Nintendo Switch 2 |OT| Switch 2 Nintendo, because now we're playing with power

Got my Switch 2 yesterday, it came with a broken seal (Smyths toys). Installing the tempered glass screen protector (amfilm) was a breeze thanks to the cleaning sticker and alignment stencil. I was worried about the reports of 3rd party controllers, 8bitdo in particular not working. I tried my 2 bootleg controllers: a 5 year old bargain basement terios t23 and a hall effect stick gamersir nova lite. Both work great on the Switch 2 after pairing.

The XC games need an update to change the DRS upper bound, they look painfully blurry in handheld mode. 540p on an 8" display is not great. Why was Monolithsoft unable to deliver an update, when a small team like Hello can deliver free transformative upgrades. The shocking thing is even XCX released a few months ago does not have a patch. Unlock framerate and change the DRS upper bound to 1080p, how difficult is this?
I find myself saying that about a lot of games. I'm really hoping a lot of devs will update their Switch 1 games to have uncapped framerates and higher resolution.

I'm not holding my breath, but I really hope it happens.

It's funny how there were switch 1 games I used to complain about not having a 30fps cap option, like Bayonetta 3. And now I'm so thankful that it runs unlocked, because it's a perfect 60 on Switch 2.
 
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Yo, what the fuckkkkk, just opened my box from Amazon and :
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I had the same happen in my order from Nintendo UK / NOE. In Europe the Mario Kart World code is unmasked, I redeemed it quickly with no issue
 
Huh, I thought AirPods only work on Apple devices? I have even been buying those 3.5mm to lightning cables to use the Max on my Switch 1
Nah man, I've got a bunch of Android friends who all have airpods. They're honestly the best wireless earbuds out there. (They fuckin better be for the price, of course.)
 
I was so sure I was gonna shit all over the system within 48 hours of launch. Truth is, I am so indifferent towards the whole console I didn't even spent time with it, yet. I got it like everyone else on Thursday, and now it's Saturday here, and the only one who spent a couple minutes with MK9 is my 6 year old, lol.
 
Got my Switch 2 yesterday, it came with a broken seal (Smyths toys)
For what's worth I got the console from Smyths too, also came with a broken seal but no other signs of tampering. A friend of mine got it there and reported the same. Must be something they do before sending it to make sure it's all there and nobody tries to say they received an empty box?
 
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So here's my first impression after 24 hours with the Switch 2:


Positive:

👍 Display is good. It's not OLED, but by no means is this a bad display. I deactivated HDR for handheld use. Colors pop. It has IPS viewing angles but this only matters in tabletop mode. If it weren't for that German guy who did the professional measurements on YT, people would be super happy with it.

👍 Build quality is higher than Switch 1 and Switch 1 OLED. Pro Controller has higher build quality than DualSense.

👍 Setting up the system was a breeze. Really enjoyed this.

👍 OS and UI are super fast and responsive. Online store is super fast.

👍 Sound in TV mode is massively improved. Huge difference compared to Switch 1.

👍 Connecting Blutooth headphones is super easy and works perfectly without audio lag.

👍 Download speeds and wifi range are great. The modem seems to be high quality.


Negative:

👎 System froze several times while downloading Mario Kart World. Had to restart the download after every reset. So I waited until the game was fully downloaded before doing things in OS. That worked. Other downloads did not freeze while doing OS stuff. Everything works fine now.

👎 I can't download games while playing. The moment I start a game, all downloads pause. Maybe there's an option for fixing this. If not: shame.

👎 Battery life is really bad. Setting up the system dropped the battery from 75 to 50 percent. Also, the battery drops much faster than it reloads. I play in handheld mode with a super long loading cable attached. Good luck playing for more than 2 hours without cable.

👎 Ergonomics are still bad. My ring finger and pinky fall asleep after 20 mins. The console is bigger, but it's the same thin design. Since it's heavier now, the situation is worse than with Switch 1. I ordered the Skull & Co Neogrip. Maybe this will help. I enjoyed it a lot with Switch 1.


