What's it like only owning a Switch?

[Hint]

I'm not consciously a Switch-only gamer but I might as well be. My PS4 is mostly used for streaming tv and movies at this point. The last game I played on there was RDR2, which I played through completely at launch. Before RDR all I played was SotC and Spider-Man. I'm still looking forward to Death Stranding but I'm not super committed yet since I have so much to play on the Switch.

None of this is really the Playstations fault either. I'm married and work around 45 hours a week so sitting down and taking up the TV every night to play a lengthy game just doesn't work. A typical night for me these days is sitting on the couch with my wife, streaming something to watch on the TV (through the PS4), and playing the Switch handheld. The Switch just allows me to play games so much more than something that is tied to the TV. Occasionally I get a chance for a big TV session on the weekends but then I just continue whatever I'm working on with the Switch. I agree that the weak area of the Switch are FPS games, but I mostly play JRPGs and Adventure titles anyways...

I feel I'll wait a few years on the PS5, hopefully until the first revision. I already waited until 2016 just to get the PS4.

 

[StallionDan]

I honestly don't know what I would play if I only owned a Switch.

It's getting Overwatch, so that. I'd say Capcom ports but never at those prices.

I'd probably focus on my non gaming hobbies more.

 

[Jerm411]

I currently have a Switch and a 1X but I'm practically a Switch only gamer...I mean, 90% of my time is on the Switch.

Make exceptions here and there for stuff like Borderlands 3 and Shadowkeep but TBH there really isn't anything on the horizon that I'm particularly excited for outside of Cyberpunk.

I have a pretty big backlog on the Switch and I'm completely comfortable being a Switch only guy for the most part...I know I won't get to play everything and I'm fine with that, in a lot of ways I'm kinda over big grandiose AAA games anyways. Nintendo's first/second party is far and away my favorite so I'm good.

The Switch just fits my life the best so that's where I'm at.

 

[Oscarzx n]

All those games I can't play on the Switch I I will do it someday, it's not like I don't have anything to play on it, my eshop wishlist has almost 100 games ffs.
Besides that, many PS4 games that I was the most interested on were announced for Switch out of nowhere like Spyro, Digimon, Doom, Ethan Carter or even Witcher 3, so i'm not really in a hurry.

 

[Bunzy]

Blurry and choppy

 

[Cronogear]

Probably around 85% of my gaming these days is on my Switch.

Honestly, the only PS4 games I've really loved were Bloodborne, Persona 5, Spider-Man, and RE2. And the only PS4 game in the somewhat near future I'm looking forward to is FFVIIR.

 

[Lord Azrael]

Does it suck for Switch-only gamers today to miss out on Call of Duty, Assassin's Creed, Yakuza, Resident Evil 2, Ace Combat 7, Spider-Man, Sekiro, or Devil May Cry 5? Does it feel bad getting games like Witcher 3, Dragon Quest XI, or others a year or more late?

Click to shrink...

I'm not a Switch only gamer but I haven't played any of these ones you listed regardless and I survived. Different people have different tastes and there's plenty on Switch to cover everyone.

 

[RedSwirl]

For the record I've probably been like 90% PC in recent years but that's mostly because 1) I don't really like buying games on closed platforms anymore (especially indie games where you can get them DRM-free often) where I have to worry about whether they'll be on the next console (I'm still buying 3DS Virtual Console games) and 2) Arma alone has taken up crazy amounts of my gaming time. But if I did only have a Switch I'd probably still just be playing the shit out of Breath of the Wild and Smash, nevermind 3rd Strike and all those SNK games.

If I was rich or something I'd probably doubledip a ton of my PC games on Switch, though now I'm wondering whether it's less expensive to buy on Switch first and then wait for deals to doubledip on PC so I can preserve a DRM-free copy or something. Somebody needs to figure out a standardized way to implement Divinity Original Sin 2's cross-save between PC and Switch.

 

[srtrestre]

I own a PS4 and XB1, but Switch monopolizes my gaming time so I might as well be a Switch-only owner at this point.

Since I can take my Switch to work, it's my platform of choice most of the time. The problem is that whenever I start playing a PS or Xbox game at home, I still take my Switch with me to work. So when I get home, instead of wanting to continue playing the PS or Xbox game I just want to continue playing on my Switch from where I left off at work.

 

[Jimbojim]

it feels great.

For me it has always been:
PC for everything
Switch for exclusive Nintendo games
PS4 for exclusive Sony games

Switch has great exclusives by the way:)

 

[Salmander]

Wonder if there was a similar thread on just owning a Wii U lol

To answer OP, it's been swell. There was that period earlier this year without much for me to play but now I'm drowning and seems like I'll continue drowning until XC remake. Really excellent titles are coming and this system will be absolutely perfect for me if we get another Ace Attorney (pls capcom)

 

[What-ok]

After finishing BOTW when Switch released it sat in the dock gathering dust. Now Instead of my Switch gathering dust my PS4 sits unused while amazing software on Switch is exploding!

