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Otome Frog blog #1: Buying the Nintendo Switch

I bought the Nintendo Switch last year before the first wave of COVID-19 arrive. It was an impulse buy, I wanted to cancel my preorder in my local game store as I live in a third world country where Nintendo Switches cost around $500-$600+ in my local currency. I was committing a financial suicide (and it took me months to get that money back) but looking at it  now, I’m thankful for this reckless purchase. This console with its blue and green shell got me through the pandemic and online classes. I had very little games in it too. I only had Animal Crossing New Horizons, Fire Emblem: Three Houses and Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and I think you can firmly guess which one of the three I spent most of time on. 

For the next few months, COVID-19 cases went down to 0 in my country and life drew me apart from the console. For the next year or so, in the bubble of my country, we forgot everything COVID-19 and I forgot I bought a Nintendo Switch until the second wave arrive in August this year. I had a very... devastating event a few months prior to August so the second wave felt like salt to my wounds. I felt empty. I felt like I’ve became a shell of former self but I manage to fake it around family and friends. At night, I found it hard to sleep. I wasn’t suicidal nor did I have haunting thoughts and anxiety like my youth. It was too quiet. I’m unsure if this is called loneliness but it was closer to emptiness than anything else. 

Just when I was certain that I couldn’t return, I uncovered my Switch. I forgot where I stopped in Fire Emblem so I didn’t dare to proceed- I remembered that Dimitri was acting strange and I have no strength to see him in pain- wait, I’m feeling pain? I haven’t felt that in a while... 

This is the way for me to regain myself. This was a spark I need to be me again- a momentary escape from life.  

I opened up the Nintendo eshop and took a look of the games on sale hoping that one game can make a click with me but for some reason, nothing. I wasn’t a first person shooter kinda gamer, I don’t think I’m ready for an RPG. and Pokemon, Mario? I never grew up with those... I set the console down on my desk and leaned back to think. Throughout my life, I’ve been surrounded by Playstation. In fact, I only bought the Animal Crossing Edition Switch because it reminded me of the beloved mint color PSP I lost. It had a swollen battery and at the time, I was too young to fix it. In my naivety, I placed it in a box to be store away forever. I haven’t found it ever since.

I quickly grabbed my phone and searched the web remembering that I used to lookup translation blogs for large chunk of PSP released otome games never receive English localization. That was like, what? 5ish years ago? Could have there been any changes? I vaguely remember reading in Twitter about this news but were they out now? The Nintendo Switch ports.

I held my breath. There wasn’t a lot in the library but they’re there! They cost about $70 in my local currency which gave me a fright but they’re there! I felt glee and it was as warm and fuzzy as Hajime Saito’s smile from Hakuouki: Demon of Fleeting Cherry Blossoms years ago. It’ll take time for me to play them seeing that I can only buy them on sale but that’s okay. This Nintendo switch became a means for me to mend myself.

Here’s to my journey to healing through gaming. May I rid this emptiness out of my chest and be my former- no, better self.