I got the following games for launch:

- Mario Kart World (Bundle)
- Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess
- Bravely Default Flying Fairy HD Remaster
- Suikoden I & II HD Remaster

I also wanted to buy Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma, but the shop always gives me error messages during checkout. Tried at least 10 times. So I saved that money.


All in all:

Switch 2 needs decent grips to be a comfy handheld. If you don't have a long loading cable, make sure you got a powerbank with you.
 
I think it was Dacvak Dacvak yesterday (correct me if I'm wrong) that said his S2 wouldn't charge over 90-something percent ?
Well, I was reading in an Italian forum today that some users have the same problem in that the console, even with the battery saver option turned OFF won't charge past the 94% mark 🤔

Also : test your Dock's Ethernet port 'cause some have had a problem with that too (i.e, it doesn't work), a few of them had to send it back to Amazon 'cause of that .

cheers
 
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My son is currently in Japan and is bringing a Switch 2 back. Not good news about battery life..
 
I think it was Dacvak Dacvak yesterday (correct me if I'm wrong) that said his S2 wouldn't charge over 90-something percent ?
Well, I was reading in an Italian forum today that some users have the same problem in that the console, even with the battery saver option turned OFF won't charge past the 94% mark 🤔

Also : test your Dock's Ethernet port 'cause some have had a problem with that too (i.e, it doesn't work), a few of them had to send it back to Amazon 'cause of that .

cheers


 
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Have people who complain about the battery time not learned anything about previous releases? The Mariachi model of Switch 1 got much better battery life, which is why I have no problems waiting for the updated model even if it takes 2-3 years for it to come. When you buy a console on launch day you should realize it's a calculated risk as there will be plenty of little issues.

The good thing about the non-Mariachi model is that it's supposedly stupid easy to hack, the newer needs a chip or something.
 
Alright my biggest gripe so far. Who's the genius that thought it was a good idea to put the memory card slot behind the kickstand? On top of that, i feel like i'll break it cause it's so damn flimsy.
 
The upscaling tech used is kinda crazy once you test it. A game like Shovel Knight still runs at 720p when you play it on Switch 2 (you can see it if you make a screenshot and send it to your phone).

But on the 1080p screen it shows zero sign of interpolation despite following a clear pixel grid. Normally you'd immediately see things like black/white borders having a grey veil or the pixel grid looking uneven.

Upscaling really is the future of rendering techniques especially for low power devices.
 
Have people who complain about the battery time not learned anything about previous releases? The Mariachi model of Switch 1 got much better battery life, which is why I have no problems waiting for the updated model even if it takes 2-3 years for it to come. When you buy a console on launch day you should realize it's a calculated risk as there will be plenty of little issues.

The good thing about the non-Mariachi model is that it's supposedly stupid easy to hack, the newer needs a chip or something.

I mean, from what I've been reading, it's pretty much the same thing on all portable consoles/handheld PCs like the SD or what have you (always depending on the game)...
I understand that more power hungry games are going to stress the battery even more, but, 2 hours is still dissapointing man.
A 5000mAh battery ain't gonna cut it and they obviously cheaped out on this too, they should have put a 10000mAh one but then, people would have complained about the console being bigger/heavier or what have you.

Speaking from personal experience, and since this is my 1st portable console (PS portal excluded), the 2 hour thing is gonna make or break my whole enjoyment since it seems very limited brother.

Anyway...
 
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I mean, from what I've been reading, it's pretty much the same thing on all portable consoles/handheld PCs like the SD or what have you (always depending on the game)...
I understand that more power hungry games are going to stress the battery even more, but, 2 hours is still dissapointing man.
A 5000mAh battery ain't gonna cut it and they obviously cheaped out on this too, they should have put a 10000mAh one but then, people would have complained about the console being bigger/heavier or what have you.

Speaking from personal experience, and since this is my 1st portable console (PS portal excluded), the 2 hour thing is gonna make or break my whole enjoyment since it seems very limited brother.