 

[Hippopuncher12]

You will understand the people when you work fulltime...
You have all the money, but no time.
And the time you have for gaming competes with other free time activities.
I sometimes wish I wasn't interested in media at all. :-/

Click to shrink...

Huh? I work full time, married and have 2 kids, and am also getting my MBA at the moment. Still have time to play games when other people are asleep. I get that time is an issue for some people and I definitely don't have the time I used to have but I actually have less time when I am not sitting at home at 11pm which is why I don't even use my Switch as a handheld, I am doing other shit when I am away. Regardless even if that was the case too many good games for me to only own a Switch, but that is just me.

 

[digreyfox]

It's great. I have every system except xbox one (so PC, ps4, switch, ps3, x360, vita, 3ds, ds) and the switch is my most played device.

It is also the only system where I have games which I play with my fiancée (read the only one where there are some games she likes).

The only area where it is lacking is racing games. A good forza-like game would be a godsend.

 

[Deleted member 11822]

I have been Switch x PC for over a year now, and it has been fine. I'm actually using my switch WAY more than the PC on top of that.

 

[Lobster Roll]

The nice thing about 2019 gaming is that there is a wealth of options on every single platform. I think it's literally impossible to not have a backlog of some form if you consider yourself a gaming enthusiast. Whether that backlog is games you own and haven't played or games you want to own but you know that your money would be wasted as you can't free up time to play it ... backlogs exist. What would life be like for the poor souls that own just a Switch? Taken directly by sorting Metacritic:

All 90 and above - BOTW, SMO, Divinity, Undertale, Smash Ultimate, Celeste, Bayo 2, Mario Kart 8, Inside, Retro City, Sonic Mania, SteamWorld Heist, Shovel Knight, Bastion, Hollow Knight

Oh, and you can take any of these games with you to play as a handheld. In case that enormous consideration was being ignored.

I'm not going to sit here and list out every single last excellent game that falls under that benchmark, but it's silly to pretend that only owning a Switch would be a lacking experience for anybody who's into gaming. As a grown-ass man in his 30s, I wish I had more time to play games. Even if I only owned a Switch, I don't think I would have enough free time in my life to play through the treasure trove of available titles.

 

[Devilgunman]

Tbh, I would be fine if I own only the Switch. The amount of games you could play on it are absurd. Yeah, I will miss out big games on other consoles here and there but if I were a Switch-only owner I wouldn't care anyway.

 

[Dhuggs_]

I had to sell my PS4 for financial reasons, but eh. Since I'm still building my switch library nothing has really grabbed me. I've been playing Three Houses and that just kills time. It's more a system for me and my fiancée to play co-op games and for her to play some cute games. So for me personally it doesn't really satisfy me.

 

[sleepnaught]

I only play Switch these days, and I have a backlog still. Nintendo 1st party games matter much more to me than Call of Duty. I'm someone that bounces between games and can take weeks to finish one. Currently balancing Astral Chain, Link's Awakening, Daemon X Machina, and finishing up Captain Toad. By the time I get caught up again, Luigi's Mansion 3 will be out and Pokemon will be right around the corner.

 

[ned_ballad]

I barely have any down time in between releases. I don't think I'd have time for another console at this point.

I finished Link's Awakening last night, and now I have a couple days before Dragon Quest, which will take me all the way to Luigi's Mansion, I assume, and then LM into Pokemon, and so on.

 

[The Riot Inside]

Not Switch only but I've been making the transition back to PC gaming so I've been thinking about selling the PS4 and going Switch/PC. Might pick up a 2DS and a Vita and start a small handheld collection but definitely going to use my switch lite for most things going forward.

 

[Weebos]

It has to be better than only owning a Wii U. I may live that life soon enough, not planning on picking up the next gen consoles until their "Pro" versions.

 

[Nuclear Muffin]

It's more frustrating being a Switch owner that actually did own a Wii U as well as other non-Nintendo platforms, because there's virtually fuck all to play on Switch that you haven't already played before.

If you were Switch only? You'd literally be drowning in games to play however.

 

[Hucast]

It's more frustrating being a Switch owner that actually did own a Wii U as well as other non-Nintendo platforms, because there's virtually fuck all to play on Switch that you haven't already played before.

If you were Switch only? You'd literally be drowning in games to play however.

Click to shrink...

This is a bit dishonest don't you think? You sure about this?

 

[Jerm411]

It's more frustrating being a Switch owner that actually did own a Wii U as well as other non-Nintendo platforms, because there's virtually fuck all to play on Switch that you haven't already played before.

If you were Switch only? You'd literally be drowning in games to play however.

Click to shrink...

You can't be serious lol...

