Hey, Nintendo: This Is A Good Time For StreetPass on the Switch

Last year during E3, when I asked Nintendo’s head of marketing Doug Bowser (no relation) about the future of StreetPass, he didn’t have much to tell me. The Nintendo 3DS feature, which allows users to sync up with others through a background passive connectivity, is mostly a handheld endeavor, meant for collecting puzzle pieces and playing mini-games in the Mii Plaza. It’s fun, but perhaps not a vital part of the system’s identity.
At the time, he also couldn’t reveal much about the next installment of Super Smash Bros., which of course, we all knew was inevitably on the way. But now the topic has come back up with the recent official announcement of the next installment of the all-star fighting series. What is the future of the Switch as a hybrid handheld/home console? Will StreetPass finally come to the Switch now that Nintendo has another choice opportunity to implement it?
StreetPass, as a feature, has always had its flaws. It’s exciting to use in a large public setting where there are plenty of other eager users to tag, but those occasions are few and far between, especially as the years have gone by. But when you do get those moments, they’re a lot of fun. The mini-games, while shallow, are a great icebreaker for engaging other 3DS players, and the blooms of Nintendo fans at each PAX West, for example, gathered on bean bag chairs around charging hubs, are among my favorite gaming community sights. StreetPass, at least for me, was effective in encouraging me to take my 3DS with me wherever I go.