Would be cool if TVs would allow for the owner to add whatever TV related OS they want on it, although i guess a solution to that is to hookup a TV to a mini PC and control it through that as far as getting to streaming services and other media.
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Same.
And I consider the search bar to be hidden. Someone from IT had to point it out to me.
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We still have cable (not sure why, now that I think about it), but more & more we use a setup like you described. We kind of had to - the TV is from 2010 or 2012, still serves us well, but whatever apps were originally on it have dropped one by one as the thing goes long past its presumed support time frame.
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We still have a TV. My wife and kid like it.
Meanwhile I have an ultrawide monitor for my PC that I watch 99% of my TV/movies on. No apps, no nonsense. Just watch what you want the way you want. (which is a mix of VLC and streaming services with ad-blockers enabled).
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For TV, I would like to point out that roof-mounted antennas are still an option.
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There’s a website that can give you an idea what channels are available over-the-air in your area:
I can’t say whether or not their hardware recommendations are good or not, but they can give you a map of where the stations are relative to you, to help you orient the antenna.
(I use a small, indoor powered antenna, and I get most of the available stations in my market… not that I watch a lot of TV these days, but it’s decent background noise, and I have what I need when I need it.)
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Also i doubt Nintendo would allow for a 3rd party solution like Discord on their console. Although people should be used to by now of using chat platforms outside of Nintendo’s ecosystem.
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I love my Switch OLED and i was excited for this but the more i know about it the less i want it - they went with an LCD to keep costs down but that means worse battery life and still no analog triggers. The retail price is also a bit eye watering.
ETA: Oh, lest i forget the suggested prices of new games - Nintendo Switch 2 games will cost $80 for digital versions - gHacks Tech News
Switch games are already expensive but that’s just unacceptable.
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I am mulling over getting a Switch 2, not because i do a lot of console gaming but because i would like to be able to more comfortably do local co-op with my partner. I could use my Steam deck for the same thing but to me it’s just not very intuitive. That said i likely won’t bother getting a Switch 2 for a year or two after release.
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So based on what I’ve heard about the Switch 2:
Will be super expensive, especially because of tariffs.
Not backwards compatible with all Switch games.
Has GameChat, which is basically Discord, but you can only use it if you’re paying a subscription, despite it having a dedicated button on the actual console.
Cannot use regular microSD cards, only microSD Express.
New games will cost upwards of $80.
Only notable differences from Switch are slightly better graphics and, uh, using the controller as a mouse apparently.
No noteworthy launch titles whatsoever, unless you’re super into Mario Kart.
Nintendo is charging $10 for the tutorial, trying to sell what’s basically the console’s instruction manual.
Why am I supposed to even want this, let alone actually buy it?
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Overall for me a lot of those points aren’t too much of a problem for me, the biggest one is pretty much the cost per game. And Nintendo is notorious for rarely doing price cuts on their games.
But i’ll continue to mull it over, i’m in no hurry to get one so i can wait and see.
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These do exist, with certain types of the the aforementioned display panels:
These are intended for digital signage, but there’s nothing stopping someone from developing or adapting an OS that turns it into a Smart TV without all of the garbage, other than being unable to run any of the mainstream apps (YouTube, Netflix, Disney+, etc.)
Thus far, this has only really affected titles like Labo, since the hardware differences would make the cardboard gadgets no longer work. There may be others like Ring Fit and some parts of Switch Sports, but the vast majority should work. The only other cases I can think of might be situations where music licensing might prevent a game from being re-released, but I don’t think that generally affects backwards compatibility.
All of the rest of your points are pretty spot on, though. I’ve never seen Nintendo being this greedy before.
It is frequently pointed out that modern consoles are less expensive than their predecessors when accounting for inflation. Let’s do a quick rundown:
| Console | Release Year | Original Price (USD) | Price in 2024 (USD) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nintendo Entertainment System(NES) | 1986 | $189 | $524.01 | Deluxe Set Including console, 2 controllers, Light Gun, Robot, and 3 games. |
| Super NES | 1991 | $199 | $466.21 | Includes console, 2 controllers, and a game. |
| Nintendo 64 | 1996 | $199 | $404.70 | Includes console and 1 controller. |
| Gamecube | 2001 | $199 | $358.74 | Includes console and 1 controller. |
| Wii | 2006 | $249.99 | $395.67 | Includes console, 1 controller, and 1 game. |
| Wii U | 2012 | $299 | $415.54 | Includes console and 1 controller |
| Switch | 2017 | $299 | $389.22 | Includes console, 2 half controllers, and a dock. |
| Switch 2 | 2025 | $449.99 | $449.99 | Includes console, 2 half controllers, and a dock. |
Accepted at face value, The Switch 2 is only less expensive than the inflation-adjusted prices of the original NES and the Super NES. In other words, it exceeds the inflation-adjusted prices of 5 out of 7 of its predecessors. I was going to go further and point out how wages have not kept up, making it even more expensive in reality, but it looks like I won’t even have to make that point. Wow.
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However you look at it this paints Nintendo as just another greedy corporation trying to extract money at every possible turn. The issue i have with inflation comparison tables like that one is the fact that you’re no longer just paying a one-off fee for the hardware since modern hardware are now money extraction devices with subscriptions for accessing features already built in - witness BMW introducing heated seat subscriptions or whatever the fuck HP are forcing on users these days.
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Somebody on another site posted a rant about how gaming is too expensive these days and just not worth it. I pulled some of the same numbers.
Plus the games themselves. A good NES game like Legend of Zelda or Metroid, at the price it cost us back then would cost about $180 in inflation-adjusted today’s money. $180!
Also, back then we didn’t have HumbleBundle, GOG, constant Steam sales at deep discount, free games on Epic, and tons of Free-To-Play games.
Also no emulators or virtual machines - if you wanted to play games from other systems, you had to buy those entire systems too!
Nowadays, you can easily get plenty of good games to keep you occupied for a year or longer for less than the price of one single game back then.
So, maybe the current price increases suck for anyone who doesn’t already have any hardware, but otherwise, unless you just absolutely have to have the latest hottest new thing, it’s still the most affordable time ever for gaming, by a long shot.
Assuming you don’t get sucked into microtransactions, that is.
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Add in games like Vampire Survivors, Balatro, and Stardew Valley, and it really lays bare the absurdity of the so-called AAA Model.
Commander Sterling has an interesting take, looking at the wider effects Nintendo’s pricing will have on the Industry:
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How fucking HARD is it to hold onto a ticket and passport. it’s NOT HARD… JFC, what is wrong with this stupid planet.
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