Why I didn’t like portable game consoles – Reader feature

While hybrid and portable gaming consoles remain popular, one reader explains why he doesn’t like them and prefers home consoles.

I’ve been into video games almost all my life. My first console was a SNES when I was a kid, and I’ve had at least one in every generation since, but mostly PlayStation and Nintendo. I think my gaming tastes are pretty wide-ranging. As much as I enjoy Donkey Kong Bananza, I also love a good Ark Raiders game. But what I’ve never liked are handhelds.

Maybe I’m behind the times. Because I hate the whole idea of ​​watching movies on my phone and I never want to do it. I want a big movie experience. Ideally in an actual movie theater, or at least somewhere with a big screen and a decent sound system at home. I feel the same way about games, and I think it’s very important to play in ideal conditions, in the dark, with nothing going on in the room (I admit, ideal conditions don’t always happen!).

I don’t think that position is all that unusual when it comes to movies, or at least most people understand it, but when it comes to games I’m not so sure. When I was a kid, I hated the idea of ​​the Game Boy and Game Gear, and stuck to the consoles while scoffing at them both. I thought the poor graphics weren’t worth sacrificing portability, and dismissed the game as poorly made.

Nowadays, I can admit that that last part isn’t necessarily true, but I just wasn’t attracted to a big, clunky mobile device that drained my battery and played bad versions of games I already had at home. As things evolved, I didn’t change my mind at all, but I still found the DS graphics to be very ugly. I was a little more interested in the PSP, and I was intrigued again by the PS Vita, but the best games tended to be ported to the PlayStation anyway, so I wasn’t tempted.

More recently, the Switch and Switch 2 have been big hits, and I own both, but I’ve never used them in handheld mode. It’s nice to be able to carry it around, but I always bring the dock with me when I go somewhere, like when I go to my parents’ house for Christmas. That’s what I think of as a portable game console!

Another modern form of handheld is the PC device. It started with the Steam deck, was heavily influenced by the Switch, and has spawned endless copies. These really don’t make sense to me. Not only do you have to put up with a small screen, but you also have erratic controls, inconsistent performance and compatibility, and the fear of using Windows on your gaming handheld. At least the one my friend had, I forget the name, because you have to use Windows.

Being prohibitively expensive only makes things worse, and I generally give in to the temptation. Even PlayStation Portal is very expensive and doesn’t do anything other than stream games from your home PlayStation. Yes, that means you can play it in bed, but you can also play it in bed by simply installing a TV in your bedroom.

I think it’s just me because these things are so popular. But that’s okay. Unlike some people on the internet, I don’t feel the need to force others to stop playing something just because I don’t like it. But every time I see someone curled up on a train or something, playing a crappy console game on a small screen on their phone, I just get annoyed.

Don’t even talk to me about your cell phone. But I think a lot of people would agree with me, at least on that. But sometimes I wonder if I’m the only one who hates portable game consoles.

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