nOS new Operating System is a  rather curious little offering that promises to provide a whole new operating system experience right on your Switch.

Except, it really doesn’t. What you see in the title image above is really all there is on offer here, which will provide a limited amount of entertainment based on how compelling you find the paint tool and how much you like sliding puzzles (those familiar with some of my older reviews should know that I despise them with an absolute passion). In addition to that, we have a gallery to view both your pictures and some pre-installed ones, a calculator that has some rather odd quirks, and a notebook to jot stuff down.

It’s mostly functional, but also feels slightly limited for the price. The art tool is ok, and the touchscreen functionality makes it possible to use for artistic purposes, but there are so few tools included that it barely seems worth it when there’s far better art tools on the Switch that sell for far cheaper. I can applaud the inclusion of some rather psychedelic colours, but then the lack of something as simple as a fill tool completely undermines the whole thing. It makes it not only more basic than Microsoft Paint, but more basic than the ’95 version of Paint.

The other ‘programs’ are also somewhat lacking too, as the calculator is far less competent than you would find on your own operating system, and the lack of game selection too could have been improved. Perhaps some integration with RDG’s current catalogue could have made nOS slightly more useful, but as it stands it’s an extremely expensive product that offers hardly anything except empty promises.

VERDICT
It’s a shame that nOS offers very little, as the concept had a fair bit of promise but is ultimately let down by a lack of ambition. There’s still potential to be had due to the charming presentation, but there’s nothing here to even warrant purchasing at a heavily discounted price.