Switch eShop Indies Victims of Their Own Success Column



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The success of the Nintendo Switch is a nice confirmation that Nintendo has not lost anything of its magic. The console is also portable or connected to a TV as nice and able to play a wide range of games. Support from publishers such as Bethesda was unthinkable on previous consoles; Now, games like Doom and Wolfenstein offer a refreshing alternative to the Nintendo family games itself.

Nintendo consoles have always had a problem with the introduction of new games. This was mainly due to the fact that, apart from Nintendo, there were few other developers who gave a look worthy of these devices. As a result, there were often considerable holes in the list of new games. Once every two months, a new Nintendo game appeared and, meanwhile, it was calm. Since Nintendo has embraced the indies, it's a different story.

  eShop

Take a look at the list of best-selling games in the eShop a random week and you will see surprisingly few Nintendo games itself. The FIFA and Minecraft of this world are still doing well, but the games of independent developers – think Golf Story, Stardew Valley and Hollow Knight – are also very well ranked. These games touch the Switch this way because they often inspire old Nintendo games itself and in terms of quality do not lack the classics

One after the other. another, a small developer lets meanwhile show how much their old games sell on the switch. Super Meat Boy did just about as well on Nintendo as it did on its Xbox 360 debut eight years ago. Steamworld Dig 2's is sold significantly better on the Switch than on Steam. And Wonder Boy has sold more copies on the Switch than all other versions for other platforms together.

Because of these successes, one could almost think that eShop is a kind of wonderland for independent developers. Unlike Steam and in the App Store, the competition is not so deadly that it takes a lot of effort to get noticed. Yet, I feel that this hour of glory is coming to an end. The eShop Switch does not seem to be made for the success of the console.

  Switch eShop

The Switch's decor is surprisingly spartan. The previous consoles always had good music and sounds for every action, but it's quiet on the switch. The eShop is the biggest victim of this new minimalist approach. On the Wii U, there were many ways to discover new games with sales around a theme, categories for different genres and space for new releases. More than a year later, all this is still missing on the Switch.

The eShop Switch has recently launched a separate tab in which new daily games are highlighted, but this intervention still does not work on the dyke. Every week there are dozens of new games coming out of titles of a few days. The list of new versions shows only a limited number of games, causing the disappearance of many games just after the release. They can only be found when you search by name. Developers are therefore obliged to offer games with discounts of a few percent. In this way, they are back in the eyes of potential buyers.

A decent way to discover older games would already be of great importance, but one who is a little familiar with Steam knows that this does not solve the problem yet. Some senior pievs at Nintendo in a recent interview like to see 20 to 30 new games a week . This amounts to 100 new games per month. Is there a new Celeste? Or a worthy successor to Enter the Gungeon? This is certainly possible, but an influx of moderate ports at least such moderate mobile games is inevitable in this way. Even now there are enough games of dubious quality in eShop

  eShop

With this pace, it will not be long before the eShop of Nintendo looks like Steam and this n & # Is not for players or independent developers. good news On Steam you can not see the forest through the trees and the good games are not noticed as they drown in the fierce competition. As an indie lover, I already notice that I visit the eShop a lot less and especially I am looking for potentially interesting games on forums and subreddits.

Nintendo has been known for decades to be exceptionally critical of the games allowed on the platform. The Nintendo quality label is a concept of the industry. This form of quality control does not have to go back to its former form, but the independent paradise that the Switch is now does not last long because Nintendo Steam is lagging behind. Therefore, Nintendo: please put the brakes on it. It's Better for Players and Developers s

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