Nintendo Switch Airport Lounges are a Moronic Idea; What’s the Point?

• Nintendo Switch lounges will be opening at select U.S. airports.
• The lounges will feature games such as The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Super Mario Odyssey.
• What’s the point of playing games at these lounges?

Nintendo Switch is going to start showing up in airports. The gaming company is introducing “On The Go” pop-up airport lounges that allow travelers to play games while they wait for their flights.

That idea seems like it would work out well for PlayStation 4 or Xbox One, but not the Nintendo Switch.

The Nintendo Switch is already a mobile console. Anyone that cares enough about the console to play it likely already has it in their travel bag.

None of those seats look comfortable to sit in. Source: Nintendo/Twitter

The Nintendo Switch Lounges Have Strange Games Available

At that point, why would owners want to stop and play a random Switch instead? They can’t play their own games on it and their save data won’t be available to them.

It’s also worth mentioning that the Nintendo Switch On The Go lounges have a strange selection of games available to play. Some of them make sense, like Tetris 99 and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, but then there’s The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Super Mario Odyssey.

Who in their right mind wants to sit down and start a file of Breath of the Wild or Odyssey at an airport lounge? These are long games that take hours upon hours to beat and do not lend themselves well to short bursts of play.

Breath of the Wild is not the kind of game to put in the Switch lounge. Source: Nintendo

Players Don’t Get to Keep Save Data from the Lounge

Maybe there’s an argument for the Nintendo Switch On The Go lounges acting as extended demos or gameplay previews. That’s understandable since the company will be selling consoles at these locations.

Even so, it doesn’t explain why anyone would want to tackle such long games as Breath of the Wild. Imagine some poor traveler playing the game for an hour or so during a layover. They get hooked, buy the Switch and then realize they have to start over when they play the game again.

That’s a real bummer.

Who wants to keep standing while waiting for a flight? Source: Nintendo/Twitter

Can Travelers Even Purchase a Switch Directly from the Lounge?

Another negative is that doesn’t appear customers can just buy a Switch at the location. The gaming company uses the term “order” when referring to purchasing a Switch at the lounge. This seems to suggest that the console will be shipped to their home and not given directly to them.

Nintendo is missing a huge opportunity if this is the case. About the only good reason to buy a Switch at one of these lounges is to have it for an upcoming flight. If it doesn’t work this way, then what’s the point?

Switch owners can stop by for a quick charging to combat the ridiculously short battery life of the console, which is about all these lounges are good for.

The Nintendo Switch On The Go lounges will start popping up at airports this month and will stick around through most of March.

This article was edited by Samburaj Das.

Last modified: February 12, 2020 6:50 AM UTC

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