There's a huge problem with voice chat and the Nintendo Switch Online app
Here's a fun fact about that new Nintendo Switch Online app: Voice chat is as awful as we'd feared.
Most of you probably saw nonsense like this coming as soon as Nintendo confirmed that Switch online services would be relegated to an Android or iOS app. But now, the app is here and -- while limited -- it works with Splatoon 2. That means we can test it.
SEE ALSO:'Splatoon 2' voice chat leaves us asking: What exactly is Nintendo smoking?Mashable's own Kellen Beck fired up his copy of the game and created an online lobby there. Then -- switching over to his phone -- he used the app to invite me. I, on my phone, accepted the invite, then, in the game, trundled over to the section of Splatoon 2where you can join online lobbies.
Voice chat kicked in as soon as I joined. It sounded fine. Kellen and I sit next to each other, so I heard a little bit of myself, but the audio quality is decent and does an OK job of filtering out ambient noise.
Satisfied that things were working, I tapped the power button on my Android phone to conserve juice while we played a private match. And that's when voice chat cut out.
The moment my screen turned off, my ability to participate in voice chat went away.
I turned my phone screen back on and unlocked it, which deposited me right back in the Switch Online app. Voice chat returned. Kellen tried the same steps with his iOS phone; same problem. If your phone is locked, your voice chat goes away.
Think about that for a moment. You've already got the Switch, which has a battery to charge if you're playing on the go. Tethering voice chat and other online services to your phone means you've also got that battery to worry about. Now, we've learned that you have to actually leave the phone unlocked -- which could mean turning off your auto-sleep settings -- for voice chat, creating an even greater battery drain.
This is dumb. This whole setup is so very, very dumb. Juggling two different devices for basic online services is enough of a headache; sacrificing that much more of your battery to the Nintendo gods just to talk to your friends online while you're playing a video game... this is fundamentally bad design.
If you're looking for a sliver of hope, here it is: full functionality won't be coming to the app until Friday, July 21. That may or may not fix this issue.
There's really only one point of feedback that matters here: Nintendo needs to come up with something better for Switch online services. What a terrible setup.
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TopicsEsportsGamingNintendoNintendo Switch
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