Today, I’m adding two more games to the list of games that have seen improvements when played on Nintendo Switch 2. Let’s have a look!

GRID Autosport

Genre: Racing Simulation

Players: 1-2 Competitive (Local Split-Screen), 2-8 Competitive (Local Wireless, Online)

.

Review:

While it was initially in the batch of Nintendo Switch games that had issues on Nintendo Switch 2, GRID Autosport was cleared of issues on Nintendo Switch 2 within a few weeks of the hybrid console’s launch. As it happens, this brings with it a few improvements.

GRID was fairly unique on Nintendo Switch because it was one of a very select few Nintendo Switch games that could recognize analog triggers on a gamepad. This is even more impressive since Nintendo Switch controllers do not have analog triggers, and even third-party controllers with analog triggers do not have this analog input recognized on the Nintendo Switch.

To get around this, players could connect a Wii U GameCube adapter to the Nintendo Switch using up two USB ports, then connect a GameCube controller to one of the ports on the device, since the GameCube controller actually had the analog triggers that Nintendo Switch controllers lack. It’s a cumbersome roundabout way of getting this to work, but it does work, allowing for more subtle acceleration and braking for more precision vehicle control in the game.

On the Nintendo Switch 2, players can skip that entire jerry-rigging process and simply buy a Nintendo GameCube Controller for Nintendo Switch 2, which GRID recognizes right away as a GameCube controller without any need for additional accessories, complex syncing procedures, or even cables. Needless to say, this makes it much easier to play this game closer to the way it was meant to be played.

Beyond controller support, the improvements to GRID on Nintendo Switch 2 are minor, although they are there. Mainly, I noticed a slight improvement in loading times – it took me 26 seconds to load into a race from my profile in the game on Nintendo Switch, and about 20 seconds on Nintendo Switch 2. That’s not a massive improvement, but it’s an improvement nonetheless.

I didn’t notice any change to the visuals in graphics mode – that’s still capped at 30FPS 1080P. However, performance mode seems to have gotten a very slight improvement, now running at a solid 60FPS without any dips or drops I could detect. Again, this is a modest improvement – the game on Nintendo Switch ran fairly well, and playing it on Nintendo Switch 2 really just shaves off what few rough edges there were.

That’s not to say it looks like a next-gen game, in either visual mode – there’s still noticeable aliasing, people on the sides of tracks have pretty low-poly character models, and this game lacks a lot of the polish of a modern Racing game. Except, well, this is a Racing game from over a decade ago. And given that, I think it’s fair to say that the presentation here holds up exceptionally well.

In short, GRID was one of the best Racing games on the Nintendo Switch, and playing it on Nintendo Switch 2 doesn’t exactly transform the experience so much as it gives it more minor improvements that overall make it slightly better on Nintendo’s newer hardware. And until someone releases a Simulation-style Racing game natively on Nintendo Switch 2, this is still probably your best bet for a game in that genre on Nintendo Switch 2.

tl;dr – GRID Autosport is a port of a 2014 Racing Sim that improves the graphics over the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions, as well as adding a huge variety of options and different ways to play. This was already a solid Racing Sim before, and the improvements the Nintendo Switch version makes (improved further on Nintendo Switch 2) make this the definitive version – just be sure to play with a GameCube controller. This is an all-around excellent Racing Sim, and currently the best game in the genre on the Switch, a deserving honor even if there’s not much competition for that honor right now.

Grade: B+

.

Trials Rising

Genre: 2D Stunt Racing

Players: 1-4 Competitive (Local Split-Screen / Online), 2 Co-Op (Local), Online Leaderboards

Game Company Bad Behavior Profile Page: UbiSoft

.

Review:

WARNING: THIS GAME HEAVILY PUSHES MICROTRANSACTIONS AND LOOTBOXES

Trials Rising was fairly unique on Nintendo Switch because it was one of a very select few Nintendo Switch games that could recognize analog triggers on a gamepad. This is even more impressive since Nintendo Switch controllers do not have analog triggers, and even third-party controllers with analog triggers do not have this analog input recognized on the Nintendo Switch.

To get around this, players could connect a Wii U GameCube adapter to the Nintendo Switch using up two USB ports, then connect a GameCube controller to one of the ports on the device, since the GameCube controller actually had the analog triggers that Nintendo Switch controllers lack. It’s a cumbersome roundabout way of getting this to work, but it does work, allowing for more subtle acceleration and braking for more precision vehicle control in the game.

On the Nintendo Switch 2, players can skip that entire jerry-rigging process and simply buy a Nintendo GameCube Controller for Nintendo Switch 2, which Trials Fusion recognizes right away as a GameCube controller without any need for additional accessories, complex syncing procedures, or even cables. Needless to say, this makes it much easier to play this game closer to the way it was meant to be played.

However, this is not the only improvement on Nintendo Switch 2. Load times on Nintendo Switch 2 are drastically reduced from what the game experience is like on the Nintendo Switch – while the game took a full minute to load from the title screen on Nintendo Switch, it took just over twenty seconds on Nintendo Switch 2, and most of that was just contacting the UbiSoft servers. In any case, that is a massive improvement.

Also improved are the game’s framerates. They don’t go above the Nintendo Switch version’s cap of 30FPS, but they are much more stable, making for a smoother game overall.

That said, it’s not like these upgrades make this better than other releases of the game, which have 60FPS framerates, better textures and better overall resolution. And the Nintendo Switch 2 can’t fix the nasty artificing that happens in the game’s title screen. So don’t expect a pristine presentation here.

However, while it may still not be on par with other versions of the game, Trials Fusion on Nintendo Switch 2 is still a massive improvement over the way this game plays on Nintendo Switch, and players who hesitated to play this game on Nintendo’s hybrid console due to the compromises made to this version of the game may find these improvements to be enough to change their mind.

tl;dr – Trials Rising is a 2D Stunt Racing game where you race a motorcycle on an obstacle course. The game really pushes microtransactions at you, and is still inferior to other versions of the game, but this game gets multiple excellent improvements on Nintendo Switch 2 over the same game played on Nintendo Switch, and the core gameplay is still excellent and well worth trying out.

Grade: B+

.

I hope you enjoyed this latest batch of Nintendo Switch 2 Difference Mini-Reviews, and found them to be helpful! Want to see all Nintendo Switch 2 Difference comparisons? Check out this page for links to every article where I’ve included these comparisons!

.

^{You can support eShopperReviews on Patreon! Please click HERE to become a Sponsor!}

^{This month’s sponsors are Jamie and His Cats, Ben, Ilya Zverev, Andy Miller, Homer Simpin, Johannes, Francis Obst, Gabriel Coronado-Medina, Jared Wark, Kristoffer Wulff, and Seth Christenfeld. Thank you for helping to keep the reviews coming!}