A while ago, data miners and other whizzy-types found options in the Switch version of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt - Complete Edition, and were surprised with how much of the blurriness was able to be removed with little to no effort.
Well now with the latest 3.6 update us lowly non-hacking types are able to do just the same, and with the right selection of options the results can be absolutely wonderful. It really helps to see it in motion which is why we've gone and done a video about it, but if you're at work or on the loo you're probably looking for a less noise-riddled option, which we've also kindly provided:
Depending on the device you're using the differences may appear slight, but get a really good look at them and you'll see just what a fantastic job the people at Saber Interactive and CD PROJEKT RED have done.
We encourage you to play around with the settings in the Post-Processing menu to find whatever works best for you, but if you're just interested in replicating what we've got here, here's what we landed on:
Motion Blur: OFF
Blur: OFF
Bloom: OFF
Sharpening: HIGH
Depth of Field: ON
Cutscene Depth of Field: ON
Light Shafts: ON
Underwater Effects: ON
Foliage Visibility Range: HIGH
Anti-Aliasing: ON
Do you prefer all this crispy goodness, or are you more of a blurry-eyed aficionado? Let us know in the bit below this text that says 'Comments'.
Comments 88
If this works and is now much better, do I forget Black Flag and buy this?
More evidence EA, Activision, Ubisoft, etc... don't even try on Switch.
It looks noticably better in handheld mode with AA on and sharpness on high. It also seems to run a bit smoother too
Should do a where to buy witcher 3 the cheapest post! It's still an exceedingly pricey £50 in the UK at retail. I don't have the SDCard space for the game on download which is on sale at the moment -_-
Oh damn. Everything look much more cleaner now.
This is the best Switch game in terms of looks. It's incredible work.
@zool Black Flag is a great game. Really loving it. But I’m partial to pirates.
I have to admit I sold this a while back due to the way it looks but I really enjoyed the actual game at times it was awful especially docked I will probably give it another chance
Testing this out on my lite now. So far so good!
@zool Yes.
This is a remarkable improvement. I had held off on buying it because of the blurry visuals, but this has convinced me to buy it.
I turned off Anti-Aliasing and put the sharpness on low, with all of these other options the same. I like it much more. In docked and handheld.
Goodness, that looks way better. I'm impressed.
@BrettAwesome Try AA off and the sharpness on Low. It runs even smoother.
Personally, I would turn off anti-aliasing. In most PC games, I leave it off in favor of having more headroom to keep the framerate locked at the target - only turning it on if the target framerate is locked regardless.
Yes, "jaggies" are present, but I would rather have the stable framerate that comes with leaving it off.
The fact that they are still trying to improve the port should say a lot to the Nintendo community. We need to continue supporting them
That improvement in contrast and texture quality is superb, that's the sort of improvement I wish that Bloodstained Ritual of the Night had!
The graphics options are nothing short of amazing! Even the ability to see scenery further in the distance elevates the entire experience.
Lol "blurry-eyed aficionado" made me laugh.
Well, that's how you do ports! Well done! applause Now I want Warcraft III Refunded... ahahaha which doesn't even run properly on PCs... oh my... Sorry.. I'm just kidding.
Perhaps I need to experiment more, because I've tried a few variations, including the settings used here, and my IRL experience is that there's not much difference, not when free-roaming anyway. Does this stuff affect cutscene visuals too?
@Hunter-D how does it play on the switch lite, Do the controls feel awkward playing in handheld or do they feel good. I have a switch lite and i don't know wheather to get this game or not.. Does the controls feel good in handheld mode, Can you battle enemies in handheld no problem.. How does it feel?
@gcunit I certainly saw a difference in cutscenes.
@Belatarr Thanks i think i might pick it up this week, It's crazy to me that you can play this game on a handheld console..
I bought a physical copy at launch but haven't touched it yet. Had the chance to start it a while back but decided to wait for this update, looks like that was a good call.
@zool Don't forget Black Flag...but buy Witcher first.
@Bmartin001 early days but not awkward at all for me, feels good.
Impressive! A brilliant port of a brilliant game.
@Euden Amazon or Argos are the cheapest I know of currently at £45
I played this on pc in 1080p 60fps but I really want to play this on handheld mode.
This is night and day! Wow.
Can we have this option for Doom 2006 now please Bethesda???
damn just second dipped on pc since i couldnt stand the bad quality on switch
update: wow crossaves!!!
I’ve been telling myself no on this port because I wanted to see it in better light, but maybe I’ll get it. Well, I might after Xenoblade Definitive and P5: Scramble.
Ok. That’s settled. I need to restart this and get properly into it. But I’m such a softie! I get killed by just basic wolf, thug types....
Very nice indeed. Stunning is right. Hat an impressive bit of work.
Dammit CD Projekt Red; shush up and take mah money!
Doom Eternal on Switch seems all the more appetizing now, especially if we get quality of life updates like these for future projects.
