Apex Legends is officially out on the Switch today and as you might have heard it'll offer cross-play - allowing you to take on players on other systems.
So, what will it be like for Nintendo players in battle? During a chat with Famitsu, Panic Button's technical director, Andy Boggs, said the game would run 720p docked, 576p in handheld mode and has a frame rate of 30FPS across both modes.
Although a lot of effort has gone into the Switch version of the game, in battle - competitors on other platforms could potentially have double the frame rate, if not more. While there may be some performance limitations, Andy told Nintendo Life there were no sacrifices or compromises in terms of features or content:
"Not really as far as features or content, everything that’s there on other versions of the game should be there on Switch. I think the big challenge for us is always coming in and understanding what parts of the game that we can adapt and make changes to and optimize and what parts are so essential that we need to leave alone. I think ultimately the changes we had to make are not going to impact players' experience with it. It’s still a great experience and it feels like playing Apex!"
Be sure to check out our full interview with Respawn and Panic Button here.
[source famitsu.com, via nintendoeverything.com]
Comments 67
If you expected something different, I also sell bridges if you want one.
Thus begins all the endless debate about it. I'm sure someone will throw in a "on a Switch Pro it would be like blah blah". As long as you're having fun it shouldn't matter. Articles like this are like watching flies to a pile of sh*t of back and forth on the matter.
Its still the 8th were I'm right now LOL.
@Ganner couldn't agree more.
honestly what i expected
@Ganner facts
Honestly I expected 30 FPS.
I am fine with the framerate and the resolution is not bad at all. The only problem is that other platforms have higher framerates and PC has the mouse and keyboard advantage
@PBandSmelly I always imagine when they're all in the meeting finalizing the specs for the latest console(s) at least one person would say, "You guys absolutely SURE ya want to stop here? There's still plenty of wiggle room to add just a tad more juice to make all the difference for just a tad more coin..."
Not my kind of game and it sure does look very muddy on the screenshots shared so far. But its free, so Im gonna give it a try.
I think a game like Vigor is better cross-plattform competition on Switch. It looks closer to the other versions PS4/Xbox and all three versions sticks to 30fps.
@TheFullAndy I was just adding some light humor to what he said. Apologies dude I didn't mean to create any negativity. I was just speaking out of my rear end like my boy Howard Stern. Yeah I'm on here clicking around while I watch the Wild skating circles around my Knights Probably gonna lose.
Back on topic unless a game is a broken mess and I'm having fun I'm horrible about noticing spec details. Total early 90's gamer here so it's all Greek to me.
Apex on switch has gyro aiming so that in a way compensates for the lower framerate
@Ganner
That's cool bud.
I am happy enough with the specs provided for the game on Switch but if people wanted to speculate on what could be met on a souped up Switch that is cool too.
I hope the super switch can handle 60fps.
@TheFullAndy Yeah I can give you that. I guess for me what makes it redundant is I wish we knew exactly what to debate about LOL. We know absolutely nothing and our imaginations go so wild sometimes we pretty much create a Stark Industries Switch. Which we both know Nintendo would not do by a long shot.
@8bitdaysaweek probably or maybe up the resolution
We have gyro aiming on Apex Legends for switch which compensates the lower framerate. It will help.
@Ganner
Speculation can be fun!
I don't expect anything major but even moving to an OLED screen is a big deal for me.
The problem lies where people get annoyed when their own unrealistic hopes do not come into fruition. That is on them.
I have been a Nintendo fan long enough to know what I hope happens rarely comes true, but Nintendo can still provide something even better that I didn't expect. It is why I still love them!
@TheFullAndy You made some good points. Going forward I'm fine with whatever they do as long as they keep the Switch concept that's for damn sure. I mean no console has given me so much ability of play. I'm so into going from TV mode to handheld/table top and vice versa. It never gets old to be in TV mode, in the middle of a MHGU online hunt, just attaching the joy cons and turning on the hockey game with virtually no interruption. That's just the tip of the iceberg of what the capabilities of the Switch have provided. In fact I'm about to either handheld Tetris 99 or Pure Pool during the 3rd period. I've been spoiled by this thing I honestly don't think I can go back to a standard console again.
Oh boy more pro rumor jerking well enjoy this blast from the past!
“How powerful is the 3DS?
Nintendo has not revealed any specs for the 3DS system, but expect it to well surpass the Nintendo DS in visual and processor capabilities. To provide stereoscopic 3D effects the system must have the ability to render each game field twice, one for each of the player's eyes, a technique that will require significant horsepower to produce.
Several developers that have experienced 3DS in its current form have reported, off the record, that it has processing capabilities that far exceed the Nintendo Wii and bring the device with abilities that are close to HD consoles such as PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. “
@Ganner
You spell out the benefits of Switch perfectly. Enjoy!
@Ganner the handheld mode is the sole reason I was able to put in as much time, on the witcher III, that I did. All those times at the dmv, doctors waiting room, drive-in waiting for the movie, etc. Anywhere I was made to wait, extended periods of time.
