After eight years on the market, the Nintendo Switch era has finally drawn to a close. The Nintendo Switch 2 generation is officially here, heralding a new beginning for the company and its fans. Well, somewhat new, at least. Nintendo has crafted a system with stronger capabilities and a sleeker design that makes it feel like a big upgrade from the console that was released back in 2017. However, it will also feel immediately familiar to anyone who owns the previous Switch. Rather than tossing out something that clearly worked, Nintendo instead worked to refine nearly every aspect of the original Switch. The result is impressive, even if the designers could have gone a little farther in some of the changes that were made.
The first thing people will notice upon taking the system out of the box is that the Switch 2 is a nice-looking piece of hardware. The matte black finish gives it a premium look and feel. Some have lamented that there’s less color than they would have liked, but we’ll probably see that rectified with future Joy-Con designs, like we saw with the original Switch. As it is right now, the little Joy-Con accents around the thumbsticks and on the insides of the controllers offer a little bit of vibrancy without detracting from the overall finish. The result is a much sharper-looking system than the original Switch. Adding to the premium sense, Switch 2 has a nicer weight to it in handheld mode.
The overall Nintendo Switch 2 design is brought together by the new magnetic-locking Joy-Cons. On top of offering greater durability, they also make the system feel less flimsy. In more than eight years of using Switch, I never once encountered the dreaded Joy-Con Drift. However, I did break the plastic lock on a Joy-Con, which made it impossible to keep the controller locked into position without some kind of case on it. For that reason alone, the magnetic design change is a very welcome one. There’s even a satisfying click as they lock into place. Nintendo increased the size of the new Joy-Cons over the originals, and they feel more durable. This is particularly beneficial for the new mouse mode, where you want something that’s going to hold up while being moved around a table, or even on a pant leg. I still don’t particularly care for using the Joy-Con as a single controller in games like Mario Kart World, but I do like that the option remains available for multiplayer sessions.
For Nintendo Switch 2, the designers have created a much larger screen compared to both the standard Switch, as well as the OLED model. The lack of an OLED screen was initially a point of concern for some, as Nintendo opted to return to an LCD screen with Switch 2. As someone who upgraded to a Switch OLED as soon as it launched, I was worried about going back. However, the Switch 2 screen is really vibrant and doesn’t at all feel like a downgrade. It’s possible Nintendo will offer an OLED model for Switch 2 at some point down the line, but it’s hard to imagine there being a significant enough upgrade to do so.
If there’s one area where Nintendo Switch 2 is a letdown, it’s the user interface. The Home Screen remains identical to the one on Nintendo Switch. Fans have spent eight years asking Nintendo to add the kinds of themes that were available on 3DS, and instead, we got the exact same screen we had on the previous system. On one hand, it makes sense to keep things as similar as possible. After all, Switch 2 has some new features that offer compatibility with the previous Switch, such as GameShare. In that regard, keeping the interface the same across both platforms makes things easier to understand for users. Despite this, it just feels a little too simple and plain after all this time.
Speaking of GameShare, the new option is a welcome multiplayer addition. The feature was added to certain existing Nintendo Switch games, as well as EA’s Split Fiction. The feature allows Switch 2 users to stream multiplayer games with friends who have a Switch 2 or an original Switch, even if they don’t own a copy of that game. After experimenting with the feature in Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury, it seemed to work well when you have users who are in close proximity. However, there isn’t a lot of distance offered, and the actual stream quality drops off quickly once there’s any significant distance between systems. I’d be very curious to see how it worked between users that might be a few seats apart on a plane or bus.
Alongside Nintendo Switch 2, several new peripherals have been released, including a new take on the Pro Controller. Unlike the Home Screen, this feels like an example of “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” The new Pro Controller features all of the things I loved about the original, plus a few welcome improvements. The biggest is that the controller now has a headphone jack. As someone who purchased one of PowerA’s wired Switch controllers just so I wouldn’t wake up the rest of the house during late-night gaming sessions, I love that this was finally included. The Pro Controller also adds the new ‘C’ button for launching GameChat, as well as two mappable buttons that appear on the back side handles. The thumbsticks now allow for greater movement, and the buttons protrude a little farther. Lastly, the controller has a smooth new finish that gives it a nice feel that matches the new Joy-Cons.
While the Nintendo Switch 2 Pro Controller feels like a nice improvement, users can stick with the original, should they so choose. Nintendo has made sure that most peripherals still work with the new system, and that includes the Pro Controller. The adapter for GameCube controllers also continues to work, which should make fans of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate very happy. There are a handful of peripherals that won’t work with the new Joy-Cons, like Ring Fit Adventure‘s Ring-Con, but the system retains compatibility with the older Joy-Cons for that specific reason (even if they can’t physically connect to the system in handheld mode).
GameChat has been getting a lot of focus in the marketing for Nintendo Switch 2. From the limited time I’ve had with GameChat so far, it works about as well as advertised. Nintendo hasn’t shied away from showing that the frame rate takes a hit in the screens of other players, with resources instead focusing on the game the system is running. For example, if the player has Mario Kart World running while friends are playing Breath of the Wild, Mario Kart World‘s performance takes precedence. That can result in some choppiness in the screens of other players. One area that works surprisingly well is GameChat’s talk-to-text feature. The microphone does an incredible job picking up the user’s voice and accurately translating what they’re saying. It already feels far beyond the capabilities of most mobile phones.
Performance is important coming off the original Switch generation. The system had started to show its age over the last few years, both in terms of graphics and frame rate. From the games I’ve played thus far, it really does feel like Switch 2 offers a significant improvement in that regard. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe still looks pretty impressive after all these years, but Mario Kart World runs laps around it, from the stunning clouds in the sky to the incredible colors that pop. Nintendo Switch 2’s updates for existing games like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild also show just how drastically better things are getting in terms of performance. Hopefully, that continues as we get to see more games that push what the system can do.
All of this extra power comes at a cost, and that comes in the form of a hit to the system’s battery life. In handheld mode, I found that Nintendo Switch 2 offered just over two and a half hours of charge while playing a nonstop Mario Kart World session. At exactly 154 minutes, the system gave me my third warning about the battery life, and I was advised to charge the Switch 2 or it would go to sleep. That battery life is significantly lower than we’ve seen with previous Switch models, which is bound to be a source of frustration for anyone planning to bring the system on any long flights or road trips.
It’s also worth noting that not all Switch 1 games currently work on Nintendo Switch 2; Nintendo has published a full list of games with compatibility issues. The company and its partners are working to rectify these problems, but I decided to test out one of the games on the list of titles with start-up issues: Jurassic Park Classic Games Collection. After launching, audio worked as normal, but the screen remained black before the game crashed and sent me back to the system’s Home Screen. The list of games with issues is relatively small, but those interested in buying a Nintendo Switch 2 might want to consult that list and see if any of their favorite games are currently facing problems.
RELATED: The One Nintendo Switch 2 Launch Game You Should Not Buy
From a hardware perspective, Nintendo Switch 2 offers nearly every improvement a user could want over the original. It doesn’t feel like a substantial leap in terms of the system’s User Interface, and the battery life could end up leaving a lot to be desired. That said, all of the other changes add up to a substantial offering. It feels sturdier, the screen is nicer, the graphics and performance are substantially improved, and new features like GameShare should lead to more enjoyable multiplayer sessions. If you’ve been desperately hoping for a handheld system that can handle bigger and better games, while adding much-needed improvements to chat and frame rate, Nintendo Switch 2 should be more than worth the overall cost of admission.
The post Nintendo Switch 2 Review: A Bright Future (Even Without an OLED Screen) appeared first on ComicBook.com.