Saber Interactive has done an AMAZING job with this port. Super impressed that they've gotten one of the most demanding modern gen games looking this good on Nintendo Switch.
Tried it and wasn't a fan of the game. I hate crafting and my attention span has dwindled in my old age 😝
I was a bit off put by how blurry it looked in docked mode so this is very welcome. I don't care for all the extra graphics options that just bog things down. Just give me a decent looking game with buttery smooth performance.
I haven't tried the new patch yet, but from the screenshots, while it improves things, I wouldn't call this "night and day". Yes, I can see the difference if we compare to, say, the PC version or even other consoles versions, but that doesn't matter to me.
Graphics, past a certain point, don't make or break a game in my book. This is the same game as on other platforms, although with some graphic compromises that didn't affect the game much. And it was already looking great on Switch. If this makes it look better, great! But it makes me laugh when I read some people's reaction about this now making the game worth their time.
Now, if this patch makes the game runs smoother and improves fps in some cases, then that is what I consider a real improvement. But everything else is cosmetics. It's sugar coating poured on top of an already sugary enough cake.
Anyone know how big the update is? Thanks
Aaaaaaand... BOUGHT!
Downloading now! 😍
If I turn off AA in game does that affect the AA done by the Mclassic?
Very nice to see. This might convince me to pick it up once it drops down in price more.
@Realnoize Yeah, man, hate it when devs cater to everyone's tastes, such a d*** move.
@Moonlessky Actually wondered that myself! Don't own one but it's what I auto thought off.
I had already beaten the main campaign & the Hearts of Stone expansion (plus all the side quests for both of those), but took a break from starting the Blood & Wine expansion to get to other games in my backlog (recently finished Starlink, & now working through FFX).
But the update got me excited to try it out, & so now I'm already deep into Blood & Wine.
nice!!...the setting in the article also works best for me
"from the screenshots, while it improves things, I wouldn't call this "night and day" @Realnoize
I agree with you. Visually I would compare that difference to the same improvement the N64 'Expansion Pak' provided back in the day. Better, but nothing to FaceTime home about. That said, the game does run in an even smoother way and the job (and dedication) of the devs is amazing.
I cannot wait for a Digital Foundry video!
Well, I did recently finish up a very, very complete playthrough of the base game and the expansions. And I swore that I would let it mature in my memory bank before revisiting.
Buuut, this is a great excuse to replay it, no?
Excellent work! It looks much better.
Did anyone notice that grass now moves when Geralt walks through it. Probably my favourite feature!
@Euden check out Deku Deals, it's fab for comparing prices around the web
@EVIL-C EA, well yes, hard to argue against that one after Fifa 20...
Activision did do an OK job on the Diablo / Crash / Spyro ports - definitely could do more and better on switch but what they did do was OK.
However, Ubisoft were an early supporter and collaborator with Nintendo on Switch, lots of decent 2D platformer ports and some popular casual games, the recent AC Black Flag collection was a pretty decent optimised port of a good classic game (plus Rebel), Starlink had the Star Fox content and more post launch support on Switch than the other consoles and Mario + Rabbids is a multi-million selling game (admittedly due to the constant sales) with a decent art design and decent review scores - they are a far from perfect company but to say they haven't even tried seems harsh.
@Maschinenmensch I’m starting to play Doom again, and it looks very smooth and clear. I expect Panic Button to do an even better job with Doom Eternal
The game always looked great, but now it looks stunning. And it runs smoother too
Shows off how capable the Switch can be if games are optimized for it.
@Edu23XWiiU I’m playing Doom ‘16 as well; it’s a treat and I’m also hoping Eternal will look even better. Fingers crossed!
@nicols EA is garbage. Perioid.
Activision refuses to release their biggest franchise: Call of Duty. Crash and Spyro are fine, but they're remakes, not original games. Diablo and Overwatch appear to be published by the Blizzard Entertainment subsidiary of Activision, which has some level of autonomy.
Ubisoft is the best of these 3, but they've done very little original work. Lots of good ports of good games, sure. StarLink is a decent game, and the StarFox content was welcomed. Only Mario + Rabbids is really significant in 3 years. They cancelled Steep. They won't bring Far Cry, Tom Clancy, or even attempt to port AC Origins or (native) Odyssey.
These 3 could do much better. Take a page from Bethesda or CD Project Red. Switch has proved to be quite a capable device.
Such great support! Can’t wait to see it for myself.
I hate how it's still $60... I aint paying no full price for an inferior console version when others priced way cheaper..
@EVIL-C : To this day, I'm still baffled that the 3DS never got so much as a single Call of Duty game. There were FIVE of them on the original DS, and they were all built from the ground up, and I would imagine that such an undertaking would demand more resources than porting existing code/assets to another platform (as would be required for a Switch port).