 

[Twister]

Funny because I had the opposite experience as you did with the GameCube. Maybe it was because I was a kid but I always had stuff to play on it and while I also had a PS2, I always played the GameCube way more. My PS4 was getting more use than my Switch in 2017 and early 2018, but ever since Spider-Man the PS4 is slowly being used less and less and the Switch is becoming my primary platform. I love them both though!

 

[Dany1899]

Does it suck for Switch-only gamers today to miss out on Call of Duty, Assassin's Creed, Yakuza, Resident Evil 2, Ace Combat 7, Spider-Man, Sekiro, or Devil May Cry 5? Does it feel bad getting games like Witcher 3, Dragon Quest XI, or others a year or more late? Maybe it would for me, but I still feel like the Switch would already have enough to fill out all my gaming time, if not from Nintendo's own games and the multiplatform games it does get, then certainly also from the indie games and retro games.

Click to shrink...

I've always only had Nintendo consoles with a limited number of expections (PsOne, PSP and PSVite). In my case, owning only a Switch is perfectly fine because all the games you mention would not for me. Every generation, there were always maximum 2-3 games exclusives to PlayStation that I would have been interested it; in the current one, these two are Persona 5 and Final Fantasy VII Remake, and I feel buying a console for only two games isn't worth. Moreover I almost never played home consoles (except for Wii and PsOne), but only handheld ones, so for me getting now a library that is typical of a home console in a handheld is a dream. Then, I have the PC to play Visual Novels that are not released on Switch, that's all.

 

[LunaSerena]

It's great.
I have an active social life, and office hours for work, so I don't have time to play more than one console.
The Switch is a perfect fit for my lifestyle - I can play docked when I have the TV to myself or handheld whenever I want to grind or watch TV (or the TV is being used by someone else).

As for draughts? There's too many good titles coming this year that I like that I don't miss the oher consoles outputs - I'm in the middle of my second run for FE, and my first one alone took 80+ hours. I still have two other routes until I see them all - at the rate I play, I'm going to be done in December.

Plus, I'm more of an RPG fan - the only titles I would be interested in playing from other consoles are the KH collection, Horizon, and the FF7 Remake, but they don't interest me enough to pay up for another console. I can live easily without them.

 

[Do Androids Dream of iOS?]

I am a PC and Switch player these days. PC because most of my friends game on that platform, and jollying with a 4-man squad in PUBG is a good way to keep in touch ( most of us live in different cities ). But could I survive with just the Switch? Yes. Its a great, all-encompassing console these days.

 

[CyberWolfBia]

frankly? I don't miss any of the games that Switch is not getting.. and I don't even play on PC to compensate the lack of them. Sometimes I know it just a question of when certain games will eventually show up on the system so I patiently wait (Overwatch, FighterZ, Crash N. Sane Trilogy,.. all these I was sure they'd be ported eventually).

and honestly that has been the case since the last generation with the Wii U too, which also was my primerly and only current (at the time) console. I think I only got frustrated of not getting the Castle of Illusion remake and Strider 2013 game.. otherwise, all the Nintendo games that I really care were enough to me.

 

[Man God]

I own all three but ignore the other two almost completely so it feels that way.

I use the One almost exclusively for original XBOX games and Twitch, and use the PS4 for MHW and Borderlands 3 when my friends want to play with me. Other than that it is Switch and 3DS 100% of the time. If a multiplatform game has any shot of coming to Switch I get it there.

 

[Neiteio]

I have a PS4 Pro and a Switch but haven't played my PS4 since RE2 at the start of the year. I'm drowning in Switch games, though.

Currently playing Link's Awakening, Astral Chain, Fire Emblem Three Houses, Dragon Quest XI S (soon), Ori and the Blind Forest (soon), Untitled Goose Game, Blasphemous, Undertale, Super Smash Bros Ultimate (Banjo & Kazooie!), etc. I've preloaded Luigi's Mansion 3, and Pokemon Sword will be out shortly after that. It's insane. I'd also like to get back to Super Mario Maker 2 and Dragon Quest Builders 2.

I'll dust off my PS4 for Doom Eternal, Death Stranding, FFVII Remake and TLOU2, though.

Then it's back to Switch for Animal Crossing New Horizons!

 

[TwntyOneTwlv]

es it suck for Switch-only gamers today to miss out on Call of Duty, Assassin's Creed, Yakuza, Resident Evil 2, Ace Combat 7, Spider-Man, Sekiro, or Devil May Cry 5?

Click to shrink...

I'm a Switch-only person, and literally none of those games interest me in the slightest. Nintendo games are my thing, so I'd having only having a Switch suits me just fine.

 

[Ninjadom]

I only have a switch. I have way too many games to play and not enough time. Can't imagine trying to add another system to the mix.

Click to shrink...

Same here, brother.

