Today, I’m adding four more games to the list of games that have seen improvements when played on Nintendo Switch 2. Let’s have a look!
Descenders
Genre: Offroad Bike Racing / Extreme Sports (Offroad Biking)
Players: 1-4 (Online), Online Leaderboards
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Review:
When I reviewed this game years ago, I liked it quite a bit, but I also felt this game had a laundry list of performance issues. Trying this game out on Nintendo Switch 2, I hoped for an improvement, but I wasn’t prepared for how much of a drastic difference this would be.
However, before getting into that, let’s get expectations in check. Even on Nintendo Switch 2, Descenders still suffers from numerous graphical issues that remain from the Nintendo Switch – there’s still plenty of pop-in, shadow and texture pop-in, ugly jagged shadows, and a lot of aliasing all over the place.
On the other hand, the framerates are massively improved and stable. The resolution also seems much-improved here. The result is a game that, while still not quite pretty, is immensely more playable on Nintendo Switch 2. And what’s more, the loading times have been massively slashed as well – it took 26 seconds to load from the main screen into the game lobby on Nintendo Switch, and only 14 here, and loading into the game maps is similarly speedy.
Descenders on Nintendo Switch 2 still can’t compare to playing the game on other platforms, but this is still a huge improvement. This definitely makes the game easier to recommend.
tl;dr – Descenders is an Offroad Bike Racing game with Extreme Sports elements that has players speeding through randomly-generated environments and performing tricks, with gameplay that incorporates Roguelike elements to challenge the player to push themselves without taking too many risks. It’s a fantastic game, and although it’s still not on par with the version released on other platforms, the performance has been massively improved on Nintendo Switch 2 compared to the Nintendo Switch. It’s still far from the best way to play this game, but it’s not quite as wide a gap now as it used to be.
Grade: B+
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Rocket League
Genre: Racing / Sports (Soccer / Basketball / Hockey / Misc.)
Players: 1-4 Team-Based Competitive (Local Split-Screen), 2-8 Team-Based Competitive (Local Wireless, Online)
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Review:
WARNING: THIS GAME HEAVILY PUSHES MICROTRANSACTIONS
I’ll try to make this short and sweet. I thought Rocket League looked pretty good on Nintendo Switch when I first reviewed it, and I still do. The resolution is fairly low, but the framerate is smooth and rock-solid. The Nintendo Switch 2 doesn’t really do anything to change this.
What Nintendo Switch 2 does change are the loading times – just to get to the title screen took 42 seconds on Nintendo Switch, but only 18 on Nintendo Switch 2, and I suspect it could have gone even faster if it let me skip the logos at the start. Loading into matches is also faster.
So there you go – it’s not a massive change, but it’s definitely a nice improvement that will save you time. And if you’ve gotten a Nintendo Switch 2 and are looking for a great free-to-play game to add to your collection, this one may have a low resolution but it is otherwise an absolutely superb choice.
tl;dr – Rocket League has players using cars to play soccer, hockey, and basketball, and it is an absolute blast to play. It still runs smoothly on the Nintendo Switch, albeit with reduced resolution (still the case on Nintendo Switch 2, but with reduced loading times), and it’s loaded with options and a wealth of multiplayer features. What’s more, the change to free-to-play has made it even easier to take the plunge, as it not only removes the entry fee and the need to subscribe to Nintendo Switch Online for online play, but it actually has less monetization now than when I first reviewed it. It might not have the higher resolution of other versions, but this game still looks and plays great on Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2.
Grade: A
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Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2
Genre: Compilation / Sports (Skateboarding)
Players: 1-2 Competitive (Local Split-Screen), 2-4 Competitive (Local Wireless), 2-8 Competitive (Online), Online Content Sharing
Game Company Bad Behavior Profile Page: Activision Blizzard
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Review:
The port of Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 to Nintendo Switch was already highly playable, though pretty graphically compromised, and those compromises aren’t fixed by Nintendo Switch 2. The muddy textures, low-detail character models, aliasing, and overall low resolution are all still present here. And the loading times on Nintendo Switch were already pretty minimal, so if there’s an improvement in that area, I’m not seeing it.
