What just happened? There was a time when a console came with Twitter (RIP) integration as a standard feature, allowing users to connect their accounts and share gameplay clips directly, among other things. Now, however, none of the three current-gen machines offer this support after the Switch became the last to abandon the platform.
Nintendo decided to end X support for the Switch on June 10 as part of the handheld's 18.1.0 update, meaning no more account linking or directly posting game content to Elon Musk's site.
Switch users can no longer select the 'Post to Twitter' option when sharing from the Album in the Nintendo Switch Home menu. The ability to link to X under 'Posting to Social Media' in the User Settings has also been removed. Specific integration for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate that allowed players to post screenshots directly to X is gone, too.
Nintendo was the last of the three major console manufacturers to drop X integration. Microsoft did the same thing in April 2023 when it disabled clip-sharing from Xbox consoles and Windows PCs to the social media service.
We have had to disable the ability to share game uploads to Twitter directly from the console and Game Bar on Windows. You can still share your favorite moments to Twitter via the Xbox app for Android and iOS.
– Xbox (@Xbox) April 20, 2023
In November last year, Sony followed Microsoft in dropping X integration from its PlayStation 5 and PS4 consoles.
While none of the three companies gave a reason as to why they dropped X integration, it's almost certainly related to the API tiers introduced soon after Elon Musk took over.
There are three API tiers, the highest level being 'Enterprise,' which offers commercial-level access for enterprise customers. It starts at $42,000 per month. Many developers who had been using the free API called the new free tier useless due to its limited post cap and functionality.
Family-friendly Nintendo held out quite a while longer than its rivals, but the final straw could have come last week when X formally started allowing users to post adult and graphic content on the platform as long as it met certain rules and conditions.
While X has never prevented people from posting adult material, users who post this content are now asked to put their images and videos behind a content warning.