Switch 2 came in very hot with a launch day update essentially ‘activating’ it, and various system updates have refined things on the firmware side. My Joy-Con are still functioning perfectly – which should really be a given, but the spectre of drift lingers, as does the pile of useless OG Joy-Con in the cupboard.
I’m fairly careful with all my devices, but I’ve taken the system on trips, packed it in suitcases, and generally given it a full and thorough ‘using’ across all modes, and it’s coped with those day-to-day rigours just fine.
User reports about a faulty or malfunctioning LAN port in the dock are disappointing, although it’s not a problem anyone on Team NL has run into. Likewise, legitimate complaints around blurry panel problems and ghosting seem to have died down, too – not that those issues don’t still exist, they just don’t seem to be troubling the vast majority of Switch 2 owners.
On the whole, then, there are areas to polish (and the screen on my trusty OLED model still looks spectacular) but Switch 2 gets things mostly right, and it’s holding up well after six months of use, if not abuse. What about yours?
Software: Delightful, certainly, but lacking surprise?
The number of truly new Switch 2 games, exclusive or otherwise, might be lacking, but it’s hard to argue with the breadth of quality games we’ve seen released since June. Plenty of familiar ports, yes — another way in which Switch 1’s legacy passes directly to its successor — but with 25 games in the launch lineup, is there anything to grouse about on the consumer side, really?
Perhaps. Mario Kart World is a great game, but also ‘just’ the new Mario Kart, not a genre-defining all-timer like a BOTW or even a Wii Sports. Despite the brilliance of Donkey Kong Bananza, there’s nothing just yet that you absolutely have to get a Switch 2 to play. Plenty of gems, some exquisite ports, and having them on a handheld hybrid is as convenient as ever, but the vast majority can be played elsewhere. Hades 2 and Metroid Prime 4, for example, both perform wonderfully on Switch 1.
Backwards compatibility has been expanded (with NieR:Automata fixes coming in a recent update), and NSO additions have kept trickling in. We’re still waiting on four of the ten announced GameCube additions to show up, but what’s there is good stuff.
So, plenty to play, but how are you feeling?