Why Achievements Should Come to the Nintendo Switch
Achievement unlocked! Or at least it would have been, if Nintendo would play ball and finally introduce achievements to their consoles. Xbox first introduced its achievements with the Gamerscore system in 2005, followed by Steam’s achievements in 2007, and PlayStation’s trophies in 2008. So it might be a bit of a pipe dream to believe that Nintendo will finally introduce achievements 17 years later, but if anyone is good at introducing things a little too late, it’s Nintendo (I’m looking at you, Nintendo Switch Online).
But seriously, it’s ridiculous that no Nintendo console has had achievements yet, and I think that now is the time to rectify it, especially with the renaissance that the Big N is seeing with the Switch.
Achievement Unlocked – Time and Money
Now, I know that we don’t generally have a problem with games being ‘short’ anymore, what with the Ubisoft approach to checklists and bloat. However, games are also getting more expensive, and achievements can offer a way to extend the length of shorter games. They also allow the developers to encourage the player to use more the systems that they might not have approached in a standard playthrough. All of this combines to offer more value for money, and an overall deeper experience.
Not all games should do this, of course, and I still feel a little dirty after replaying What Remains of Edith Finch to grab the achievements (Easy stuff on Xbox). But who says that all games need achievements? I’m just saying that I want the option.
Achievement Unlocked – Join the Club
I’ve already mentioned this in the opening, but pretty much every gaming system under the sun has achievements, including Apple’s Game Center and, browser gaming site, Kongregate’s Badges. Not only this, but many individual games have some form of achievement systems, such as World of Warcraft or even Pokémon Black and White 2 (one of the best additions to a Pokémon game ever). I think it’s time for Nintendo to join the club.
Now, I’m not suggesting that they need to go as far as offering Activision’s physical badges (seriously, check these out) but when achievements have been used by pretty much everyone else, Nintendo might just be in the wrong here.
Achievement Unlocked – Purchase Power!
And that leads me onto my next point: the fact that the Switch doesn’t offer achievements has actively put me off buying third party games on the system. Now, I’m no professional trophy hunter, but certain games just scream at me to get achievements. The most recent two have been Hollow Knight, which I’ve been playing on the PS4 (granted, this is partially because my girlfriend already owned it on Sony’s console) and Dark Souls: Remastered. For both, I just can’t bring myself not to get the digital swag that comes with beating these gaming goliaths.
While the Switch does offer portability that other consoles do not, sometimes those extra accomplishments are still needed to push me to buy a game on a certain system. But if money won’t talk, then I don’t know what will.
Achievement Unlocked – Identity Crisis
Another thing that the Switch is missing is personalisation. It’s been five years since the Switch was released, and we still haven’t gotten another theme than just ‘white’ or ‘black’. Sure, we’ve got some customisable profile icons, but I don’t think they go far enough. Well, achievements could help fill that personalisation gap with a bit of bragging.
Or perhaps Nintendo could go the whole hog and make the achievements into 3D models of trophies like in the earlier Super Smash Bros. games or, so as to not rip off Sony (and to make production slightly easier), utilise the Spirits or Stickers of Ultimate or Brawl. I mean, it would certainly be fun to organise a trophy room or sticker album of all the achievements I’ve earned.
Maybe I’ll just hide my Avatar The Last Airbender: The Burning Earth stickers.
Achievement Unlocked – The Point of Games
Most simply, achievements are fun.
I love the burst of dopamine I get when popping an achievement I wasn’t expecting, or the feeling of immense, well, achievement from Platinuming a game after dozens of hours of playing and intense planning.
I also love comparing achievements with my brother and my girlfriend, and I would love to be able to use the Switch to fill my pockets with more digital swag.
Although if Nintendo do want to send me physical records of my achievements, that would be okay too.
So there we have it, five reasons for Nintendo to add achievements to the Switch. Do you agree with my ideas, and do you have any other reasons for achievements to come to Nintendo consoles? Let us know in the comments and earn yourself a NintendoLink Seal of Success!* Thank you for stopping by NintendoLink.
*The NintendoLink Seal of Success is not a real signifier of achievement and should not be used to earn the respect of your peers or parents.
