Sneaky.

Yesterday Sumo Digital - the talented chaps behind Snake Pass, which launched recently on multiple consoles, including Switch - held an AMA session on Reddit which covered a wide range of topics.

One of the first questions was regarding the possibility of a performance-boosting patch aimed at the Switch version, which Sumo stated isn't currently on the cards - but that doesn't mean it won't happen in the future:

We currently are not planning to release a patch specifically aimed at improving performance. That said, we are constantly looking for ways to improve the game and some of these improvements could potentially result in better performance, as evidenced by the first patch we released.

Considering the time frame we worked on the Switch version, we didn't want to take too many concessions in gutting the volume of stuff in comparison to the other platforms. Snake Pass is a rather CPU/GPU heavy game where things like the accuracy of the Snake physics that take into account all sorts of friction from Noodle and his surrounding environments, grass density/interactivity, no baked lighting, etc. is intense! As much as we don't want to, some things have to give to ensure the best balance of content and performance, but it's still early days in Switch development and we're always looking for ways to improve the experience for everyone.

As for the process of porting the game to the Switch, Sumo stated that the process was "smooth" and "painless":

Thanks to amazing support from both Nintendo and Epic, the porting process was relatively smooth and painless. Personally I see a lot of potential in the Switch. The fact that it runs UE4 the way it does means that there will be a steady stream of awesome games in the (near) future.

The developers also revealed that sales on Switch have been excellent, and that a physical release isn't out of the question. It was also stated that while the devs have no idea if it's possible at the moment, they would love to see amiibo support come to the game.

The topic of the Time Trial mode - which was curiously absent from the Switch version - was also touched upon. The good news is that it will be coming in a future patch:

It was a tough call to make considering how we wanted to ensure we were able to launch the Switch version with all the other platforms day and date on top of how much time we had to work on the Switch to begin with. Needless to say, we are getting Time Trials in a future patch.

Finally, Sumo's devs stated that they would love to work with Nintendo on more Switch games:

All depends on the project, but we'd definitely love to keep working with Nintendo and the Switch. And as a Switch owner myself, I want this to happen!

How are you getting on with Snake Pass on Switch? Are you looking forward to getting the Time Trial mode in a future update, and how do you feel about the news that Sumo isn't currently planning on improving the performance of the game on Nintendo's machine? Let us know with a comment.

[source gonintendo.com, via reddit.com]