Mind if I ask for information on what emulator u use? Been considering getting into a handheld PC one of these days, got a switch little over a year ago for mobile gaming and honestly I love it for what it is but it was a bit dated when new to put it nicely… And price of a switch 2 I might as well spring for a legion go or something if that nature
Video game companies are going all-in on seeing just how greedy they can be and get away with it. I’m curious to see just how much consumers will put up with.
There are Android tablets that are much cheaper than the Switch, more powerful, more battery efficient. Also, play games better.
You’re not really suggesting that playing mediocre android games on a touchscreen tablet is the same market as a handheld gaming device with controllers
Android has a couple high-profile indie games like Stardew Valley and some rare ports of older games, that’s it. I wouldn’t call it very good. and unless you’re willing to shell out $150+ for a great telescopic controller there’s no way playing on the tablet would be comfortable.
The mobile gaming market is leagues larger than every other market combined. That doesn’t mean the games are even remotely comparable to console games.
It’s an entirely different target audience. Mobile games are focused on quick sessions and design patterns designed to encourage spending money on microtransactions. Games made for the traditional gaming market are mostly designed for longer play sessions with more mechanically complex gameplay. I as well as many others prefer the latter.
Nintendo’s store is full of shovelware, but at least you’ll find more traditional games than just ports of indie hits. Or, buy a Steam Deck and enjoy something better than both.
To me, this is one of the funniest things in gaming culture right now.
I mean, have you looked closely at most Nintendo releases lately? They often feel like glorified indie games. They just happen to have big-budget marketing that indie developers lack.
Meanwhile, people act like Nintendo is some untouchable giant of innovation. Let’s be real: when was the last time a Mario game genuinely pushed boundaries? Nowadays, most releases are cash grabs riding on nostalgia and brand recognition.
No one, and I mean no one, is out here mistaking Mario Kart World for a visually groundbreaking, ambitious masterpiece like Black Myth: Wukong.
Maybe instead of throwing shade at indie devs, you should appreciate that indies often deliver fresh, daring experiences Nintendo no longer risks taking.
Which part of my comment was denigrating indie devs? Indie games are great. Android gaming is currently not.
If I’m looking for a good non-mobile game, I don’t go looking in the mobile game store. I go looking on PSN or PC, where the focus is on the kind of game that wasn’t designed as a phone-first experience.
The fact that Android has some good traditional games or ports of indie gems isn’t something inherent to Android. The overwhelming majority of those games were on PC or console first.
Android doesn’t just have ports of good indie games, it’s got lots of indie games that originated on mobile first – only later ported to console or PC.
Examples: Alto’s Adventure, Monument Valley, Endurance, Désiré.
If you’re unaware of these games, it’s not because Android as a platform sucks for gaming. It’s because discoverability is simply bad.
The OP is really blowing smoke up Android’s ass when it comes to the quality of native Android games. Most “top” mobile games are freemium crap riddled with microtransactions.
What it does have, however, is emulators. Including one for the Switch itself. Paying $350 for decade-old hardware and $80 for games is just bad value compared to a $300 used S21 and $0 games.
Oh, there’s no doubt about that. I’m not disagreeing that Android has some good-looking games. The problem is that games like GRID Legends Mobile are the exception, not the rule.
The Switch is crap, yes.
The Play Store is also overwhelmingly crap, though.
If you exclude all of the mobile games from both stores, the Switch simply has a better catalog of games.
Android’s problem isn’t lack of good games. Nor is it performance of hardware. It’s discoverability.
But really, that’s also the problem of every storefront. Steam too has a lot of legendary games. But they’re also hard to find because shitty asset flips are so abundant.
If discoverability was better, I’m sure Android would get way more ports of good games. With the way it is right now with shovelware and Google pushing microtransaction-riddled crap over one time purchase games, though, it’s treated as a second-class platform because it’s not nearly as profitable as other platforms.
Cyberpunk 2077 isn’t a fair comparison since the original Switch never had it. We’re comparing the original Switch to Android, not PC or PS5 to Android.
The problem with demanding exact “equivalents” is that it feels dismissive—like you’re rejecting games without giving them a real chance. Instead of chasing direct counterparts, focus on finding great games that stand on their own merits.
You’re literally making vague, empty demands and acting like I’m failing you. 😂
Until you can actually put words to what “caliber” means—like “this game needs that feature”—your whole argument is just entitled whining dressed up as critique.
Try again when you have a point. Until then, it’s just hot air.
I’ve seen this act before—you come in dismissing everything based on vague, shifting criteria you refuse to define. Why? Because it lets you move the goalposts whenever the facts don’t fit your narrative.
Until you actually lay out concrete criteria instead of hiding behind empty words, all you’re doing is wasting oxygen with hot air.
If we’re going by piracy logic then you can buy a $200 used Switch and hack it to download games for free. I genuinely don’t think a phone or tablet would ever be a good experience. nobody is going to play with touch controls, it doesn’t let you play games on the TV, the emulator has compatibility issues and bugs, not to mention how most phones throttle hard when they get warm. I’m not buying this discussion at all.
There is also dead cells, slay the spire, monster train, disable immortal, etc.
However, those are also all playable on switch too. Technically you can emulate the switch on android, but I think this brings up the biggest flaw in gaming on android; you’re either emulating or streaming for most good games.
Seriously, there are games I bought 25 years ago that work on Steam Deck—and they were never meant to work on Steam Deck. But through the power of Proton, they work.
How many original GameCube games work on a Switch 2?
No original ones do considering there’s no disc slot, but you can play whatever they choose to drip-feed you via NSO if you pay for the Expansion Pack subscription.
Or you can play every GameCube game on Steam Deck with improved visuals for free.
And consider this: you can hook up your Steam Deck to a dock – and connect an external DVD drive, which allows you to play decades old titles that aren’t available on any storefronts.
It’s how I was able to play both Black & White as well as Black & White 2 on my Steam Deck.
Compared against a Switch 1, yes, it is a crazy deal, but I’d personally wait for a more powerful handheld, or a successor at least in 2025 (almost 2026) that truly competes against more recent PC handhelds, including the Switch 2.
Was considering a new switch, but may hold off now.
Which tablets do you have in mind? I could not find any suitable for anything but phone games via touch screen and unimpressive battery, but I don’t really know this market
Love my steamdeck but it’s definitely not similar to a switch other than they both play video games handheld. Even the docked experiences are super different.
Great, the touchpads are amazing for mouse-related stuff while handheld. I can comfortably use mouse heavy menus with them. Obviously, a lot closer to a laptop touchpad than an actual mouse, but still a lot better than a joystick as mouse.
A Steam Deck is a PC. If you dock it, you can hook up a mouse+KB and a monitor, and use “desktop mode” (KDE plasma) to use it exactly like any other Linux desktop. Docked “gaming mode” makes it feel more like a home console for PC games (and emulators). It is even possible (though not recommended) to install Windows.
Playing portably, mouse-based games run pretty well. Games that use a lot of keyboard keys are where it gets difficult without using an actual keyboard.
You’d probably be better served by a retro handheld. A lot of them run android so you can play android games, but the built in controllers make emulating actually enjoyable.
Major issue is that the ones cheaper than a switch struggle with 3D games.
If you have the money, steamdeck is definitely one of the best bang for buck, but it’ll probably be more expensive than a switch (unless you can find a deal on a used/refurbished one).
Thanks! I am starting to think a steamdeck is going to be my solution. SteamOS on my tiny nongaming Linux laptop works perfectly for 2D or light 3D games, so I expext it to be fine.
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