5 ms·

The lack of a web browser is I suspect a reaction to WebKit vulnerabilities having been one of the primary entry points for people hacking the (New) 3DS. Omitti

The lack of a web browser is I suspect a reaction to WebKit vulnerabilities having been one of the primary entry points for people hacking the (New) 3DS. Omitting this functionality reduces the OS's attack surface.

gommm 10y ago
It was also the entry point for the Wii U.
delroth 10y ago
Except they will support connecting to public Wi-Fi hotspots, which almost always require logging in or accepting terms of services on an HTML page nowadays. So they definitely didn't get rid of WebKit.
dawnerd 10y ago
Quite a few hacks come right from exploited game saves and I have a feeling the same will happen this time around too.
n-gauge 10y ago
..and maybe to stop users playing HTML games (Nintendo ripoffs for example). This is a shame as I felt the Wii U was crippled in this respect (i.e. video tag supported but not audio!)
- r00fus 10y ago
  Why would I buy a switch to play HTML games? Honestly this argument seems a stretch to me.
  - JoshTriplett 10y ago
    > Why would I buy a switch to play HTML games? A portable, dockable tablet with a built-in reliable controller? If it had a browser, I'd be surprised if people didn't specifically write some games to target it.
    - mbel 10y ago
      3DS has a browser and a built-in reliable controller. I haven't heard about any HTML game for 3DS.
      - JoshTriplett 10y ago
        The 3DS used a relatively deficient browser engine, with much less support for web standards; it didn't support anything a non-trivial game might need. A browser based on current WebKit or Blink, with full hardware-accelerated support for WebGL, a fast JavaScript JIT, WebAssembly, fullscreen, joysticks, and other such standards would make a compelling platform.
        mbel 10y ago
        Well, the point stands: browser and integrated pad is not enough for third party browser games to emerge. Nintendo would also have to provide relevant APIs, some of which aren't commonly used by regular websites (e.g. WebGL).
    - Pengwin 10y ago
      I'm hoping that they do bring it back, because Nintendo did see the potential and have dev tools for the WiiU to target html based content - https://developer.nintendo.com/tools https://developer.nintendo.com/tools
  - gyello 10y ago
    There's a popular website used on the Xbox One that emulates older Nintendo consoles from within the included Edge browser with controller support, and it can use OneDrive to store your ROMs and saves. Something similar to that on the Switch could eat into Virtual Console revenues.
- BHSPitMonkey 10y ago
  I don't think that's the reason, considering Nintendo created special JavaScript APIs for accessing the Wii U's gamepad hardware features and made them available to all sites via their browser. My bet is that they felt they needed more time to figure out how to properly sandbox it to prevent homebrew/piracy-related exploits, and that it will be released as a free installable item (or packaged with an OS update) in the next few months.

gommm 10y ago

It was also the entry point for the Wii U.

delroth 10y ago

Except they will support connecting to public Wi-Fi hotspots, which almost always require logging in or accepting terms of services on an HTML page nowadays. So they definitely didn't get rid of WebKit.

dawnerd 10y ago

Quite a few hacks come right from exploited game saves and I have a feeling the same will happen this time around too.

n-gauge 10y ago

..and maybe to stop users playing HTML games (Nintendo ripoffs for example). This is a shame as I felt the Wii U was crippled in this respect (i.e. video tag supported but not audio!)

r00fus 10y ago
Why would I buy a switch to play HTML games? Honestly this argument seems a stretch to me.
- JoshTriplett 10y ago
  > Why would I buy a switch to play HTML games? A portable, dockable tablet with a built-in reliable controller? If it had a browser, I'd be surprised if people didn't specifically write some games to target it.
  - mbel 10y ago
    3DS has a browser and a built-in reliable controller. I haven't heard about any HTML game for 3DS.
    - JoshTriplett 10y ago
      The 3DS used a relatively deficient browser engine, with much less support for web standards; it didn't support anything a non-trivial game might need. A browser based on current WebKit or Blink, with full hardware-accelerated support for WebGL, a fast JavaScript JIT, WebAssembly, fullscreen, joysticks, and other such standards would make a compelling platform.
      - mbel 10y ago
        Well, the point stands: browser and integrated pad is not enough for third party browser games to emerge. Nintendo would also have to provide relevant APIs, some of which aren't commonly used by regular websites (e.g. WebGL).
  - Pengwin 10y ago
    I'm hoping that they do bring it back, because Nintendo did see the potential and have dev tools for the WiiU to target html based content - https://developer.nintendo.com/tools https://developer.nintendo.com/tools
- gyello 10y ago
  There's a popular website used on the Xbox One that emulates older Nintendo consoles from within the included Edge browser with controller support, and it can use OneDrive to store your ROMs and saves. Something similar to that on the Switch could eat into Virtual Console revenues.
BHSPitMonkey 10y ago
I don't think that's the reason, considering Nintendo created special JavaScript APIs for accessing the Wii U's gamepad hardware features and made them available to all sites via their browser. My bet is that they felt they needed more time to figure out how to properly sandbox it to prevent homebrew/piracy-related exploits, and that it will be released as a free installable item (or packaged with an OS update) in the next few months.