I think 720p docked, 540-ish p undocked, both at 30fps has become a generalized standard for the "bare minimum" of what the Switch should have. I certainly hope that 30fps is stable, whether it's the netcode/servers or the game itself running on the Switch.
Also, I hope there are video captures. It was a really stupid thing for Epic Games to remove them from Fortnite. Even though they were mega-compressed, they were definitely still video captures.
Will there be an option to turn off crossplay
@ModdedInkling yeah. I prefer this
Stable 30 FPS >>>>>>>>>> Unstable 60 FPS
@Would_you_kindly yes. But try gyro aiming in Apex on switch
Agree with other opinions in that Apex is here in the form I thought it would be within limits of bare minimum specs for a bare minimum system that was made it seems at times with the mindset of playing just 1st party games.
Sounds good to me.
@TheFullAndy you mentioned skulldragr account description, so for some reason my brain told me to read it, and I think I lost brain cells. Aside from that, I’m still hyped for this game, cause now I can play it with friends on Xbox.
@Slinkoy1
Regardless of that numpty's profile I am glad you have an opportunity to play the game with your mates!
People that claim to not notice frames will definitely notice when they go up against people at 60 FPS.
Also, gyro aiming is very precise but it won't help much in a twitch shooter like Apex. You move and jump around way too much to have time to gyro aim. This isn't a slower game like splatoon.
@PBandSmelly Consoles should have some sort of upgradeable parts to them. I guess kinda like how the N64 had a RAM expansion slot.
I love how Panic Button said there were no sacrifices made in porting Apex and then it turns out it doesn't even run in HD when playing handheld.
What is the point in porting these kind of games when they look and perform so badly, I feel sorry for Switch only gamers when they are trying hard to justify this is ok.
For all those people who say Gyro is going to make up for it, it really isn't with this kind of twitch gaming. A lot of people use mouse and keyboard on other consoles, which is far superior to motion controls for fast paced FPS.
@SalvorHardin To be fair it was kind of between the Wii and PS360 in that it could push roughly as many polygons as the Wii while running more advanced shaders that were closer to the latter systems. We sadly didn't see many games utilize its full power but there are some impressive examples out there.
I expected 30fps, but the resolution is a bummer.
576p sounds pretty bad but I’m ok with 30fps
60fps is bare minimum for competitive games like this, this game will have same issues as Overwatch on Switch (which is also 30fps)
30fps is exactly what I expected so no surprises there, and that framerate would be fine for something single player like Doom, or "casual" online like PvZGW, but not for a competitive game like Apex or Overwatch.
In competitive FPS games there is no fun if the performance is low, I played these games in the past for a while and that is sadly how it works 90% of the time (because friends complained I should play more online and more popular games, well just 1 year later I went happily back to my old habbits)
(meanwhile Paladins is 60fps on Switch, sure it is a lighter game but again it is not impossible)
Great fun this game. I'm playing it on PS5 so zero chance of me playing it on Switch even with portability, but if it's people's only way to play it I highly recommend it. It's a good one if you're not great at shooters and you are playing with friends as you can spend a lot of time in game being stealthy and just having a laugh on voice chat with your buddies looting buildings.
Because this is one of those always-in-development games, I suspect they will keep working on performance as well. Maybe handheld mode will get 720p down the road.
This stuff is funny compared to Wii U though. Devs avoiding Wii U like the plague to the point where not even easy PS360 ports of annual crap like FIFA or CoD made it to the console, compared to devs taking loads of effort to bring the most impossible ports to the Switch and even tweak graphics engines specifically for the platform. What a contrast.
@Sculptor the more reason I am surprised Wii U got 2 CoD games while Switch has none.
T minus 7 hours
Can’t wait to cross play with a dude running 240fps
@Rayquaza2510
I disagree. 60fps should only be mandatory in fighting games, where people actually read the frame data and need split-second reactions. In any shooter game, you can get away with 30fps as long as it's stable.
In terms of CoD games, the reason we haven't gotten any is because Activision doesn't seem to have an interest in re-releasing older CoD games, while the new ones are simply impossible to port compared to Doom Eternal and Apex Legends, because of absurd file sizes.
@Ganner honestly if the switch can do 30fps consistently a switch pro won't add a whole lot
on the ps4 pro the game was clunky
if they capped the frame rate it would have been fine
@ModdedInkling it depends if the competition has access to 60fps or not.
if you're playing crossplatform on the switch - you'll be playing against people that are at 60Hz
which puts you at a distinct disadvantage
30 FPS is low
I would like a Switch Pro for 60 FPS and a basic upscale.
@Rayquaza2510
Lmao that's a strange one indeed. You'd think they'd cash on the Switch audience with a Switch exclusive CoD if the mainline ones are too demanding. I mean, they even made these for the original DS all the time and the PS Vita got it's own Black Ops iteration iirc.
Oh well, personally I'm not hungry for any CoD anyway. I got the latest one with my 3080 and it's boring as hell.