 

[Sadist]

This might sound weird, but this is the first time ever that I own two systems who are thriving, but its also the first time where I think "I could have done it with just a Switch".

For reference, I mostly owned Nintendo systems because I like their games the best. It is a good thing that I just liked a few games on completing platforms, that would have been more of a Bummer.

For the past few months I didn't play the PS4 much either, but with Death Stranding, the Yakuza Collection and The Last of Us II it will get more playtime.

On the other hand... DQ XI, Luigi, Pokémon and other stuff I want... oh man.

 

[MP!]

I have a PS4 but I didn't play RDR2 (played some at work) GoW, Spiderman, Days gone, MH world and some other games...
With the exception of missing out on SOME games I'd like to play ... I'm so busy with switch ... there's really a lot to do ... I hope to someday not need a PS as a supplement

 

[higgsboson1997]

I love it. There's just something about being able to play while lying down. Big games especially I could only ever finish on handhelds, and I've been able to complete so much more stuff than I would have been able to otherwise. There's no lack of games either, and sure sometimes I wish some of the games on other systems were available on Switch as well, but all my staples are here, and I don't feel like I am missing too much.

 

[Ternary]

switch being a platonic ideal of a porting target has made it into a sort of sanctioned emulation behemoth. there's a great mix of new stuff and old stuff, AAA titles and indies. for example i can pick up anything from the "golden era" of PS1-PS2 final fantasy and enjoy it in bed. i've completed a lot of stuff in my backlog on the switch I never would have on a machine that was strictly a desktop or handheld device.

 

[Crayon]

I think I could get by with switch alone, but it wouldn't be my first or second choice. If I was allowed to do switch as only console and PC, I'd go for that, though

 

[CyberWolfBia]

"Call of Duty, Assassin's Creed, Yakuza, Resident Evil 2, Ace Combat 7, Spider-Man, Sekiro, or Devil May Cry 5 "

I just found funny that none of these games are a reason to get frustratred of being a Switch-only owner for me lol.. and even for franchises that I care like Resident Evil, there's already plenty in the system as well (and I'm sure DMC3 and 4 will eventually be released as well and since day one I wasn't interested in DMCV due its visuals)

 

[ryseing]

"Call of Duty, Assassin's Creed, Yakuza, Resident Evil 2, Ace Combat 7, Spider-Man, Sekiro, or Devil May Cry 5 "

I just found funny that none of these games are a reason to get frustratred of being a Switch-only owner for me lol.. and even for franchises that I care like Resident Evil, there's already plenty in the system as well (and I'm sure DMC3 and 4 will eventually be released as well and since day one I wasn't interested in DMCV due its visuals)

Click to shrink...

Even AC is getting ports of certain titles. Portable Black Flag is pretty darn appealing.

 

[lord_of_flood]

I went to being Switch-only a few months ago and it's been actually fine, honestly. Most of the games I want to play are on the Switch specifically, and I haven't felt like I'm missing out on anything from the PS4 aside from Nioh 2 and TLOU Part 2 (both of which I'll just grab when the PS5 comes out).

 

[Zool]

I fare quite well being a Switch only user. Only one thing I do hate is the price of all those old ports. I want them, but I don't want to pay two a three times more than the ps4/xbone version

 

[Jaxar]

I couldn't do it personally. I would miss out on too many of the games that I enjoy.

 

[Deleted member 14939]

Honestly, owning a Switch, Xbox One, and a gaming laptop is probably a lot like only owning a Switch.

 

[Hollywood Duo]

I own everything but I only ever play the Switch.

 

[Lyrick]

I own everything but I only ever play the Switch.

Click to shrink...

Yeah, same here.

I guess there's no FOMO element then, but the end experience is the same.

 

[Hollywood Duo]

Yeah, same here.

I guess there's no FOMO element then, but the end experience is the same.

Click to shrink...

I've been gaming too long to care about missing games. I've missed hundreds at this point lol.

 

[Manzoli]

I've recently sold my laptop (had a GTX 960m) since it was beginning to beg for too many sacrifices to able to run games at 30fps.. so, I'm only a switch gamer, at least until I'm able to buy another laptop.

If I'm honest, speaking about gaming time, then yes, it's enough. I have 30 or something games installed in my switch (and some others not installed because of space restrictions) and I need time to play those 30 games. Oh how i miss been a teenager with all the time in the world for gaming...

Now, if we are talking about if i miss some games: absolutely!

I want to play Resi 2 remake soooo badly!
I want to play Sekiro, and also replay Dark Souls 2 and 3, since only the first one is available on the switch.

I miss the opportunity to play the big budget titles. However, i know i wouldn't have time to play all of them so it is kind of okay....

I don't know if you guys will understand me lol

 

[Deleted member 9035]

September has been a slow month but all in all there's more than enough to play on Switch.