For the last eight years, Nintendo has charmed consumers worldwide with the Nintendo Switch, a gaming system that is essentially two devices in one — both a console that can sit in your living room and a portable device that you can easily take with you anywhere.
What’s not to like about that?
The strategy helped Nintendo sell more than 150 million Switches, making it one of the best-selling game consoles in history. It’s no wonder that Nintendo is back with more of the same.
The $450 Nintendo Switch 2, which arrived in stores this month, is simply a bigger and better Switch. Its overall hardware design and software interface are the same as its predecessor’s. The trade-offs also remain: Compared with bulky PlayStation and Xbox consoles that stay plugged in, the Switch 2 is less powerful in order for it to be portable. Its graphics and speed are not on a par with the latest and greatest gaming technology.
Still, based on my last week of testing, the Switch 2 will be another hit that will satisfy plenty of gamers, especially families. As a hand-held device with a roomy, bright screen and sped-up computing power, it made zipping around a racetrack in the new Mario Kart World game delightful on the go — until the battery died. When the Switch 2 was placed in its dock to connect it to a TV, its graphics looked vibrant and sharp. (Read our review of Mario Kart World from our games critic.)
The main difference now is how much more we have to pay to play games. At $450, the price of the Switch 2 is a big jump from the original Switch, which cost $300. Future games are also likely to cost more — Mario Kart World, which was released alongside the Switch 2, costs $80, a sharp increase from previous $60 Nintendo Switch titles. Games for Sony’s $450 PlayStation 5 and Microsoft’s $600 Xbox have seen a similar price creep in the last few years, in part because they now cost more to produce.
Gaming is becoming a significant long-term investment, which could pressure many households to pick only one console. Is the Switch 2 right for you? Here’s what to know.
Getting Started
The best way to get acclimated is by playing the Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour, a mini game that acts as a demo to teach you about the game system’s basic controls and new features. Annoyingly, it costs $10, even though it feels like it should be included.
The Welcome Tour shows that the sides of the Switch 2, which look like strips with physical buttons and a miniature joystick, are two wireless controllers known as Joy-Cons. They attach to the console via magnets. To detach them, you press a small trigger and yank them off.
New to the Joy-Cons are miniature cameras built into each controller. Laying a controller camera-side down against a surface will let you use it as you would a computer mouse to move around a cursor on the screen. Owners of the Switch 2 can look forward to games that take advantage of this new input, such as more typical PC shooter and strategy games that rely on sensitive movements.
Everything else should be familiar. Connecting a Switch 2 to a TV remains a breeze: You use two cables to connect the dock to your television and a power outlet. From there, you set the Switch 2 on the dock so the image shows up on your TV.
A Bigger Screen and Faster Speeds
The Switch 2’s 7.9-inch screen is significantly larger than the original Switch’s 6.2-inch screen, which adds to the system’s bulk. I had no issues carrying the Switch 2 in a backpack, and it didn’t feel too heavy playing at a cafe. The quality of the Switch 2’s screen, in terms of brightness and color accuracy, is noticeably better than the original’s.
What makes the Nintendo Switch 2 a no-brainer upgrade is its jump in speed and graphics performance. Everything, from navigating the system’s menus to playing games, feels smoother and snappier. A bonus benefit is that the Nintendo Switch 2 can still play most games made for the older Switch, and those also run better on the new hardware.
In my tests, some older Switch games, including the Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, loaded much faster.
Nvidia, which produced the graphics processor for the Switch 2, said its chip would deliver 10 times the graphical performance of the first Switch. I tried Cyberpunk 2077, a high-production game with intense graphics, and I was impressed with how well it ran. In the older Switch game, Super Mario Odyssey, Mario’s movements looked less stuttery.
Battery Life Still Isn’t Great
As with many portable devices, battery life leaves much to be desired. The Switch 2 had enough juice to get me through roughly two hours’ worth of Mario Kart races while waiting at a laundromat, about the same battery performance as the original.
The battery life isn’t terrible, but it’s a disappointment that it hasn’t improved. Fortunately, the Switch 2 still uses a USB-C port, which has become a universal standard for power cables, so you will probably be able to use the same wire that you carry to charge your phone.
… And There’s More
I also tried some optional Switch 2 accessories — a controller and a video camera — that cost extra.
The $85 Switch 2 Pro controller is larger and feels more ergonomic than the tiny Joy-Cons — I recommend buying at least one if you plan to spend much time playing in front of a TV.
Nintendo also sells a $55 camera for video chatting with friends while playing games. This works fine, but video felt superfluous. The Switch 2’s built-in microphone let me audio chat with friends while we trolled each other in Mario Kart World. We had a blast.
Bottom Line
Consoles are difficult to review because their long-term value relies on the quality of their games. Mario Kart World is one of a few new games already available for the Switch 2, so early adopters will be doing a whole lot of racing.
Because the Switch 2 is so similar to its predecessor, we can make a safe bet that this is the ideal console for families. Many games produced by Nintendo, including Mario, Zelda and Donkey Kong titles, are suitable for children. Parents who want to play solo will also have plenty of more adult-themed games from third-party studios.
While the Switch 2’s price is higher, the included Joy-Cons mean the system arrives with two controllers. PlayStation and Xbox consoles typically include only one. All told, the Switch 2 is still a relatively good value.
Who should get a PlayStation or Xbox instead? In general, game enthusiasts who have to play the latest big-budget titles, like new installments of the Witcher, Grand Theft Auto and Doom. The plugged-in consoles tend to get the most high-profile games first because their faster hardware is better at handling advanced graphics. Many studios scale down their games for the Switch later.
I, for one, have long been a PlayStation person because I’m always keen to play the latest Final Fantasy game, which arrives on Sony’s console first. But as a new parent, I foresee making the switch to the Switch 2 soon.
Brian X. Chen is the lead consumer technology writer for The Times. He reviews products and writes Tech Fix, a column about the social implications of the tech we use.
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