In an odd way I think the Switch has more appeal to the PS/XBox audience than many previous Nintendo consoles and far more than the Wii U ever did.

It's a system that can play hardcore games (Breath of the Wild is one the toughest games Nintendo has ever made, this game is not at all for even novice gamers, you gotta really be an advanced gamer otherwise this game is going to kick your ass) anywhere.

I'm hearing from more of my PS/XBox friends (granted not in huge droves, but the odd comment here and there) that they wouldn't mind having a Switch.

The marketing is far better too, far less emphasis on freaking kids. I get that this is part of Nintendo's demographic, but even kids don't want a product that is seen as too juvenile/kid like and the Wii U marketing was horrible for that, it was all aimed at kids.

I think Nintendo got very spooked during the Wii U/3DS era about losing people to smartphones/tablets that they went into a protective shell and made the decision to basically market to the one audience they thought could carry them alone -- kids. It didn't work well though IMO.

More games like Breath of the Wild are needed though, Mario Odyessy needs to deliver, but again, this is going to be a big open world 3D Mario from the sounds of it and not the more casual-oriented NSMB or Mario 3D Land/World series. Its time for Metroid and F-Zero and Wave Race (HD Rumble) to come back too I think. 

I agree with you 100% especially about it being the new hipster console to love just like the Gamecube currently is

I agree about the Wii U, but couldn't disagree more about the Gamecube.  The people that love the GC today like myself are the same ones that loved it during its original run a decade and a half ago.  It was an amazing little system that featured some of the best games and visuals of the entire 6th generation, with a solid library that still holds up today, not just with 1st party games but several 3rd party titles as well.

Compare Rogue Squadron II for example, a launch title way back in 2001, to some of the games that Nintendo has been lazily putting out this current generation like Starfox Zero in both the visual and gameplay departments, and its almost unbelievable how much better some of the GC's offerings are compared to the more contemporary stuff.  Even RE4 which came out back in 2005 is better than about 90% of the stuff on Wii and Wii U, which is why it's been ported a bunch of times to just about every console out there.

There's nothing hipsterish about loving the Gamecube these days.  The Dreamcast on the other hand is the console equivalent of Portland Oregon... ground zero hipster paradise.  There's a reason the DC lasted for barely a year in most markets before having the plug pulled... it just wasn't that good, and as soon as the PS2 was released everyone forgot about the DC.  At least the GC managed to make it through the standard  5 year console cycle before being put out to pasture.

I think this point is often over looked but the Wii U early year was absolutely flooded with 2D platformers and party/mini-game titles and both of those games had lost their appeal as system sellers, this totally killed the Wii U. 

NSMBU, New Luigi U, Rayman Legends, Nintendo Land, Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, Game & Wario, Mario & Sonic Olympics, Sing Party, Wii Party U, Wii Fit U, Wii Sports Club ... it was overkill. 

By the time games of more varied genres and larger scope like Splatoon, Bayonetta 2, Smash Brothers, Xenoblade X, etc. arrived the system was dead. 

Same with the 3DS, they thought the Touch Generations audience could carry them again, well launching with Nintendogs + cats as the "big" title was a fucking disaster that almost killed the system. It wasn't until Mario 3D Land + Mario Kart finally showed up that the system finally got going. 

Nintendo needs to understand they cannot launch solely with their more casual titles. Switch would be flopping right now too if 1,2 Switch was the main launch title and we were getting a 2D Mario or Donkey Kong instead of a big, epic 3D Zelda. 

Gamecube had no online whatsoever. Wind Waker and Mario Sunshine the big budget Nintendo games felt half assed and unfinished and that's coming from someone who picked them up when they were brand new. RE4 was ported to every console ever. Mario Part 4 killed the Mario Party series, Toad stool Tour was a downgrade from Mario Golf 64 just like every other N64 to Gamecube title besides Smash Bros Melee.

Gamecube wasn't bad and I had one or several because I had a defective one <.< I thought it was amazing back then but, then the older I got I realized just how much better the N64 did the games. Like pokemon Stadium 1-2 are miles better than Colloseum and XD Gales of Darkness

Turok Evolution (where as turok 1-3 on n64 was amazing) was also terrible on gamecube there is just so many small things that the gamecube faults upon.

Yea the console itself was a powerful beast but, the games were just as lackluster as the Wii U games if not even more so.