii U. Haemorrhaging money due to the Wii U’s lack of sales, Nintendo needed salvation in the form of the Switch imminently and investing more time and money into more powerful hardware would have likely delayed the console’s launch. They needed to keep the price down as well due to how badly they needed the Switch to sell, meaning an underpowered processor was the compromise needed to keep Nintendo in business. And needless to mention Nintendo doesn’t care about power, knowing that they could still make great gorgeous looking games even for a relatively weak console, something they somehow managed to pull off on the 3DS. Nintendo playing it safe has worked wonders for them throughout the switch’s lifespan as it continues to sell like hotcakes and great games both from Nintendo and third parties continue to hit the system. So it worked for Nintendo, but for switch owners like myself that were hoping the switch would mark the end of Nintendo’s drought of AAA third party support since the Gamecube era, it has been less of a victory, with the Switch seeming to be just a little too underpowered for widespread ports of current PS4/Xbox One titles, albeit with a few exceptions. We have gotten solid ports of the likes of Doom, the Witcher 3 and Wolfenstein but this hasn’t extended to the majority of other AAA titles released on PS4 and Xbox One this generation, with developers either viewing it as impossible or a waste of time and money to attempt to cram their games onto the Switch. It is a shame but you can’t have your cake and eat it too. I’m sure that whilst it could have been possible for Nintendo to develop the Switch to be competitive power-wise with the first iterations of the PS4 and Xbox One it would have had the repercussion of making the switch far more expensive, inevitably squashing sales – perhaps leading to third parties not choosing to port their games over as the audience on Switch wasn’t large enough to be viable. Who knows, this is all speculation and I’m glad Nintendo played it safe because I’m glad that the switch has been a success, but it’s still slightly bitter-sweet knowing that the Switch could have been the ultimate one console does and plays all system. You never know, maybe the Switch pro maybe just that if and when it releases!
3. The number of subpar games ported to the Switch
Talking about the Switch’s lack of processing power leads us nicely on to reason number 3 – the number of shocking ports we’ve seen and suffered through on the Switch which have been primarily a result of developers poorly optimising their games for the system. We’re looking at you WWE 2K18 and Ark: Survival Evolved, which run so badly on the Switch it’s comical. Although you probably wouldn’t find it so funny having been excited to play these games and proceeded to waste your hard-earned cash on them. These are two abysmal standouts but as Switch owners, we’re definitely accustomed to witnessing our fair few of sub-par ports which have extensive graphical compromises and lower framerates compared to on other systems. Games like the Outer Worlds which was ported to switch after releasing on PS4, Xbox One and PC runs acceptably but the graphical compromises required to cram it onto the system really does lead to a less immersive and all-around worse experience on the switch compared to its counterparts where the game looks and runs stunningly. In online cross-platform games such as Fortnite, Rocket League and Overwatch you’re undoubtedly at a disadvantage on Switch when competing against players on PC, PS4 and Xbox One, hampered primarily by lower framerates. For recreational players like myself, however, the Switch’s inferior graphical prowess doesn’t get in the way of an enjoyable gaming experience and, speaking from experience, these games are still a hell of a lot of fun on the Switch. And the best part? They can all be enjoyed whilst you’re on the go, or laying in bed, or taking a dump, owing to the Switch’s hybrid design. Unintentionally another positive for the switch – I just can’t help it it’s just too good a console! But, despite this, I could have really done without some of the poorly optimised Switch games that I’ve suffered through over my time as a Switch owner.
4.Overpriced accessories
I’ve talked in previous videos about the Switch’s great local multiplayer functionality, but with more players comes the need for more controllers and, thanks to Nintendo’s crazy accessory pricing, this comes with a big knock-on impact on your wallet. Controller-wise the switch ships with one pair of Joycon controllers as well as a grip to put them in to form more of a conventional controller. If you want to play local multiplayer and share the fun with friends or family, you’re going to need to be picking up at least one extra pair of Joycons which, wait for it, retail for a staggering $70 or £70. Nintendo also sells the so-called switch pro controller which is Nintendo’s version of the Dualshock 4 or Xbox One controller and offers a superior gaming experience to playing with the Joycons attached to the grip. The Pro Controller is not included with the Switch and will set you back another $60 or £60 when bought from Nintendo, making it a fair bit pricier than its counterparts from Sony and Microsoft. Classic Nintendo! It’s definitely a bit steep for something many players will deem essential when playing in docked mode. And we’ve saved the most expensive and, perhaps the most ridiculously overpriced, till last: the Switch dock, retailing for $90 or £80. This is a brutal price to pay if your dock breaks and you have to replace it. For me at least, it also ruled out the idea of getting multiple docks for multiple TVs around the house which would have been convenient, but not so convenient that I’d fork out $90 for it.