No, the main improvement here is that the framerate has been stabilized. Granted, it’s only been stabilized to the Nintendo Switch version’s max of 30FPS, but that’s still an improvement in a game where you’ll want things as smooth as possible to nail the timing of your tricks. This upgrade is most noticeable in the create-a-park mode, where some parks could get pretty sketchy framerates.
This isn’t a huge improvement on Nintendo Switch 2, but it is an improvement. Tony Hawk fans who already got the game on Nintendo Switch may have been hoping for more, but this is at least something. Of course, if you’re a Tony Hawk fan with a Nintendo Switch 2, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4 is right around the corner, and the Nintendo Switch 2 version of that game will likely be a much bigger graphical and performance upgrade than you could ever hope to expect from this game.
tl;dr – Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 is a superb Compilation and Remake of the first two highly-celebrated games in the Skateboarding series that updates their gameplay and combines them into one whole cohesive experience while retaining what made them so beloved in the first place. The Nintendo Switch version is a severe downgrade in both graphical fidelity and performance from the versions of the game on more powerful hardware, and playing it on Nintendo Switch 2 brings only modest framerate improvements. This is still a very playable version of the game and is otherwise intact and feature-complete, including solid online play. It’s an acceptable way to play Tony Hawk on Nintendo Switch 2, though players may want to wait for the soon-to-be-released sequel.
Grade: A-
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Disney Speedstorm
Genre: Kart Racing
Players: 1-2 Competitive (Local Split-Screen), 2-8 Competitive (Online)
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Review:
WARNING: THIS GAME HEAVILY PUSHES MICROTRANSACTIONS
I expect this is to the surprise of most Nintendo Switch 2 owners, but Disney SpeedStorm is the first third-party Nintendo Switch game to get a Nintendo Switch 2-specific overhaul after the launch of the Nintendo Switch 2. It’s surprising not only because this is a game that wasn’t generally warmly-received, but didn’t sell super-well back when it was released as a paid game, and I highly doubt that it saw massive numbers of new players once it went free-to-play. However, since the game is free-to-play and did receive a free Nintendo Switch 2 update, it does deserve another look.
This update comes alongside the Season 14 patch for the game, inspired by the Toy Story franchise. The publisher has released patch notes for the update, and the Nintendo Switch 2-specific upgrades are as follows:
- The FPS cap has been raised to 60, delivering buttery-smooth racing compared to the previous 30 FPS limit.
- Enjoy 1080p in handheld mode and up to 1440p when docked for a crisper, more detailed look.
- A number of other visual improvements such as better shadows, anti-aliasing, and shader quality to bring even more visual polish to every track.
Okay, but what’s my own take on this upgrade for the Nintendo Switch 2 version of the game?
Well, right from the start, I can’t help but feel like they’re being modest here, because I immediately noticed one huge difference that isn’t even on the list: loading times. On Nintendo Switch, it took me 49 seconds to load up the title screen, and another 24 to load into a race (just against bots, so I wasn’t waiting on other players). On Nintendo Switch 2, both of those times got reduced by more than half, to 23 and 11.
As for the quality of the visuals, I already felt like Disney SpeedStorm was a graphically-nice game on Nintendo Switch, but the Nintendo Switch 2 patch does indeed make a noticeable difference – the smooth 60FPS framerates in particular are a wonderful upgrade, and the higher resolution makes for much cleaner visuals overall too. The other improvements are more subtle, and I’m not sure how much you’ll notice them in an intense race, but they’re nice to have all the same.
Overall, the performance and presentation get a major boost here, making this a clearly superior version of the game compared to the Nintendo Switch version. And the core gameplay is still every bit as great. That said, the nasty monetization is still every bit as nasty, and the rubber-banding is still just as rubbery. On balance, this still works out to be a fine Racing Game, but the nasty monetization makes it hard for me to give this a full recommendation.
tl;dr – Disney Speedstorm is a free-to-play Kart Racing game featuring high-tech races with courses and racers inspired by classic Disney franchises. I have some issues with the microtransactions here, the lack of courses, and the rubber-banding… but despite those numerous flaws, this is still a wonderfully fun, fast-paced racing game with an outstanding presentation (greatly-improved over on Nintendo Switch 2 compared to the original Nintendo Switch) and a great soundtrack. As long as you can tolerate this game’s flaws, I think you’ll find it to be a great addition to your Racing game collection.
Grade: B
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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!
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