Anyway...
Yeah, I absolutely agree with you that it sounds like a very poor batterytime. That's one thing that's very important to me when it comes to handhelds. It feels like an unnecessary chore to be forced to drag with me my powerbank just to get 3 hours.
 
👍 Display is good. It's not OLED, but by no means is this a bad display. I deactivated HDR for handheld use. Colors pop. It has IPS viewing angles but this only matters in tabletop mode. If it weren't for that German guy who did the professional measurements on YT, people would be super happy with it.
He was really focused on Nits as a lot of the industry are -- it's easily measurable. However, I've always found the nits importance strange as I rarely use brightness more than 50% on devices unless in super bright sunshine. I didn't follow his reasoning how this diminishes HDR either. From a general user perspective display eyes-on for Switch 2 have been very positive so far.

👎 Battery life is really bad. Setting up the system dropped the battery from 75 to 50 percent. Also, the battery drops much faster than it reloads. I play in handheld mode with a super long loading cable attached. Good luck playing for more than 2 hours without cable.
Switch 1 design originally had a portability philosophy but eventually people ended up mostly using it indoors even in handheld mode. Given that Switch 2 is larger and so has lost even more of its outdoors viability I wonder if battery life has been targeted for an at-home device never far away from power points.
 
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The upscaling tech used is kinda crazy once you test it. A game like Shovel Knight still runs at 720p when you play it on Switch 2 (you can see it if you make a screenshot and send it to your phone).

But on the 1080p screen it shows zero sign of interpolation despite following a clear pixel grid. Normally you'd immediately see things like black/white borders having a grey veil or the pixel grid looking uneven.

Upscaling really is the future of rendering techniques especially for low power devices.

High power devices are going to be using upscaling pretty soon, and the impact is diminished with lower resolutions. I don't really see a great future for handhelds as Moore's law slows down.
 
So the no loading part was a fucking lie. 19 seconds to load into the castle.

It must not be the patched Switch 2 edition, wtf?!? The did say they removed loading screens, maybe only some of them 😂.
Castle loading is normal and in every version. 19 seconds is pretty long though.
What they were talking about was the loading when you get into the town Hogsmeade. On next-gen and PC you could just walk right into it without a loading screen, so outside of the castle it was an open world. But on Switch it was like walking into another level.
 
What memory card did people go for? I want the best value for money but also would go with the majority of what folks bought. Cheers.
 
Red Dead Redemption 2: Yes. There have been rumors from multiple sources that a port is coming later this year.

No idea about GTA V. There are rumors that GTA IV is coming to all current gen consoles (including Switch 2) this year, but I haven't heard anything at all about GTA V.
Has been a remaster of GTA IV been announced?
 
Got some handheld time with it, the screen on the Switch 2 is very nice, its bright and the colours are vibrant, it might help that my OLED Switch had a yellow tint to it but it looks really good to me.

The material for the controllers will take a bit of getting used to, I preferred the smooth plastic of the original Switch.

Also did they make the SL/SR buttons out of metal? Seems like a strange choice.
 
Nintendo needs to address the battery life, as it's unacceptable for it to be this poor. Hopefully, it will be sorted with an update in the future.
Hardware is getting more powerful, but battery technology didn't get much better in the last few years. Best they can do is faster charging. Like Xiaomi phones have 120w hyper charging, but it's still a 5000 mAh battery.
What memory card did people go for? I want the best value for money but also would go with the majority of what folks bought. Cheers.
Stores here only had Samsung & Sandisk and I got the Sandisk because it seems to be a bit faster than the Samsung
 
Have people who complain about the battery time not learned anything about previous releases? The Mariachi model of Switch 1 got much better battery life, which is why I have no problems waiting for the updated model even if it takes 2-3 years for it to come. When you buy a console on launch day you should realize it's a calculated risk as there will be plenty of little issues.

The good thing about the non-Mariachi model is that it's supposedly stupid easy to hack, the newer needs a chip or something.
Do you mean Mariko ? Where did you find « mariachi » ?
 
