Topic: Nintendo Switch 2

Anyone else order that Genki portable battery?

I got it magnetized for overclocked Switch OLED and Switch 2.

It holds more firmly than my homemade Nitecore. The built in magnetic ring for the battery is super strong.

Notice I cut the ring where the hinge is on NSW1 OLED so the kickstand can unfold still.

Why would a game company stage access to play their game running poorly on switch 2 at a game convention? Like Star Wars Outlaws, Elden Ring. Even if recording isn't allowed, all it does is create negative buzz about the game before launch. I don't get it.

@WoomyNNYes
Honestly, that's a good question. Which I haven't been able to logically construct an answer for yet.

The only thing I can come up with is that they are confident. It will run well by release. And they think those playing it understand it will be better at release or even if they don't, reviews will inform them of that, and they just want to provide a general idea of what it's like on switch, disregarding, whatever issues it has now.

The other reason I was considering is that perhaps that's the best they can get it and they'd rather get the disappointment shock value out of the way now. So that even if it's somewhat better at release, people will perhaps we happy that it's not as bad? Idk

Huh. Star Wars Outlaws looks... decent in handheld mode??? Or am I just tripping. Obviously there will be some pop-in and by no means do any of us expect it to be perfection, but at least to me, it seems to be running at a perfectly playable frame rate and resolution.

I was hearing this game was a disaster, and it was just horrible and all this kind of stuff. And maybe it is. But then why does this look decent? Maybe people are a little too trigger, happy to declare switch 2 games a "disaster"

I'll be honest, hearing about how lacking the new Kirby content is for the price its at (which I didn't realize was gonna raise it to 80 bucks instead of 70), bums me out more than nearly any other Switch 2 news.

I feel the same way about Kirby Clash Deluxe having f2p monetization, this type of pointless greed needs to stay away from my precious pink child. : (

The fact that I might end up buying the first 3D Kirby game used just because the price is so silly is genuinely upsetting to me.

@WoomyNNYes @JaxonH
Or, and I'll just say it and catch my usual flak: some people are just super critical and the game runs just fine (talking about Elden Ring specifically because I haven't read/seen much about Outlaws).

I've seen people who've played hundreds of hours of Elden Ring on other systems say it looks awful (Kit and Krysta) and others who've said it looks "ok" (Brian Altano from IGN). Also read plenty of random Reddit posts from people like you and me who went to PAX or whatever, and again, some say it was horrible and unplayable, others had no issue with it.

And don't bother pointing out that it's most likely a months-old build; that makes the haters upset lol

Overall, nobody is saying it looks beautiful, which is of course not great, but the "unplayable" stuff seems.... maybe subjective? Guess we'll find out soonish.

@JaxonH
From what I can tell "disaster" is just code for "it targets 30fps and misses it". Which I would say is certainly not ideal but it was also pretty much standard on the Switch, and through the HD generation, and through the 90s

FWIW I think it's good that the performance bar games need to be clear has shifted. But still, worth noting what we're talking about here. On a related note, where's that VRR Dock update Nintendo?

@rallydefault Fair points. No flack.😉

I think some of it is that people just have different expectations. If you are lining up Switch 2 against PS5 or PC or just generally looking for where the grass is greener then games not hitting performance targets is going to be everything. If however the words you use to describe Switch 2 include "flexible", "good enough" or "portable" then you're going to be much more tolerant

Obviously where that line is depends on the person individual and some games will cross that line for some but not others. But it's a portable, it's not always going to hit the performance targets people set. That's just how it is

@skywake
Ya. If you want 60+ fps as much as possible and the highest resolution, and that's what you value more than anything. Then why would you even be talking about games on a hybrid system like Switch 2. You're never going to get what you want there.

If you want the most powerful car engine and top speed is your highest priority, then why on earth would you buy a 4 door luxury sedan that seats 5? And then complain it lacks a V8 hitting 0 - 60 in under 4 seconds? For that you buy a coup this specializes in acceleration and speed and doesn't focus on amenities and space.

Switch 2 is a middle ground. It gives you the best possible high end experience money can buy under the constraints of portability and versatility. It's okay if that's not someone's thing, but don't go complaining about it because that's what it's for. It's the reason it exists.

30fps is an obvious and smart trade off to get high end, realistic AAA games to run on this system with a stable frame rate. Not to mention there's a whole truckload of games running 30fps on PS5/XS but it only ever seems to be a problem when it's the hybrid system- the ONE platform where there's a legitimate REASON for it.