5. Storage
That brings us to the fifth and final biggest problem with the switch, its lack of built-in storage. The switch has 32GB of internal storage which can be filled up entirely with just one game downloaded from the Eshop! A few of the biggest won’t even fit on the switch at all when you consider that the Switch’s operating system takes up at least 2gb of its storage. Some of these biggest games include NBA 2K20 which has a file size of 32.9GB, LA Noire coming in at 27.4GB and DC universe online at 24.1GB. I personally buy all of my Switch games physically for this very reason and the physical versions of games are almost always cheaper than their Eshop counterparts as well unless you pick up some games in one of the Eshop’s many sales. For these games and those that are exclusive to the Eshop as well as games which you buy physically but ship with download codes to be downloaded from the Eshop or require extra downloads, you’ll be required to fork out for a micro SD card for your Switch. Another expense on top of all those overpriced accessories!
Talking about the Switch’s lack of processing power leads us nicely on to reason number 3 – the number of shocking ports we’ve seen and suffered through on the Switch which have been primarily a result of developers poorly optimising their games for the system. We’re looking at you WWE 2K18 and Ark: Survival Evolved, which run so badly on the Switch it’s comical. Although you probably wouldn’t find it so funny having been excited to play these games and proceeded to waste your hard-earned cash on them. These are two abysmal standouts but as Switch owners, we’re definitely accustomed to witnessing our fair few of sub-par ports which have extensive graphical compromises and lower framerates compared to on other systems. Games like the Outer Worlds which was ported to switch after releasing on PS4, Xbox One and PC runs acceptably but the graphical compromises required to cram it onto the system really does lead to a less immersive and all-around worse experience on the switch compared to its counterparts where the game looks and runs stunningly. In online cross-platform games such as Fortnite, Rocket League and Overwatch you’re undoubtedly at a disadvantage on Switch when competing against players on PC, PS4 and Xbox One, hampered primarily by lower framerates. For recreational players like myself, however, the Switch’s inferior graphical prowess doesn’t get in the way of an enjoyable gaming experience and, speaking from experience, these games are still a hell of a lot of fun on the Switch. And the best part? They can all be enjoyed whilst you’re on the go, or laying in bed, or taking a dump, owing to the Switch’s hybrid design. Unintentionally another positive for the switch – I just can’t help it it’s just too good a console! But, despite this, I could have really done without some of the poorly optimised Switch games that I’ve suffered through over my time as a Switch owner. 
I’ve talked in previous videos about the Switch’s great local multiplayer functionality, but with more players comes the need for more controllers and, thanks to Nintendo’s crazy accessory pricing, this comes with a big knock-on impact on your wallet. Controller-wise the switch ships with one pair of Joycon controllers as well as a grip to put them in to form more of a conventional controller. If you want to play local multiplayer and share the fun with friends or family, you’re going to need to be picking up at least one extra pair of Joycons which, wait for it, retail for a staggering $70 or £70. Nintendo also sells the so-called switch pro controller which is Nintendo’s version of the Dualshock 4 or Xbox One controller and offers a superior gaming experience to playing with the Joycons attached to the grip. The Pro Controller is not included with the Switch and will set you back another $60 or £60 when bought from Nintendo, making it a fair bit pricier than its counterparts from Sony and Microsoft. Classic Nintendo! It’s definitely a bit steep for something many players will deem essential when playing in docked mode. And we’ve saved the most expensive and, perhaps the most ridiculously overpriced, till last: the Switch dock, retailing for $90 or £80. This is a brutal price to pay if your dock breaks and you have to replace it. For me at least, it also ruled out the idea of getting multiple docks for multiple TVs around the house which would have been convenient, but not so convenient that I’d fork out $90 for it. 
That brings us to the fifth and final biggest problem with the switch, its lack of built-in storage. The switch has 32GB of internal storage which can be filled up entirely with just one game downloaded from the Eshop! A few of the biggest won’t even fit on the switch at all when you consider that the Switch’s operating system takes up at least 2gb of its storage. Some of these biggest games include NBA 2K20 which has a file size of 32.9GB, LA Noire coming in at 27.4GB and DC universe online at 24.1GB. I personally buy all of my Switch games physically for this very reason and the physical versions of games are almost always cheaper than their Eshop counterparts as well unless you pick up some games in one of the Eshop’s many sales. For these games and those that are exclusive to the Eshop as well as games which you buy physically but ship with download codes to be downloaded from the Eshop or require extra downloads, you’ll be required to fork out for a micro SD card for your Switch. Another expense on top of all those overpriced accessories! 
