How do you use your Switch?

[Sarge]

Yeah, this. Celeste or AC are fine either way, but you gotta play Xenoblade on the big screen.

This is a good point. Especially Xenoblade 2, where the performance in handheld mode is not great at all. It felt much more at home on the big screen.

(Speaking of which, did they ever patch that up a bit, or does it still go extremely low-res and smeary?)

 

[Issun]

As for AC, I usually play in handheld, if for no other reason than that I constantly need to show my wife the adorable things my villagers are up to and that's just easier in handheld.

 

[q 3]

I haven't even unwrapped my dock
it's been over two years

 

[LBD_Nytetrayn]

Docked, rarely handheld. On occasion when it's more convenient to do so, I've just set it next to me on the bed and played it with a Joy-Con in each hand.

I just find handheld mode too uncomfortable to deal with for very long.

 

[zonetrope]

Always docked. I'm not much for handheld gaming anymore, and the few times I tried with the Switch it felt weird to me.

 

[Yimothy]

I think I’m about 50/50. If I’m settling in for the evening I’ll usually use the TV unless my wife is watching something, in which case I’ll go handheld, but sometimes it’s just nice to pick the thing up and be playing immediately. I bought a grip to make handheld more comfortable, and I have one of the hori left joycons with a d-pad instead of the four buttons, both of which go a long way to making handheld more viable (depending on the game in the case of the d-pad, but I play a fair number of platformers for which it’s better).

 

[ShakeWell]

Mostly docked, but during sports (especially NHL season), I'll play it handheld while I sit on the couch with my wife while she pays much closer attention to the sports than I do.

 

[Droewyn]

My preference is docked, except for a few specific games (Okami Switch version, for the touchscreen paintbrush skills). If I'm playing undocked, I have it sitting in my Hori stand and am either using the joycons detached, or the pro controller. I very rarely actually hold it in handheld mode. When I'm trying to catch a difficult fish in ACHN, sometimes, because I swear that bluetooth lag makes a difference.

 

[Zef]

About 95% docked. Even when I traveled prior to the pandemic, I usually pull out the train/plane seat's table, pulled out the Switch's kickstand or set the Switch on a portable charging stand, and used the JoyCon grip or an 8bitdo controller. I need the stability to play demanding platforming/fighting/Katamari games, and since I like to take plenty of screenshots I prefer to do it when I have the higher resolution of the docked version.

I think the only games I've played in handheld mode are Gorogoa, Detention, Donut County, and Untitled Goose Game.

 

[Seven]

Handheld only, I don't even know where my dock is. I've always preferred handhelds over home consoles since I never feel like I have to set aside some time to play on them. Personally I would have never beaten games like Breath of the Wild, Xenoblade Chronicles 2, and Dragon Quest XI S if they were only on a home console; on the other hand playing them on a handheld allowed me to chip away at my own pace.

 

[Kiyone]

Mostly handheld, because I'm typically playing games on the couch while pence is using the HTPC.

 

[MetManMas]

Usually docked. I'm doing a lot of photo shoots in Animal Crossing: New Horizons these days and it's easier for me to take 'em with a nice big screen.

That said, I like being able to quickly and easily take the Switch downstairs for gaming sessions so handheld play still gets a good amount of use.

 

[Olli]

I'd guesstimate 85% docked, but handheld mode gets some use when we are away from home and don't want to miss out on Animal Crossing stuff or something.

 

[Sarge]

Funny that I said docked, and then I use it portably yesterday for playing Shantae and the Seven Sirens. Something feels kinda right playing that in handheld mode, given that I played almost every other entry that way as well.

 

[Destil]

Split pretty heavily between the two depending on what I'm doing and where I am.

 

[estragon]

I'm extremely in the depends on the game camp. Some games just feel better portable to me, others feel better on a TV. Love that this hybrid system exists and will be sad if/when Nintendo splits this up in the future.