Nintendo Switch Reviews: 12 Critical Reactions You Need To Know

9. Battery Life Is Disappointing (But Not Unexpected)

"Expect just over three hours of use with while playing intensive titles, on either low or 50 per cent brightness, with volume set halfway, and WiFi enabled...It's not an impressive number, and at maximum brightness it gets worse still, at two hours and 37 minutes. In fairness, [Zelda] is one of the most demanding Switch games available. Nintendo claims battery life can stretch to six hours given less taxing software, but it sets the bar for what to expect in major 3D games." - Eurogamer

"If you’re planning on taking the Switch on a train or plane, you'll definitely want to bring the charging cable with you...While this isn’t the worst-performing handheld battery life, it certainly isn’t the kind of marathon performance you might hope for from a daily companion." - Polygon

To their credit, Nintendo made it clear a while ago that the Switch's battery life would last from 2.5-6 hours, and predictions seem to be bang on the money that intensive 3D games such as The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild can't even make it to the three-hour mark without the player turning brightness and other factors down.

Considering that most reviewers have been playing Zelda above all else, it's pretty much still unknown if the battery can make it to six hours while playing any game. The main take-away here is that you need to have a charger cable and power outlet nearby if traveling for extended periods.