Nintendo Switch 2: the best and the worst of the new console – Reader’s Feature GameCentral Published April 20, 2025 9:00am There are pros and cons to the new console (Nintendo) A reader tries to sort out the good, the bad, and the in-between of Nintendo’s Switch 2, from its impressive looking games to its controversial pricing. Now that the dust has (somewhat) settled on the Nintendo Switch 2 showcase I thought I’d give my opinions on the upcoming release. The Good The games – Whilst the first Switch had a an arguably better launch day line-up it was also able to draw from the Wii U. Given how successful the Switch has been that’s less of an option this time. However, Mario Kart World looks fantastic and is sure to be a huge success and Donkey Kong Bananza, although not immediately available, looks great fun and is only a short wait. And although I don’t always care for the first person shooter genre Metroid Prime 4 looks intriguing. Coupled with a raft of third party games and things are shaping up nicely. The console – On one hand Nintendo are playing it safe, on the other they are building on an already successful console by making improvements. The bigger screen, which is capable of HDR, is a great step forward in my eyes and a welcome addition. Also, for those that play local multiplayer, the split Joy-Cons look a noticeable improvement. Digital Foundry have noted that the console seems to have a similar level of power as a PlayStation 4 but by utilising current technology is able to significantly outperform the PlayStation 4 in terms of graphical capability. Personally, given that the Switch 2 will primarily be used a as a handheld this meets my levels of expectations. The third party support – Two big games of recent years – Elden Ring and Cyberpunk 2077 – have been announced already, along with Final Fantasy 7 remake. Ubisoft have also announced Star Wars Outlaws and Capcom Street Fighter 6. I imagine, given their support for the original Switch, further Ubisoft and Capcom games will be heading to Switch 2. And although I’m sure these versions will have some compromises, from what has been shown so far it looks like Switch 2 ports will be more comparable with current gen compared with the previous Switch console. The Bad Upgrades – The upgrade situation seems a bit of mess, really. Seemingly for the most part it would be cheaper to purchase a Switch 1 game and upgrade than buy the Switch 2 version outright. Also, subscribing to Nintendo Switch Online means upgrades are free, except the price for Nintendo Switch Online for Switch 2 is likely to be more expensive than the current price and as far as I’m aware hasn’t been announced yet. Factor in that it hasn’t been announced the price to upgrade from Switch 1 to Switch 2 in the UK and other countries and it all gets a bit frustrating. ‘C’ button – Oh the C button the unrealised potential you once had, before we all knew that the C stood for chat. On the one hand I suppose it makes sense on the other, how anticlimactic. I think the most egregious thing is Nintendo acting like they’d invented talking to friends in multiplayer games, as if it’s not been a thing for years. Actually, scrap that. The most egregious thing is having to pay possibly an extra £20 for a few extra mini-games in Super Mario Party Jamboree when you’ve already forked out £50 for a camera. Welcome Tour – I can’t help but compare this game/tech demo with Astro’s Playroom on PlayStation 5. A great introduction to the console that was fun, imaginative, and – best of all – free. The Switch 2 Welcome Tour, on the other hand, looks bland and lacking in any charm. To then have the audacity to charge for the game is daft. This should have been bundled with the console. Just seems like a slapdash cash grab. The In-Between Pricing – I’ve heard some grumbling about the price of the console, but I don’t think it’s too bad. Granted I was more hopeful for a £350 price point. However, £395 is reasonable when you compare it to other handheld devices and when you consider that both Xbox Series X/S and PlayStation 5 were more expensive at launch and that was five years ago nearly. I do, however, think the pricing of peripherals is a lot. Namely the camera, which I can’t see being a big seller, along with the price of the controllers. However, the bigger issue people have is the game pricing. I think it’s a more pressing concern for those in other territories, given £75 is a similar price as some first party PlayStation 5 games that we are used to in the UK. However, it’s still disappointing given that it’s highly unlikely that Mario Kart World will ever receive a significant discount, whereas other publishers will offer sizable price reductions on their games after a period of time has passed. I do appreciate though that Nintendo are offering a reasonable discount on digital titles. As someone who favours physical media generally, I unfortunately feel we are heading towards digital-only consoles in the near future, so at least this seems like a decent incentive to choose digital titles. Hopefully Nintendo will also bring back game vouchers and rewards to offer further discounts this way. Also, Currys have offered significant discounts on new titles throughout the Switch’s lifespan so there’s hope this might continue with the Switch 2. Don’t get me wrong I’m not thrilled with paying £75 for Switch 2 games but hopefully Nintendo and other retailers might make create some deals to take the sting out a bit. The future of Switch 2 – At the moment it’s looking pretty rosy in terms of third party support and since current gen-only games such as Star Wars Outlaws are due a Switch 2 release there’s no reason to say that Switch 2 games couldn’t release alongside their Xbox/PlayStation 5 counterparts. But I guess it’s too early to judge the quality of these ports and whether publishers will continue to support the Switch 2, and the proof will be when the system is released. Less known is whether the Switch 2 will be left behind when the next generation starts, presumably in the next few years with the new Xbox and the PlayStation 6. It’s likely this current gen has some years left, but you never know. The other issue is that it’s likely first party Nintendo games are going to be less plentiful than with previous systems. Nintendo are no doubt going to be affected by increased development times and although I’m no expert I imagine given how often Nintendo raided their back catalogue during the Switch era they are running out of options for games to remake/remaster/re-release. More Trending Again, I’m not a Nintendo superfan, so could be wrong, but the only big games that I can think of that might fit the bill are the Zelda games from the Wii/Wii U era and Super Mario Galaxy 2. All of this means that must-have games are likely to be less frequent on Switch 2 but given the increase in game prices perhaps that’s not a bad thing. By reader Matc7884 Metroid Prime isn’t a traditional first person shooter (Nintendo) The reader’s features do not necessarily represent the views of GameCentral or Metro. You can submit your own 500 to 600-word reader feature at any time, which if used will be published in the next appropriate weekend slot. Just contact us at gamecentral@metro.co.uk or use our Submit Stuff page and you won’t need to send an email. GameCentral Sign up for exclusive analysis, latest releases, and bonus community content. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Your information will be used in line with our Privacy Policy