You know, I dont doubt Elden Ring really is struggling given th consistency of widespread reports, but, it's not like it's releasing next week. I don't want to hear it until the game is a few weeks from release, and even then, I would reserve judgment until the day one patch drops. That's just the world we live in. It sucks but that's what it is.

But with the clicks Elden Ring got it seems these sites said aha! Thats the ticket. Quick, find a game that doesn't have perfect performance and then write an article all doom and goom like. Enter Star Wars.

Only problem is, their report contradicted virtually everybody else's. And that's before the patch.

@kkslider5552000
I heard it’s really good but only about 3 hours to finish, maybe 5ish to complete.

I think for 20 bucks, unfortunately, that’s not too crazy in terms of cost/time ratio in a lot of games these days.

80 bucks overall is a TERRIBLE deal, though, if you’ve already played the game. That’s only for hardcore collectors.

It is nice that they gave the whole game the visual sprucing unlike Mario Party.

@Azileron
Yeah, judging game value based on time is a bit cooked. It's a combination of things. But also with gaming the value equation can swing wildly. I've had even free to play games I feel like ended up being a "poor value" given, you know, time is money in a sense. I've also had full retail games I paid full price for, beat in 5 hours or something, never touched again but felt good about the "value" of it

It depends

I'm still using the time value a bit since like... 3rd world income so what I spend should be fun for longer kind of thing, especially since I don't really replay games. Like, when spending 60 is like half the monthly income, it's like... not having it be 30 hours will feel bad?

Like I bought Astral Chain full price and that game is good but not 60 bucks for 10 hours gameplay good lol.

Astral Chain has way more than 10 hours worth of content, what are you on about?

@kkslider5552000 I finished the story in 10 hours, and I'm not looking for replaying things to get S-rank to be a content I'm into. I pretty much play to get the story (I did some side missions, but some of them are augh, like the ice cream one), and when it's done... I'm done with it.

@Azileron which makes sense! I think it just used most often since it's the easiest and simplest to justify when talking online or in public.

Like 100 hours of kinda boring gameplay or content, is still not that fun even if it's 60$ for example. But if it's like, 30 hours of pretty fun story and gameplay, paying 60$ is like... It's ok? Like not perfect, maybe some padding, but it doesn't seem bad if you enjoy solid 70-80% of the game.

Ring-a-ling-a-ling!!! We have yet another game people were complaining about performance but upon release it's a near flawless victory with the frame rate graph flatter than the plains of Nebraska. Not to mention gyro aiming as well as mouse aiming.

Yup. Cronos looks like a
seriously impressive debut on Switch 2

Should we start taking bets on the next game that gets headlines and youtube vids sounding the alarm over performance only to see it release in a perfectly satisfactory state?

I came to the site to check the reviews for Silksong and Star Wars: Outlaws, and was surprised to see there isn't any, even though both games came out today. Didn't NL get review copies of them?

@OmnitronVariant
Heck no it's not disappointing. Its a brand new portable console running on less than 10 freaking watts, and this is a current gen AAA game. You'd see an ice cream truck in hell before you'd see a game like this exceed 30fps on a 10W handheld. It's a miracle it even runs at ten frames per second.

Anyone disappointed simply doesn't understand anything about video games or what they require. Not only is it not disappointing, it's downright exciting, and we'll serve as the new benchmark for what can be accomplished on the hardware (edit I was thinking Star Wars Outlaws when I said it would serve as the new benchmark, Idk why my mind drifted- Cronos isn't quite setting a new benchmark but it's definitely well done, releases day and date and offers both gyro and mouse aiming... so I guess it is at least setting the example.

If you EXPECTED a game like this to run higher than 30fps just because it's a "new system" so that you think it's "disappointing" it holds a rock solid 30fps, I don't even know what to say because your expectations are so far out there I can't even see them with binoculars anymore.

Future note:
No. A 10W handheld system won't run current gen AAA games at higher framerates, whether it's "brand new" or not. This is not a PS5, this is a portable Switch 2. That means instead of 60fps you get 30fps, but you get it on a 3-in-1 trybrid console.

@Polvasti
Silksong devs specifically stated, they will not send review copies out before release, because it would not be fair to backers.
If anyone else got to play the game before they did. They already sent me a code but it won't unlock until the game officially releases. Idk about Star Wars.

But we do know it looks incredibly good- many are saying it's the best looking handheld game they've seen in their life. And we know performance is stable and holding down a nice, smooth 30fps with good frame timing. As to whether the game itself is good or not I'm sure you could read a review for any platform for that.