@thaimbomb there's nothing inferior about it in the context of the Switch. Feel free to drag a monitor in the bog with you to experience 'superior' version.
"Have a good fiddle and see what fits best for you" is pretty much the best advice I've ever heard.
I have to do those settings and see but now xbox/psx can't say they are the only better graphics now.
@thaimbomb I hate how it's still $60... I aint paying no full price for an inferior console version when others priced way cheaper..
They why not make your own better game and see what it takes.
@SwitchForce this argument doesn't make any sense at all.
@thaimbomb Totally agree with you. I'm sick of ports that cannot even run at 720p30hz. And do you know what I am even more sick of? People praising such ports.
@Silly_G I own 4 of those 5 DS titles. They were very respectable for portable CoD titles, and had a wide range of features. I was so excited that the 3DS would continue the efforts... buuuut Activision couldn't be bothered.
@EVIL-C : I only bought World At War, and I recall being really impressed with the production values. It was amazing what devs could do with the hardware when they apply themselves.
I enjoyed played a few rounds online as well, which I almost never do as online multiplayer doesn't appeal to me (I'm a couch multiplayer guy, through and through). Nowadays, Nintendo wants us to pay up for peer-to-peer online multiplayer. Ugh.
@AndreaF96 right back a yourself - love how trolls like to troll when they can't even do a better game for less.
this argument doesn't make any sense at all.
@SwitchForce so you can't criticize a car for being too slow and too inefficient unless you are a mechanical engineer. I didn't know. Thanks for the lesson.
@Silly_G WAW was also my first. I did get to talk with the studio head on Facebook at the time, and they seemed quite happy to be working on it. I even reviewed it on YouTube afterwards. N-Space, the studio, ended up going bankrupt a couple years ago, sadly.
Your multiplayer experience is very similar to mine. WAW was a lot of fun. 🙂
@Maschinenmensch let’s hope so Man!
@Edu23XWiiU I’m so pumped!
Not sure why but if anyone cares the side by side is 2 whole minutes into the video.
@AndreaF96 Yep Troll abound glad you were able to inform the others of a Troll aka AndreaF96.
@SwitchForce the correct word to describe my last reply is sarcasm, actually.
Moreover, you didn't say why my argument isn't valid.
Calling someone names is usually not a valid argument and usually just weakens your position.
Still can't believe but just looking at the middle screenshot comparison is all one needs to know Switch doesn't need to have GPU/CPU power like xbox/psx to play Big Boy games. They now have no more talking points.
@SwitchForce Sharpening filters are not substitutes for native resolution.
Tremendous! I've been playing this on and off for a while. I expected it to be like Skyrim but unfortunately it's not quite as good. I still don't see the appeal of this one tbh, it's just got a deep story? The combat gameplay is pretty boring so far.
It's like they took the fighting and investigative gameplay from the Batman Arkham games. And the world from Skyrim - but made it dull and flat.
However I do sometimes enjoy playing this if only to see what the fuss is about. Personally I like to purchase all the major games on Switch.
@AndreaF96 ok? I don't know what you're crying for?
I own this game too on PS4 and it's just much better on Switch. Much better to be able to take it around the place.
As a game dev and very long time game-player the Switch has made me realize some pretty big things about games in general. Before Switch the PS4 was my platform of choice and so I rebought a bunch of games. I've noticed that with no exceptions I've put more hours into the Switch version over any other. I realized that handheld mode and HD rumble makes everything better. The games I reached the end of (or didn't even complete) on PS4 I 100% finished on Switch. In many cases like Wolfenstein and Doom (all of them) I've even replayed them.
Resolution? I'm starting to no longer care. In fact I find lower resolutions to be more visually pleasing at times (not all). I even ran GTAV from my PS4 Pro to my tube CRT TV and it was lovely. Made it look more realistic.
People say that Xenoblade 2 in handheld mode looks bad. I find it oddly gorgeous and have put hundreds of hours into that. That's all. Cheerio!
@Mynameishello I am glad that you and many other enjoy ports like The Witcher 3 on switch. It definitely is a good game.
However games with very low resolution and framerate make me literally nauseous and for this reason I don't buy nor play them.
What I am complaining about is the fact that people praise said ports as technical marvels when they are not. Remember that we have mk8dx and mario odyssey on switch which are much more graphically awesome (and with stable framerate) than the SWITCH version of games like wolfenstein or doom.
This is the point I wanted to make. If nintendo can do it then the others sould too, if they want to sell the game for 60€.
This is just my opinion and how I manage my hard earned money. Have a good day.
@Euden if you want it for free, I can tell you a shady trick that works 100% lol
Order off amazon, pay for it, once it’s delivered tell amazon you never got it. They automatically will refund you no questions asked but this will only work once or twice.
Or you can go to a game store where they sell used games and purchase it cheap like that.
Two options for you there!
@zool I've played and likes both, but it's the Witcher all the way.
@Chlocean 👍
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