High power devices are going to be using upscaling pretty soon, and the impact is diminished with lower resolutions. I don't really see a great future for handhelds as Moore's law slows down.
I mean everything is already using some form of upscaling between FSR, DLSS and XeSS. I'm saying the version used on Switch is really impressive even on 2D games.
I just noticed, but why is this similar in price to the PS5 Pro? This cant be RRP right. Am I looking at price scalpers here
In which country? There is a significant price difference between the two normally.
 
Mariako, mariachi, tomato, tomato
Man of culture, I see.

And regarding your point, the X1+ was a bit of an exception rather than a rule, the X1 was a 20nm chip, which was already outdated when the console launched + was basically the unused chips from Nivida's failed attempt for a console + the security issue (which was fixed like in 2018 but still), so the refreshment with the same chip but at 16nm was long due at this point. And they could've use it for more power (hence the Switch Pro rumours), but opted for a way better battery life instead.

I don't think we'll have the same situation here
 
Hogwarts Legacy looks hella better than Switch 1. Quite clean image quality. Great HDR and motion blur. Playing docked.
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It is a lot nicer image, they added deforming cloth too which is quite nice to see. I would hope they find the time to squeeze some more performance out of it (I doubt they maxed the console out) and push rendering distance a bit further out (they still full a bit too aggressively buildings in the distance and have to block player's view in the areas they could not safely remove objects).
 
So here's my first impression after 24 hours with the Switch 2:


Positive:

👍 Display is good. It's not OLED, but by no means is this a bad display. I deactivated HDR for handheld use. Colors pop. It has IPS viewing angles but this only matters in tabletop mode. If it weren't for that German guy who did the professional measurements on YT, people would be super happy with it.

👍 Build quality is higher than Switch 1 and Switch 1 OLED. Pro Controller has higher build quality than DualSense.

👍 Setting up the system was a breeze. Really enjoyed this.

👍 OS and UI are super fast and responsive. Online store is super fast.

👍 Sound in TV mode is massively improved. Huge difference compared to Switch 1.

👍 Connecting Blutooth headphones is super easy and works perfectly without audio lag.

👍 Download speeds and wifi range are great. The modem seems to be high quality.


Negative:

👎 System froze several times while downloading Mario Kart World. Had to restart the download after every reset. So I waited until the game was fully downloaded before doing things in OS. That worked. Other downloads did not freeze while doing OS stuff. Everything works fine now.

👎 I can't download games while playing. The moment I start a game, all downloads pause. Maybe there's an option for fixing this. If not: shame.

👎 Battery life is really bad. Setting up the system dropped the battery from 75 to 50 percent. Also, the battery drops much faster than it reloads. I play in handheld mode with a super long loading cable attached. Good luck playing for more than 2 hours without cable.

👎 Ergonomics are still bad. My ring finger and pinky fall asleep after 20 mins. The console is bigger, but it's the same thin design. Since it's heavier now, the situation is worse than with Switch 1. I ordered the Skull & Co Neogrip. Maybe this will help. I enjoyed it a lot with Switch 1.


I got the following games for launch:

- Mario Kart World (Bundle)
- Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess
- Bravely Default Flying Fairy HD Remaster
- Suikoden I & II HD Remaster

I also wanted to buy Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma, but the shop always gives me error messages during checkout. Tried at least 10 times. So I saved that money.


All in all:

Switch 2 needs decent grips to be a comfy handheld. If you don't have a long loading cable, make sure you got a powerbank with you.
Having to disable HDR in portable mode for colours to pop seems like a bit of an issue / something that should be appearing in the negatives too (same thing as not being able to use 4K@120 Hz on TV or VRR).

Considering the CPU cores and RAM reserved for Switch 2 I would have liked to see background downloads too, but it might have hurt the battery life more or prevented releasing resources to devs later on. Still :/…

Also, I would put the kickstand as a regression from Switch OLED.

I find it very annoying that all the big reviews compare it mostly or exclusively with the OG model and not the OLED one :/. That should be the benchmark IMHO…
 
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