The Nintendo Switch Parental Controls app started rolling out on the Google Play Store on Thursday, a day before Nintendo’s latest gaming console officially hit the market. As its name suggests, Nintendo’s new Android app was designed for parents looking to regulate how much times their children spend with the Switch console. Additionally, the app allows parents to curate content their kids are playing, as well as access statistics about their gaming habits.
Nintendo’s new Android app has three primary functionalities. The app ships with a mode that allows you to set a limit on how long your children can use the console as it provides you with an ability to remotely approve a gaming session for your kids. Once the set limit has been reached, the app can either notify you about that or notify you and automatically suspend gameplay. Furthermore, Nintendo Switch Parental Controls also provide users with an ability to keep track of their children’s playing history, i.e. see which games their kids have been playing and for how long. The app can even send you daily and monthly activity summaries if you want it to. Finally, Nintendo Switch Parental Controls can also be used to restrict Nintendo eShop purchases made on the console.
The Nintendo Switch Parental Controls app should already be available for download from the Google Play Store worldwide. The app can be installed for free and features no ads or in-app purchases, though it’s only compatible with devices running Android 4.4 KitKat and newer versions of Google’s ubiquitous operating system. The video and gallery below depict Nintendo’s latest app in action. As for the console that the app controls, the Switch is officially available for purchase as of today with prices starting at $299.99. Nintendo has recently committed a significant amount of resources to developing and publishing mobile games like Pokemon GO, Super Mario Run, and Fire Emblem Heroes not only because the company is looking to diversify its revenue stream, but also because it believes that mobile games can be an effective marketing tool for promoting its console business. Time will tell whether that strategy will pay off, but seeing how the Switch just hit the market, it shouldn’t be long before Nintendo can estimate whether mobile games helped sell its latest home console.
