Games Inbox: What are your Nintendo Switch 2 first impressions?

Have you switched over yet? (Nintendo)

The Thursday letters page reacts to Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls and the Sony State of Play, as readers prepare for the Nintendo Switch 2 launch.

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Early access
As one of your Aussie readers I’m pretty sure I technically got the Switch 2 before anyone in Europe, so I thought I’d write in with my in-depth observations after half an hour with it.

First off, this is definitely a Switch 2 but bigger. Secondly, I’m perfectly fine with that. The new Joy-Cons are definitely an improvement, the mouse controls work great, and the magnet thing is pretty cool. Other than that, there’s not really much to say about the console itself, other than the dock is surprisingly heavy.

As for Mario Kart World, I’ve only played around in the open world a bit and done one track but it looks really nice. The size of the open world looks really impressive and I like there being so many opponents at once, and all the weird obstacles and traffic in your way.

Maybe all the British sites should’ve come here to review it. Sounds like they would’ve got more time with it than Nintendo gave them before launch.
Coops

Unexpected Play
So that State of Play was not what I expected at all: no Resident Evil 9, no new Sony games, almost no live service games… I have no complaints, it was pretty good, but considering the way they announced it, as a troll to Nintendo, I didn’t predict that a Marvel fighting game by Arc System Works would end up being the mic drop at the end.

It looked good but that Sony guy talking about the difficulty of finding a developer to make it… really? I mean Capcom are right there at the beginning of your showcase. I won’t deny I’d still prefer Marvel Vs. Capcom 4 but I’m definitely interested in this too.

And a new Lumines game and Nioh 3? I definitely did not predict that, but I am all for them. So overall, a good but strange showcase. I’m not sure why it deserved such a last minute annoucement, and I very much doubt that’d going to make anyone think twice about buying a Switch 2, but it’s all good.
Korbie

Bond is not back?
I’m not really convinced by that first James Bond trailer. There’s no way they didn’t design the character to look exactly like Tom Holland and that is the last person I’d want playing Bond in real life.

It’s okay, I’m not against it so far, but at the same time I’m not blown away. There was something about the graphics too… they weren’t really photorealistic, more like something from a Telltale Game or something. I dunno, there was just something off about it all.

Maybe it’ll be okay but there were no real jokes in the trailer and somehow I doubt they’re going to portray Bond as a boozing, womanising, smartass. But if they don’t, what’s the point? Other than the product placement, of course.
Purple Ranger

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Today’s the day
Well, I’ve taken off the day and assuming you show this on Thursday I will be impatiently waiting at home, hoping that the postman is going to knock at the door with my Switch 2 at any minute.

Whatever else happens, there’s nothing quite like a new console launch for excitement, as far as I’m concerned, and even though I’m only getting one game (I’ll let you guess which one) it looks really good and I can’t wait.

Here’s to hoping it’s all been worth the money and the wait, and that I’ll be playing Mario Kart World with fans around the world all weekend!
Gorf

Rental only
Just a quick heads up for anyone buying the Arcade Archives 2 version of Ridge Racer. If you have access to purchase it on a Nintendo Switch 1 or 2 and have Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack then you have access to Ridge Racer 64, which features tracks from the original Ridge Racer and Ridge Racer Revolution, along with original N64 tracks, so arguably represents better value.

The only issue with Nintendo Switch Online games is they can’t be purchased outright, which seems very odd to me as Nintendo could still have the Switch Online service and simultaneously allow for games to be brought individually. Nintendo just seems to be leaving money on the table because there are quite a few games I would like to purchase.
Charlie H.

Big surprise
I think the new RoboCop expansion is going the right route by concentrating on the action this time and not so much the other bits. I really enjoyed Rogue City but it was a little slow in places. When I played it on New Game+, fully boosting Murphy’s auto pistol, I haven’t felt so overpowered since walking around with the golden gun on GoldenEye 007 in cheat mode, but it felt good in an overpowered RoboCop kind of way.

Tomorrow I’ll be coming off the night shift and dropping my car off at the garage at lunch time for a service, no doubt tired out and in zombie mode, then watching my phone as I’ve ordered my Switch 2 delivery to the local post office and I’ll be anticipating collecting it. I’ve got it coming with Mario Kart World. I’ve dodged all your previews and any videos of the game, just so I can go in blind and not know what to expect.

I had the console ordered since mid-May and didn’t want to get too excited for it. If anyone ever saw those episodes of South Park where Cartman gets himself cryogenically frozen because he can’t stand to the thought of having to wait for the Wii release date, I didn’t want that to happen to me getting too excited about it.

Hopefully my car pick-up time won’t be too late, so I can get home and get going, shifting the data from my Switch to the new one. I’m really looking forward to it. My son doesn’t know I’m getting the Switch 2 this week. It’s going to be pretty exciting as he’s a Mario Kart addict.
Nick The Greek

Secret plans
I wonder if the whole thing around day one updates and not releasing any Switch 2s and Mario Kart World to the press for reviews partly links with what happens in the open world section of Mario Kart?

Perhaps they are planning to integrate open online events which have a big impact on the game, or something similar that would not be available until 5th June? Or perhaps not…we will find out soon enough.
Elliott

GC: This is an excellent thought and something we’d pondered ourselves, even though there’s no sign of it so far. There are clearly plans for DLC though, even from little details like some major characters having half a dozen costumes but others, like Donkey Kong, only one.

The Xbox timeline
I was reading another letter about Microsoft’s failings with the Xbox and nodding along in agreement when I had a thought: what would have happened if Microsoft had ‘won’ the Xbox One/PlayStation 4 generation by a mile instead?

The last decade or so has seen Microsoft make some big and crazy decisions in an effort to play catch-up and, as we know, they haven’t really worked. They have had massive amounts of cash to throw at the problem, and this has worked to some degree, as they have remained competitive and are now the biggest publisher in the world.

However, if Sony had been lagging a long way behind, then what would they have done without the purchasing power and backing of Microsoft Corp.? I fear they would have struggle to compete without the same massive financial clout of Microsoft and potentially would have gone the way of Sega and stopped making consoles altogether. If that was the case, then I’d like to think that they still would’ve been able to churn out the (mostly) brilliant single-player offerings.

Microsoft have kept Sony honest, at least. Although, it is an odd one to think that Sony still haven’t really done much the last few years, so maybe they haven’t kept them as honest as we all would have liked!

How do you think it all would have played out in the darkest timeline, GC?
NatorDom
Currently playing: God of War: Ragnarök and – hopefully – Mario Kart World later today…

GC: Well, you would’ve seen the concept of digital ownership disappear a lot quicker. But ironically Microsoft probably wouldn’t have ended up buying Activision Blizzard or Bethesda, because they wouldn’t have needed them.

Inbox also-rans
All the fuss about Mario Kart World’s price, it’s a bargain compared to what Virtua Racing on the Sega Mega Drive cost me back in 1992. That was just my random gaming thought of the day.
Mark Matthews

You know what, there was more stuff in that State of Play that got me salivating than anything I’ve seen of the Switch 2 and I don’t even have a PlayStation! (granted most of it was multiformat). And I say that as a lifelong Nintendo fan.
big boy bent

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The small print
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