Can the Switch’s Secret Weapon Be its Controllers?
Nintendo for some time now has been struggling to prove to everyone once again why they matter. For the Nintendo lover, like myself, it’s not hard to convince us why they still deserve a seat at the table but for the average gamer, it’s a bit of a tougher sell. I think that the Nintendo Switch is a step in the right direction in many ways and one thing that I think may be getting overlooked is the Switch’s controller modularity. Nintendo has always loved making wacky peripherals. In fact, early on in Nintendo’s history after cornering the trading card market in Japan, the majority of their products were silly plastic toys long before video games even existed. This is the other reason why I think they still matter: they’re silly tinkerers.
The fact that the NX allows for the detachable controllers leaves me wanting them to maybe come up with new ways to interact with games that move outside of the usual twin sticks, face buttons, and triggers. I honestly have no clue what that could be but imagine something that slides onto the side of the device that allows you to hold it vertically in one hand like a 3DS or (dare I say it) maybe even something using motion controls? What if this thing can pair with mobile devices and tablets for certain multiplayer games? Do you see where I’m going with this?!
And for a company that made the Wii Balance Pad, I know they can come up with some crazy stuff. I think it’s hard to imagine it in the context of traditional experiences like Mario and Zelda but I don’t want this for those games. I’m fine with the Joy-Cons but what if there was a new way to play other puzzle games or party games? It’s clear they’re still chasing that social phenomenon they got with the Wii by the video that was released a few weeks back. This would throw Nintendo back into that space again. It would answer the question that people are hoping they can answer which is: Does Nintendo still matter in today’s gaming landscape? I certainly hope so.
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