Editorial: The Official SPLATOON 2 Headset Is A Big Misstep For The Switch
Nintendo has made several game changing peripherals in gaming, and while a fair amount of them have been revolutionary, this latest one doesn't seem to be one of them. Take a look at Nintendo's first solution to voice chat on the Switch below and continue reading:
So you have a dongle that connects to your smartphone to your switch to the headset to deliver both game sound and the voice chat of your friends to the headset. It's a shame such a dope looking headset revolves around such a stupid mechanic. Did I really need a dongle to facilitate me hearing my video game and talking to friends on the phone at the same time? I guess it's better for the people who need to game in silence, but the dongle is just too much to have in my lap, desk, etc...
Let's also remember that this system requires the Switch in handheld mode to work. Why, on a console that supports Bluetooth, are we worried about tethering a headset to the console? I guess if we want to we can just purchase a Bluetooth headset and link it to our phone for the voice chat, although that does nothing for the game sound. I guess without knowing why Nintendo doesn't natively integrate voice chat into their online games, we can't really know why they thought this baffling decision was much better than the obvious, and perhaps more viable solution.
This reminds me of the Nintendo Wii room microphone, which only allowed for chat via a microphone that sat on top of your television. Go back to the drawing board Nintendo, this one needs fixing.