I preface this with saying: I’m neither a developer nor expert on the Switch, but there’s some general things to consider:
The splash screen is probably mostly a (DRM) check of the cartridge and maybe initializes a few other things, especially the player selector.
The switch is essentially an aging Android tablet on steroids. The SoC used is the successor to the SoC used in Nvidias Shield gaming tablet. (By comparison, you could compare the PS5 to a current mid-tier gaming PC in terms of pure hardware specs)
Even if the Switch is small, games still run ideally at 720p up to FullHD resolution, this might not show on the small screen but it still means that character-, environment, etc. models all have a certain size.
The Switch is very limited on RAM so there is probably quite some swapping going on.
Especially since you compared it to the PS5, one important thing you have to realize is, that if you buy a game on BluRay for any modern console, they usually load most, if not all of the data to run the game onto internal storage, while the physical disc is basically only a hardware license key afterwards, to check that you still “own” the game. Therefore you must observe:
The switch has NAND storage, whereas the PS5 has enormously fast NVMe storage (and also way more RAM and VRAM) to load all game data way faster.
I don’t know which exact role patches play in this equation but you also have to realize, that the Switch, when running a game from cartridge is most likely pulling data from both the cartridge and internal memory or the MicroSD card, wherever patches are installed.
Finally, the Switch is a mobile handheld console, same as why a gaming laptop will never come close to the performance of a gaming (desktop) PC, the former is built with tighter TDP limits and considerations for battery life, whereas thermals are pretty much the only limiting factor for a desktop PC and those can be adjusted way easier by using a larger case.
If you look at simple 2D games, for the switch, take, for example, Crypt of the Necrodancer, or Dead Cells, you’ll see that they run and load about as fast as on any other console/PC, simply by everything about them being way less data and computationally intensive.
In comparison to older consoles (i.e. N64), you have to also appreciate the fact that many titles, these days, are written for some game engine like Unreal or Unity which then translates it with the click of a button to all the platforms a developer wants. While I’m sure they do the best they can to optimize their engines well for all platforms, there sure is a lot of performance left on the floor as compares to "the old ways"™ where games were “handcrafted” (as in written in the platforms Assembly language), for each platform they were released in.
So, I hope I didn’t write any total nonsense amongst all these points, they are just a braindump of IT knowledge, compared with things I’ve watched/read/learned over time, so take them with a grain of salt. Still, I think it should give you an intuitive idea of why the Switch has those “horrendous” loading times. :)
Also playing TotK. I have friends who have "finished" the game, or early on were telling me they already had the master sword. I'm just ADHDing my way across the map, and haven't really accomplished too much. Great game!
Yeah I'm with you and the others, I didn't have much playtime this past month, but it was all TotK ! I'm trying to free some time to play this Friday to continue not staying focused on the main quests.
I feel like I won't play much of anything else for some time... Event though I haven't finished Horizon Zero dawn... I mean, I want to finish it, but Zelda is just more appealing right now !
The quest line that leads to the master sword actually drives a significant amount of map exploration and story exposition. It's very satisfying to take on early-game, IMO.
I've been all over the map, and have all the sky towers completed, I just haven't even heard mention of the master sword yet. I just play the game very by the seat of my pants style.
I typically get distracted by a side quest. Start that. Get distracted by something else. Start that. Get distracted by something else. Rinse. Repeat.
I think I did it earlier than I was supposed to. In BOTW the attitude was kind of, get it whenever you get around to it. They seem to have kind of integrated getting more it into the story, so I assume you'll kind of start hearing about it when you progress the main story far enough.
I remember how I felt when I finished the main story in BoTW, like it ended too soon (this after more than 250 hours of playing). So in ToTK I'm only doing main story elements when I want a break from all of the other stuff: exploring, side quests, shrines, hunting, upgrading gear, etc. I haven't gotten into building much, yet, which I figure will be a post-main story just being silly activity for me. I love seeing all the crazy things others have been building.
Same, and honestly everytime I ignore all the stuff to just get somewhere or do something specific, the game is so much worse.
It always takes me hours to get anywhere but the journey is mostly filled with fun and silly advetures.
The only thing that kinda sucks is how long it takes to get more battery charges. I want to build and use all the fun stuff before im finished with everything else -.-
I have like 3 or 4 of the little batteries, and honestly, I'm not sure how I even got them.
