If you’re like most people, you’re excited for the Nintendo Switch Lite because it’s a more affordable, durable, and portable way to enjoy the growing library of great games on Nintendo’s latest system. If you’re like me though you’re excited for the Nintendo Switch Lite because the new dedicated handheld finally lets Nintendo kill off the 3DS. But whatever the reason, after playing with the system for myself, I can tell you the Nintendo Switch Lite basically does what it’s obviously built to do. It is what it is.
I’ve enjoyed using the original Nintendo Switch as a handheld just fine for the past two and a half years. But between the size, weight, and natural breaking point where the Joy-Cons attached, you can’t help but treat it a little bit more delicately compared to past Nintendo handhelds.
The Switch Lite doesn’t have this issue. I felt like I could drop it on the ground and it would hold up about as well as a Game Boy in a Gulf War. You appreciate everything being one solid light piece and the matte finishing makes it feel even tougher. The improved resiliency (and longer battery life) makes you more comfortable about taking it more places. And the smaller size makes that more feasible. It’ll fit in your pocket about as well as a big phone.
But how about playing the games? It’s pretty much the same. While the screen is slightly smaller, I didn’t really notice any visual improvements from the higher pixel density. The new D-pad is less mushy than the Switch Pro Controller, which should hopefully make it more viable for Tetris 99. And while we won’t know for sure until the system is out in the wild, Nintendo of America says it “expects its hardware to perform as designed” when I asked about Joy-Con analog stick drift in a system where the Joy-Con are permanently attached.
I played a variety of games to see how they hold up while missing features like HD rumble and using motion controls while docked to a TV. Turns out these gimmicks were never that essential. Sorry, Arms. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild are as great as you remember. There’s still a touch screen so banging out a bad Super Mario Maker 2 level was a breeze. The system’s body also still gyro sensors, so I played Pokemon Let’s Go Pikachu like it was Pokemon Go. And Super Bomberman R and New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe are glorified handheld games anyway so they perform just fine.
And the colors! The banana yellow and vaporwave turquoise just pop. But I was surprised by how stylish the grey system looks, too. The light grey buttons paired with the dark grey body give it a really appealing smoky and mature monochrome look.
So should you get the Nintendo Switch Lite? If you don’t have a Switch and care more about saving money than playing on TV then sure. If you’re a parent who wants to make sure their kid won’t break their Pokemon Sword and Shield machine, absolutely. If you already have a Switch it’ll be a nice bit of secondary hardware but honestly you’re probably better off investing in Nintendo’s impressive fall software slate headlined by The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening. We’ll make our final judgment though when the Nintendo Switch Lite launches September 20 for $200.
For more on Nintendo Switch learn about the latest crop of indie games coming to the system and check out these cool games to play right now.
