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How important is backwards compatibility for the Switch 2?

Would a lack of backwards compatibility affect your purchasing decision for a Switch 2?

  • Yes

    Votes: 191 81.3%
  • No

    Votes: 44 18.7%

  • Total voters
    235

marjo

Member
I'm primarily a PC gamer, and so I tend to take backwards compatibility for granted. I love being able to play games from my Steam library that are 10 or 15 years old without issue. Xbox Series and PS5 have also done a great job with backwards compatibly, and to me at least, seem to have normalized the idea in the console space. If a Switch 2 were announced without backwards compatibility, would that influence your purchasing decision?
 

graywolf323

Member
given the nature of the Switch it’d go from a Day 1 purchase for me to pick it up down the road when there’s enough games that I want for it (kinda like the original Switch)

and if they handled it like the Switch where they ported a LOT of the Wii U games… (so porting all their first party stuff from Switch 1 to 2 and then charging you full price again), I very well might not buy it out of principle/spite
 

Magic Carpet

Gold Member
I'm over here looking at my PSVR.
I bought the PSVR2. Big mistake.

Looking at the Switch I don't think I would feel quite so abandoned.
I would probly still buy the Switch 2 without back compat.
 
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In this day and age not being able to carry on with your digital library is a backward take (pun intended). They better not pull that with "Switch 2", and then try to sell "remastered" versions of the game at full price. Knowing Nintendo, I don't doubt they will try that out.
 

UltimaKilo

Gold Member
Not very important. The next Nintendo Hardware will sell based on its new exclusives, not 6 year old software.
 

jshackles

Gentlemen, we can rebuild it. We have the capability to make the world's first enhanced store. Steam will be that store. Better than it was before.
I have enough Switch games to last me through basically all of the next generation. If the next Switch isn't backwards compatible (with physical carts) then I think I'll skip Nintendo's next gen.
 

Diseased Yak

Gold Member
An absolute deal breaker for me. I'd go from rabid F5'ing to get a pre-order day 1/second 1, to shrugging and picking up one a year or two later off the shelf somewhere, once a game I cared enough about to snag it for.
 

Hudo

Member
if they want to keep people locked into their ecosystem then BC shouldn't even be a question anymore. It's essential. Otherwise you kinda "soft reset" your customers when moving platforms. And each time you give them the opportunity to change ecosystems (to a competitor).
 
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T-Cake

Member
It wouldn't matter to me as I'd be totally new to a Nintendo gaming device if I bought the Switch 2. So I expect quite a few remasters of their popular titles to pop up if there is no BC. It really needs 4K capability of some sort for me to buy it though as it'll be connected to the TV 90% of the time.
 

RoboFu

One of the green rats
Affect? sure.. will I still buy one.. sure... I just will not be as happy about it... but still pretty happy??? sure...
 

Švejk

Banned
It definitely will be... but I'd LMAO if it wasn't. To simply to see the reactions to that is worth trading in my Switch collecting dust here.
 

AV

We ain't outta here in ten minutes, we won't need no rocket to fly through space
Yes. If it's a true Switch 2 there's absolutely zero excuse for no BC on all the digital stuff I bought.

If it's some weird new shit where BC wouldn't work, fair enough, but I really doubt that's the case. I cannot honestly see a world where Nintendo go back to splitting their consoles and handhelds.
 

Fbh

Member
Overall I think important. People want to carry over their purchases and library, I think it will instantly make the Switch 2 more appealing and it also keeps Nintendo from just being able to recycle the same games for the first few years as they did with the WiiU stuff on Switch.

For me personally not that much as I almost exclusively buy Nintendo stuff physical and then resell so I don't have much of library other than some digital only games like Cadence of Hyrule.
 

acm2000

Member
i highly doubt the average switch owner would care, its never mattered before for them.

kids these days get what they want.
 

diffusionx

Gold Member
BC just eliminates the friction of moving to a new console. If you look at what companies like Apple have done, they have eliminated basically all friction in moving to a new phone. I just don't think it is acceptable to do it any other way these days. But if Switch 2 was not BC, I'd just wait until and when there are enough Switch 2 games to justify the purchase and to some extent when I am ready to put my Switch 1 in the closet.
 

cireza

Member
If it is BC, then it means it has to retain most of the features of the current console, including these shitty joycons. This could also compromise their hardware solution. Honestly, I am not looking forward to this.
 
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Dacvak

No one shall be brought before our LORD David Bowie without the true and secret knowledge of the Photoshop. For in that time, so shall He appear.
If it is BC, then it means it has to retain most of the features of the current console, including these shitty joycons. This could also compromise their hardware solution. Honestly, I am not looking forward to this.
There’s no reason why the form factor of the joycons couldn’t change for the Switch 2. Wasn’t there already that rumor about Nintendo filing a patent for hall sensor-like sticks?
 

Dacvak

No one shall be brought before our LORD David Bowie without the true and secret knowledge of the Photoshop. For in that time, so shall He appear.
BC just eliminates the friction of moving to a new console. If you look at what companies like Apple have done, they have eliminated basically all friction in moving to a new phone. I just don't think it is acceptable to do it any other way these days. But if Switch 2 was not BC, I'd just wait until and when there are enough Switch 2 games to justify the purchase and to some extent when I am ready to put my Switch 1 in the closet.
Apple and Android are shining examples of how to eliminate friction when switching devices. I could snap my phone in half, go buy a new one, sign in, and a few hours later it will be exactly the same.

In fact I’m gonna have to do that when I get home from this business trip and have the 15 to upgrade to. It’s so unbelievably easy. Same with android.
 

cireza

Member
There’s no reason why the form factor of the joycons couldn’t change for the Switch 2. Wasn’t there already that rumor about Nintendo filing a patent for hall sensor-like sticks?
The shit non-d-pad will return and buttons+sticks will remain vertically aligned (for that one guy who is going to play with a single joycon as a controller). This has been utter shit for 6 years now, not looking forward for 6 or 7 more years of this.
 

alf717

Member
It wont affect my purchase but it will suck if it isn't a feature. If there is a game drought a back catalogue is a great way to fill the gap. Even better would be the ability to enhance the original games with better fps than the original Switch.
 
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midnightAI

Member
Not at all,, IF it affects how powerful the Switch 2 could be AND/OR it hobbles new games made for it... I still have the original Switch.

I got the original PS3 with back compat then never played a single PS2 game on it.
 
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Kings Field

Member
if it didn’t have BC I wouldn’t buy a switch 2 at launch like i have for every other console. I have 30 games on my switch backlog so that’s a big determining factor for me at least until I get caught up on some of these games.
 
Just a nice to have for me, but understand why its inclusion will likely be critical to Nintendo to help shift the base over as quickly as possible and having BC could potentially entice a few extra buyers who managed to go this long without buying the original Switch.

My eyes are bigger than my stomach when it comes to how frequently I think I'll utilize BC. It doesn't seem to even really matter if it's a case where I owned the prior console (e.g. GBA > DS, PS1 > PS2, etc.) or if it's new to me (e.g. Wii > Wii U). I mostly just stick to games that were made for the console I'm actually playing on.
 
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