I was just chatting with a friend about this, I really don't build stuff, unless I need to. Hell, I don't think I've even gotten on a horse yet, and I have all the sky towers done already, and have been over most of the map (except underground).
This is going to be a piece of advice for TOTK, not sure how to spoiler tag on this platform yet, so if you're not interested just skip on by. This is not really a spoiler in any sense though.
I went a huge portion of the game without upgrading my battery. I had 600 of the charge things before I figured it out, enough to triple my battery life. There's a construct you encounter on the tutorial island who tells you how to upgrade your battery, but it's way too soon for you to be able to afford it. There's just way too much vocabulary going around at the time so I totally missed it. There's another construct on a big rock behind the first little settlement you find on the ground, in front of Hyrule castle. Either of those places are easy to warp too. They charge 100 of the upside down triangle charges to give an extra battery notch. You can add one at a time; you don't have to wait to have 300 to add a whole new battery. The depths are the easiest place to get more of those charges. You will not max out the battery capacity for a very long time unless you make it your full time job.
I've got like 150 hours total and literally just beat my second temple tonight... but I've got 5 batteries and it's dope totally worth grinding the depths, grinding is a poor word more like exploring and having a blast.
The nice thing about the Switch is that it has something for everyone. So many genres of games available, and a lot of the games on the system are among the best of those genres.
Super Mario Odyssey and Super Mario 3D World are hard to beat in terms of 3D platformers. The former is a much more open-ended, Mario 64 style game, while the latter is much more level oriented and linear. They're pretty different from one another but both great in their own ways.
If you want a 2D platformer with a bit more difficulty, Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze is one of the best. Great gameplay and level variety is unreal.
If you're looking for a much more challenging 2D platformer instead, Celeste is incredible. Super tight controls and great use of its mechanics. Fast gameplay. Phenomenal soundtrack. Basically everything you could want in a twitch platformer.
If you're a JRPG fan, the Xenoblade Chronicles Trilogy is great. They each have loose references to each other but are primarily standalone games connected by their themes and gameplay structure. I'm particularly a fan of 3.
Also in JRPGs, Persona 5 Royal is on many platforms, but the Switch version is great and it's a hard game to top. Incredibly long, but in my opinion totally worth the full journey.
If you want something more strategic, Pikmin 3 Deluxe is a lot of fun, and it's gorgeous to look at. It's a real time strategy game that's presented in a very unique-to-Nintendo way. Also, it has a surprisingly great competitive multiplayer mode, so don't sleep on that if you have the chance.
Fire Emblem Three Houses is also a strategy game, but turn based instead of real time. Very lengthy, a lot of fun to delve into and get invested in the world and characters. It also has a lot of replay value, as there are multiple branching paths in the story that basically make half the game unique on each route.
For calmer/simulation style games, go for Stardew Valley or Animal Crossing. Can't go wrong with either one, though I'd say there's more to do in Stardew if you're concerned about that.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is one of the best party fighting games ever. So many characters to play as and a ton of content.
As you've said, Tears of the Kingdom is incredible. So is Breath of the Wild. I'd play BotW first if given the choice, just because Tears has much more complex mechanics, and it makes it easier to play if you're already familiar with the base mechanics from BotW.
There are more, but I'd say those are the big highlights for me. The Switch has an incredible backlog for someone just getting into it.
I can agree for sure. I do like the game and at it's core, it's still a fun game as it's an interesting mish-mash of MR1 and MR2 mechanics. But I can say that after multiple 100% playthroughs, it's always a reminder that this could have been a legit true mainline sequel rather than a spin-off.
There's a TON of nods to Monster Rancher. The obvious ones are the Kaiju rare subs that are Monster Rancher breeds, but there's also a lot of dialogue or the occasional random mail that has some references for fans of the series. There's even a Pure-breed Plant sitting in grandma Teresa's shop that I only noticed for the first time after someone pointed it out haha.
I did put some effort into learning a bit more about Ultraman than I knew before, which made it slightly more enjoyable, and also fun for naming them, because I'm a sucker for Punny names.
Like this one.... Kaiju is a Melba.
I named him... Idris Melba. (First he fought Kaiju, now he IS a Kaiju! lol)
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