Key Takeaways
- Phone hardware surpasses the Switch, but the Switch library offers better games.
- Nintendo’s mobile control solution is superior to touch controls on phones or awkward phone gamepads.
- Switch games won’t suddenly stop working one day.
When the Switch launched it was the most powerful handheld console in history, now even mid-range phones leave it in the dust. Yet, if you ask me what I actually want to play games on when on the go or in bed, I’m reaching for my Switch 100% of the time.
Phone Hardware Is Light Years Ahead of Switch
While my current S22 Ultra Samsung phone isn’t at the cutting edge anymore, in terms of gaming horsepower it’s far closer to something like an Xbox One than the Switch. There are plenty of mobile games that look as good as home console games these days, and if you’re lucky enough to have something like an iPhone 15 Pro, you can even play the latest AAA games.
Setting aside issues like thermals and battery drain, modern phones kick sand in the face of the ancient components in the Nintendo Switch without a doubt.
Switch Software Can’t Be Beat
However, my Switch game library is filled with a variety of games that just aren’t possible on any phone platform these days. While Apple has done a reasonable job of bringing complete, microtransaction-free games to iOS and iPadOS, it’s a drop in the bucket. Most mobile games are thinly-disguised slot machines. They mainly care about draining your bank account rather than providing any actual entertainment.
Since the Switch is still a traditional (albeit handheld) console, its games are much less egregious. Yes, console gaming has also been infected by monetization, but usually if you pay once, you get a largely complete game.
That’s before we get to the quality of Nintendo’s first-party games, and honestly, I like my Switch more because of the third-party games in my collection. Even when a game exists both for my phone and my Switch, such as Alien: Isolation, I prefer to play it on the Switch even if the graphics might be worse. Developers seem to do a better job optimizing games for a fixed platform like the Switch than for the millions of Android handset variants out there. Each with their own GPU and CPU combinations.
Nintendo’s Mobile Control Solution Still Rocks
The worst part of playing games on a phone is having to deal with touch controls. Of course, now you can easily connect any sort of gamepad to your phone, but I have yet to find a solution that’s anywhere near as good as the Switch. The Joy Cons may have had some quality issues in the early days, but the actual design is ingenious. They have a permanent place to slot in. They maintain the console’s flat profile, and they work immediately when you need them, without messing around with Bluetooth settings or USB cables.
Your Switch Games Will Always Work
I love gaming on my iPad, but I will always bear a grudge for the collection of premium iPad games I bought that no longer work because Apple decided to drop support for 32-bit games. It’s not just big changes like this that render mobile games I paid for worthless. Any developer that doesn’t keep updating their games to support newer iOS versions runs the risk of the game ceasing to work. This leads to a situation where a game that was working just fine yesterday, might stop working tomorrow after an OS update, even though it’s still the same hardware.
That’s not something that will happen with the Switch. System software updates have to remain compatible with previously-released games. So I can rest assured that all of the games that I’ve bought for my Switch will keep working as long as the Switch is still functional, even if the developers have long stopped patching it.
The Switch Proved Specs Aren’t Everything
I had a Rog Ally for a while, and it’s a beast of a machine that blows the Nintendo Switch out of the water. Likewise, the Valve Steam Deck is not far off having a handheld PlayStation 4. However, compared to the Switch, these systems are severely unbalanced. By favoring high-performance, they tend to compromise on size, battery life, and temperature.
The ROG Ally next to an OLED Nintendo Switch. Both devices offer impressive screens in their own right.
In contrast, my OLED Switch offers a consistent experience, more battery life than I can typically use with the time I have, and a modest yet consistent and polished gaming experience. So it’s no wonder I’d rather reach for my Switch than my phone when I feel the need for a quick gaming session.
