• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

So Why Are Switch & Switch Lite Sales Being Combined?

DenchDeckard

Moderated wildly
And most PS3s were not BC so the OG PS3 and refresh should not be totaled together. So Xbox One actually sold more that gen. Interesting...

I think you’ll find that the Xbox 360 elite started shipping with a hdmi output and so did later 360s so we need to separate those sold consoles that had a hdmi output with the other 360s….totally different console!

/s
 

gradient

Resident Cheap Arse
When the Wii was on the market and killing it they said it didn't count because

"it isn't a next gen system so it's not competing with the PS3 and 360"
"it doesn't have a traditional controller so it's something else"
"it isn't selling to the same market"
"People who use it aren't gamers"
"It's more like a toy"

And now with the Switch doing well:

"It isn't a games console, it's a hybrid"
"It's not a console, it's a portable with tv out"
"it's not current gen"
"It's not competing in the same market"
"It's not fair to count different versions"

The console changes, but the mental gymnastics and goalpost shifting remain the same.

They're games consoles guys. Your self worth and mental stability shouldn't rest so precariously upon your toy of choice, be it the one from corporation X Y or Z.
 

Alexios

Cores, shaders and BIOS oh my!
"debate we were having" = I posted the exact same shit there, naturally nobody fell for it, so I thought I'd try my luck here because I really feel so smart and think I have found an awesome gotcha, so I will try and fail to make it a thing by posting it everywhere I can 🤦‍♂️

Don't forget to go back and discount New 3DS sales as part of 3DS sales because it had a dozen games 3DS couldn't run a dozen games it somehow enhanced and the Snes Virtual Console on top, then do the same for the Game Boy Color and the Game Boy too 🤦‍♂️

DSi also had its own digital games, better not count that alongside the DS and DS Lite either. PSP Go also was not a PSP because it had TV out capabilities over the other models. Man, you can feel free to combine Vita & Vita TV sales. There there, it's alright now 🤦‍♂️
 
Last edited:

Squarehard

Member
When the Wii was on the market and killing it they said it didn't count because

"it isn't a next gen system so it's not competing with the PS3 and 360"
"it doesn't have a traditional controller so it's something else"
"it isn't selling to the same market"
"People who use it aren't gamers"
"It's more like a toy"

And now with the Switch doing well:

"It isn't a games console, it's a hybrid"
"It's not a console, it's a portable with tv out"
"it's not current gen"
"It's not competing in the same market"
"It's not fair to count different versions"

The console changes, but the mental gymnastics and goalpost shifting remain the same.

They're games consoles guys. Your self worth and mental stability shouldn't rest so precariously upon your toy of choice, be it the one from corporation X Y or Z.
To be fair, I think Nintendo's underlying point is that, "We don't give a shit what Sony and Microsoft are doing because we are doing our own thing."
755
 
Last edited:

Trimesh

Banned
There’s an argument over separating Game Boy and Game Boy Color sales but so far Switch is all together regardless of form factor.

I think it's because there is no distinction between the software - there isn't any specific "Switch Lite" software.

The GB/GBC is probably still Nintendo's most confusing system - you have original GB software, dual mode software that will run either on GB or GBC and GBC specific software.

Moving forward, it was a lot cleaner - the GBA could play (essentially) all GB/GBC games and the DS could play (essentially) all GBA games.
 
I swear, some of you guys here have the IQ of a fucking rock. Jesus Christ, how the fuck are the switch, switch lite and switch oled not the same family of devices?

Do you eat icecream with your forehead OP?

I know I’m fucking drunk, but me drunk can even understand how it makes sense to group the switch and switch lite in the same sales numbers. Jesuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuus OP.
 

Codes 208

Member
Same reason why ps4 and ps4 pro sales are combined. Its the same damn console.
There’s an argument over separating Game Boy and Game Boy Color sales but so far Switch is all together regardless of form factor.
thats because the gameboy color actually saw hardware improvements and exclusives and it was the main focus for three years before the gba replaced it as a true next gen handheld. The switch lite is just a switch without the output for TV
 
Last edited:

rodrigolfp

Haptic Gamepads 4 Life
We should also split the count for the same games running on Nvidia GPUs separated from AMD and Intel GPUs, Intel CPUs from AMD CPUs, etc...
 

FireFly

Member
I wouldn't argue that they are the same platform - but they are certainly not the same type of console. You guys are acting like there's never been a distinction between home consoles and handhelds before.
Normally when you buy a home console, you can't walk around with it. The switch being a hybrid means it *already* functions as a handheld. So if you care about how many handheld users there are, you have to include both models.

Personally, I bought a Switch and never connected it up to a TV or monitor.
 
Is this a real question? Same platform. If I buy a game it works on all switches. I can't believe people would waste time arguing about something that is so easy to understand

Puppy Reaction GIF by MOODMAN
 
Normally when you buy a home console, you can't walk around with it. The switch being a hybrid means it *already* functions as a handheld. So if you care about how many handheld users there are, you have to include both models.

Personally, I bought a Switch and never connected it up to a TV or monitor.
But all home consoles- including the OG Switch - have the ability to play on your tv- where the Lite does not. Wouldn’t you call that a basic required feature for it to be considered a home console? The functionality is still there - even if you never use it. You’re saying both should be considered the same console because they can both be played on the go, I disagree.
 

EDMIX

Member
Huh? They are the same platform. Why wouldn't they combine them? Obviously they look at trends across all variants, but why try to spin the lite as not a switch?

Cause they think an HDMI cord makes a completely different system apparently.

Thats like saying some dumb shit like a phone should be counted differently in sales cause a version gives an HDMI cord....
 

FireFly

Member
But all home consoles- including the OG Switch - have the ability to play on your tv- where the Lite does not. Wouldn’t you call that a basic required feature for it to be considered a home console?
Sure.

