That’s right, for hardware that’s now eight years old and never got a price discount. It currently sells for C$400 – but they’re about to jack the price.
There are Android tablets that are much cheaper than the Switch, more powerful, more battery efficient. Also, play games better.
Yet, Nintendo is jacking the price.
If you want a similar gaming handheld, Steam Deck.
Love my steamdeck but it’s definitely not similar to a switch other than they both play video games handheld. Even the docked experiences are super different.
How’s the deck for mouse-heavy strategy games like Stellaris, Civ, etc?
Great, the touchpads are amazing for mouse-related stuff while handheld. I can comfortably use mouse heavy menus with them. Obviously, a lot closer to a laptop touchpad than an actual mouse, but still a lot better than a joystick as mouse.
A Steam Deck is a PC. If you dock it, you can hook up a mouse+KB and a monitor, and use “desktop mode” (KDE plasma) to use it exactly like any other Linux desktop. Docked “gaming mode” makes it feel more like a home console for PC games (and emulators). It is even possible (though not recommended) to install Windows.
If you hook it up to a monitor and use a keyboard with mouse, it’s indistinguishable from a regular PC.
Playing portably, mouse-based games run pretty well. Games that use a lot of keyboard keys are where it gets difficult without using an actual keyboard.
I don’t personally have one, but Civ has a touch interface (at least 5 does, never got into 6). The touchpads probably approximate a mouse input.