Before playing games one of the aspects of the switch that provides insight into the type of toy this is, would be the console itself. Maria’s switch is in the shape of a small black tablet with two controllers (Joy-Cons) attached on each side. The colors of her controllers are red and blue. She also has a clear plastic case around it that has two stickers on the back of it (Isabelle and Timmy/Tommy from Animal Crossing New Horizons). In addition, the dock where the Switch goes in when you want to swap to TV mode also has a sticker on it (Pikachu and Eevee from Pokemon).

The typical Nintendo Switch Console has a very sleek and plain design. This can make a lot of empty space that for kids such as Maria is an inviting way to allow her to make it uniquely her own. Through the use of stickers, she was able to adorn her switch console with things that interest her and allows her a way to not only keep her’s separate from the others when her friends come over but also allows her to showcase her own interests. From this alone, it begins to show how the Nintendo Switch can allow for experiences in creativity before even considering its main function of playing games.

After showing me her Switch she also brings me the shelf where she keeps her games (The above image is an example of how Nintendo Switch games look displayed similar to Maria's shelf). They are neatly arranged standing upright against one another. This organization helps to convey a sense of responsibility that Maria has in not just keeping her room clean but also designating where things relating to her Switch belong. This demonstrates an important learning development for children where with all the stimuli they are exposed to they want to understand the world fast and one of the best ways is through categorization. This is evident further in her room as she has a desk next to her bed where all her school stuff goes, and she has a corner of her room with her stuffed animals that she refers to as their home “The Animal Corner”. This shelf that hosts her games and Nintendo Switch accessories demonstrates how it can encourage learning through practicing consolidation and making sense of a very complicated world in the comfort of their own room. 

Maria then turns the switch on, and as she does so the Nintendo Logo flashes and it starts up. The UI (User Interface) is very simple. It has a black background that features squares with various images of games shown next to each other. There is no music that plays and it's very sparse in visual details beyond the images of the games itself. The top corner shows a logo of her user profile. It features an image of the animal crossing character Isabelle at the top (The above is an example of how the UI looks). As Maria puts in the game cartridge (A small black piece of plastic that has a sticker on it that indicates the game) the image of the game gets moved to the front showing its playable since the game is now inside. As she selects it a small sound plays and then she chooses her profile which shows her username being “Yamz” and then the game starts up.

From this description, it shows that even a sparse feature is still effective at presenting its function while also allowing for expression. This is evident in how the most colorful and attention-grabbing part of this UI is the images of the games themselves. It's a simple UI that doesn’t intend to overwhelm children and is direct in its function which is to play games. Even so, there is room for customization as the profiles are something unique to each user. It allows for the ability to make yourself separate from others even if you share the same system. The image and name of Maria’s profile are something she made herself and the name “Yamz” is because she found the word funny, meanwhile, the image is based on her favorite character. These details help to demonstrate further how the Nintendo Switch can be an approachable space for kids to express themselves.