@Ganner are you reeeeally having fun when you're being outplayed consistently purely cos hardware gimps you???
I rather had a lower resolution and 60fps than a quite low resolution and low fps… but alas.
It's a shrug of the shoulders from me. It's all OK.
@anoyonmus gyro is always welcome but in no way makes up for half the frame rate. 😢
@PBandSmelly
Actually they weren't. As they had quite powerful consoles on the market for their times like the Snes, N64 & GC after all. I just think that they said eff it when they were pushing out strong consoles & watching people flock to vastly inferior consoles like the ps1 & 2. And sure, I would never argue against more powerful hardware, but hell I can't really blame them.
@Willsy
I don't see why they couldn't. I mean Xbox & ps players never stop having fun despite being outclassed by PC players.
@BearsAndBattles it will help compensate it a bit. It won't work against PC players
25fps during combat lol try sliding down a hill ir zipling while shooting someone 😂😂😂😂😂
Releases 6pm eastern time
@Willsy To be honest I've never played a game online getting murdered and saying to myself, "I'm getting destroyed because my opponents have better rigs". If I'm getting spanked I just concede that I just suck LOL or need to get better. I'm too much of a early 90's gamer to notice those things. Back when I had a gaming PC it never crossed my mind then. I just played and if I was having fun I played some more. If not then I moved onto another game.
Nowadays though I'll admit since I scaled all my gaming down to just Switch I'm not a good representation of judging online play advantages.
It would be nice if their is an option to disable cross-platform matchmaking.
If it's as stable as Overwatch on Switch then it's good by me.
@Ganner
Lol for real though.
@Mr-Fuggles777
Maybe because they know that there are tried & true GAMERS out there who actually gasp play games just to have fun and don't really care about all that ish. There's people who own high-end rigs that don't mind playing on the Switch. And I know this for a fact that I have several buddies in one of our WhatsApp groups that has a PC that would absolutely smok mini of the rigs that a good majority play on on who decided to get Witcher 3 on the Switch solely because he could put more time into it. The Switch is one of the other dude's favorite console even though he's a huge PC gamer & tech head who I would put up against anybody here in a technical debate.
It's called having options & millions of people love them. Which last I checked was never looked at as a bad thing. What's TRULY hard to understand is why folks like yourself are so worried about someone else's business? Who said they're trying to justify anything? If anything it's the other way around like you want them to justify what they're doing. They're minding their business actually enjoying the hobby the way that they see fit. Yet you're the one clutching your pearls worrying about what they're doing with their money, time and gaming decisions.
I've read the comments & not person here is asking for your opinion or "pity". So there are people legitimately okay with playing Apex Legends on their Switch. I mean if you're reeeally concerned, you could always start buying their consoles & games for them. That way you'll have a legitimate reason to worry about what they're doing as you're paying for it & your skin is paying for their gang. Something's telling me that's not going to happen though LOL
I'm back from trying out the game and my thoughts about it? It really could use more work. I don't know if it's the art style, the rendering distance, the resolution, or the frame rate is to blame, but much like Fortnite, I'm having difficulty actually SEEING my opponents, to the point where I might even consider using colour-blind assist options.
Most non-Battle Royale games do fine for me. Maybe it's not worth playing it on the small screen.
It cracks me up how we still have people complaining bitterly that the underpowered console, that was underpowered when it launched 4 years ago, made my a company that has made underpowered machines for nearly 20 years now 'DoESn'T RUn aT 60FpS 1o8oP!?'. I completely get it if performance is an issue for you, but in that case, just play it on another system? For people like me and many others who don't have any other choice, or just don't care, 30FPS/720P is perfectly serviceable for jumping online for an evening with some friends as long as it's stable. The fact developers are even attempting these ambitious ports to a handheld is nothing but a positive thing.
I’m loving it... It ain’t PS5... but that’s because it’s a switch. Seriously thank you for this port... it’s only gonna get better. I get alittle dizzy in handheld... I just need to tweak with the brightness and embrace the motion controls... which is why it feels bouncy and it’s amazing.
Do wish I didn’t have to unlock everything again ha.
I wish cross-play was off by default. The wait times for a single match is ridiculous with it turned off. I'd rather play a game where I'm not at a huge disadvantage with other players.
The headline could have been:
Apex Legends Switch frame rate locked at 30FPS, resolution is 720p docked and 576p handheld
One interesting thing about the Switch is because the market is large enough to make it worthwhile, some developers seem to be re-learning the lost art of optimization to try to get a big game to run on a small, underpowered system.
Optimization can really do a lot; consider the things that developers were able to get out of systems like the NES, SNES and PS2 late in their life cycles, or the crazy things that demoscene developers were able to do with very limited systems.
@Ganner if you don't know you don't know right?
I won't play it on switch but I bet it'll have poorer visuals in regards to shadows, hit boxing etc, poor draw distance, spiky frames which all result in a poorer experience. It's why these games are literally a cash grab n die a few months after release
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