The functionality is still there - even if you never use it. You’re saying both should be considered the same console because they can both be played on the go, I disagree.
That's not what I'm saying. I'm saying if you care about the handheld audience, you need to include both consoles, because the Switch is used as a handheld. Of course, the home console audience can only use the regular Switch.

Because the Switch is a hybrid device, you can't tell whether someone purchased it to use as home console, handheld or both. So you can only estimate the usage through surveys. The total sales give you the handheld + home console sales across the platform as a whole, and represent the success of the product. For specific breakdowns per market, you need more involved analysis.
 

Chastten

Banned
Honestly, I'd say we do OP a favor and start categorizing everything.

We separate PS1 sales, cause the original model wasn't compatible with the special LCD screen you could get for the PSOne. So it's obviously not the same console.

We separate PS2 sales cause of the harddisk issue.

Only some PS3's were backwards compatible so we'll have to separate those as well, since not all PS3's can play the same games.

Later Wii's lacked the bwc mode with GameCube, so down it goes.

Nintendo DS didn't have an eShop like the DSi, so separate console it is!

n3DS had games that couldn't be played on the regular 3DS, so again, separating!

I'm sure Xbox One has some Kinect-only games so we'll have to separate launch models with included Kinect from the rest, since Kinect was pretty much unavailable during the rest of the gen.
 

gradient

Resident Cheap Arse
Honestly, I'd say we do OP a favor and start categorizing everything.

We separate PS1 sales, cause the original model wasn't compatible with the special LCD screen you could get for the PSOne. So it's obviously not the same console.

We separate PS2 sales cause of the harddisk issue.

Only some PS3's were backwards compatible so we'll have to separate those as well, since not all PS3's can play the same games.

Later Wii's lacked the bwc mode with GameCube, so down it goes.

Nintendo DS didn't have an eShop like the DSi, so separate console it is!

n3DS had games that couldn't be played on the regular 3DS, so again, separating!

I'm sure Xbox One has some Kinect-only games so we'll have to separate launch models with included Kinect from the rest, since Kinect was pretty much unavailable during the rest of the gen.

Screw it, let's go all in... Region locking.

Same console, but can't play the same games. Criteria met. Time to start counting each region as it's own separate console.

Shit just got real.
 

Woopah

Member
I disagree- I’d say the OG Switch and Switch OLED are home console/handheld hybrids - and the Switch a dedicated handheld. You know who else agrees with me? Nintendo themselves! They state as such on their own website.
Do you know what Nintendo also states? That all three products are Switch models.
 

Belthazar

Member
It's kinda silly to compare switch's sales to home consoles when around 20 million of those sales come from a model that isn't even capable of connecting to a tv.
 
Last edited:

EDMIX

Member
But I can play each and every Game Boy game on a TV. Does that make my original Game Boy a console? Real question!

Agreed, like a phone, laptop, PSP and many more can do this.

This is a conversation they don't want to have mind you lolz

Gameboy player should have been used with DS and 3DS, nothing was stopping them from making that btw other then pure greed.
 

gradient

Resident Cheap Arse
But I can play each and every Game Boy game on a TV. Does that make my original Game Boy a console? Real question!

It's a console regardless of being able to play it on the TV.

The whole "it's not a console" and "it's not a *home* console" is just another example of desperate fanboys trying to exclude market realities that don't gel with their emotional investment in a corporation and toy of their choosing.

It's the gamer version of preferred pronouns.
 
I disagree- I’d say the OG Switch and Switch OLED are home console/handheld hybrids - and the Switch a dedicated handheld. You know who else agrees with me? Nintendo themselves! They state as such on their own website.
The mainline Switch is a dockable handheld. Powerful enough for its time to be marketed as "a home console experience on the go". It is marketed as a home console to escape the stigma of handheld gaming in the West.

Technically the Switch, combined with the Dock, does comprise a home console. It cannot output to TV or power accessories unless plugged in. But the Switch itself, is merely a dockable portable/handheld. It functions perfectly well sans the dock, it can be played portably and handheld, charge with a portable charger, etc.

The correct answer is that it's both. It's both a handheld, a portable, and a home console, enabled by the dock. The Lite just takes the docking away, for people who don't intend to use it.
 

Ryu Kaiba

Member
what is the amount of copium needed to write dumb stuff like this?
He's 100% correct. to think otherwise you have completely lost the plot. The switch is a handheld and always has been. it having a tv out does not change that. It's crazy how a little bit of marketing can cause some people to completely lose the ability to see something objectively for what it is.
 

Ryu Kaiba

Member
I disagree- I’d say the OG Switch and Switch OLED are home console/handheld hybrids - and the Switch a dedicated handheld. You know who else agrees with me? Nintendo themselves! They state as such on their own website.
If Nintendo started saying milk was gasoline you would be out of a car with the way your brain works.
 

K' Dash

Member
He's 100% correct. to think otherwise you have completely lost the plot. The switch is a handheld and always has been. it having a tv out does not change that. It's crazy how a little bit of marketing can cause some people to completely lose the ability to see something objectively for what it is.

this reeks of desperation and fanboyism.
 

01011001

Banned
there is literally a bigger performance difference between the PSP 1000 and the PSP 2000 models.
there is a zero % difference between the Switch and Switch Lite, but there is actually a difference between PSP 1000 and 2000 (+ later models) since the 2000 and later models had 64MB RAM while the 1000 had only 32MB

also, you can buy a dock for the PSP Go to dock it to a TV. you can additionally connect a DualShock 3 to it and if you want to play PS1 games you can play 2 player on TV by using the PSP as Controller 1 and a DualShock 3 as controller 2
just because you can do that doesn't mean it should be seen as a different console
 
Last edited:
Top Bottom