Nintendo Switch 2 [June 5, 2025]

[EOJ]

My Switch 2 console (x2) order was delivered today. One for me, one for my son. 



First impressions are the system feels nice in the hand though it's quite huge (reminds me of the Game Gear I had when I was young). However, so far the Switch OLED screen still looks nicer to me. New pro controllers and joy-cons feel really nice! Better than their Switch predecessors.

Anyone else pick up the system at launch?

I'm going to test out the CAVE ports soon and see if there's any differences from playing them on the Switch.

[EOJ]

OK I tested out DDP DFK and it runs the same as on the Switch (slowdown, etc.). Input lag seems about the same too, though maybe it's just the difference in the d-pads on the pro controllers but I feel like it's a *little* more responsive on the original Switch. I played some Ultra Street Fighter 2 as well, and that had a similar result. Hopefully someone can do some proper input lag tests.

Switch games in general load a lot faster on the Switch 2. That's something I noticed with every game I booted up.

The system as a whole is pretty nice, but it feels more like a "Switch Pro" to me than a "Switch 2". I mean, the menus and interface are the same, and the console is pretty similar too. It doesn't feel like a big jump to a next gen like PS4>PS5, or even DS > 3DS. Mario Kart World is pretty fun, though it doesn't look like a huge improvement in graphics compared to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.

Quality control on these units seems to be a bit subpar. Mine is fine, but my son's has a triangular indentation in the top left of the unit, from the factory. It's like it occurred before the case hardened. Really weird.



It's pretty small, but you can feel it with your finger. I've never seen cosmetic flaws on a new Nintendo system before. My son doesn't care too much and doesn't want to deal with the hassle of returning it since it might be awhile before he gets a replacement or it is fixed.

[SuperPang]

I feel like it's a *little* more responsive on the original Switch. I played some Ultra Street Fighter 2 as well, and that had a similar result. Hopefully someone can do some proper input lag tests.

Seems so!

https://x.com/kiyomaryu/status/1930465906926465034

[EOJ]

Hmm, that person feels Switch 2 has less lag.

Playing around with this some more, I find it a bit heavy in portable mode. It's 401 grams, vs 320 grams for the OLED and 297 grams for the original Switch. After about 10 minutes you start to feel the weight. I was planning on selling my OLED but now I'm not so sure. I might keep it around to play Switch 1 games in portable. The screen is nicer on the OLED and it feels better for long play sessions. However, I play in docked mode about 90% of the time, and here the Switch 2 is the clear winner.

Many first-party games with frame rate problems on Switch 1 have been smoothed out to a locked 60fps on Switch 2: Super Mario RPG, Echoes of Wisdom, Link's Awakening, etc.

[EOJ]

This guy on Twitter has been doing real tests (rather than personal impressions) and so far found all games are either the same or improved on the Switch 2 (compared to Switch 1), in regard to input lag:

https://x.com/noodalls/status/1930895895954170211

Great news!

[EOJ]

Update on the input lag on CAVE games:

Thinking SDOJ on Switch 2 (docked) would run with less lag than on Switch 1, I bought it on the eshop and tested out Arcade mode, with both the Switch 2 pro controller and the Switch 1 pro controller. Well, I certainly didn't notice any LESS lag. In fact, I was having a hell of a time playing the game, and I struggled to even get to Stage 5 (made it to the ST5 boss twice, but game overed there). I played about 10 credits. So, that was a bummer. However, I hadn't played the game on the X360 since the beginning of the year, so I thought maybe I was just rusty. I then decided to try it on my Switch OLED (docked), and I instantly felt it to be more responsive, and I 1CC'd it on my first try!



So, not sure what is going on, but for me, SDOJ is more responsive on Switch 1. I don't notice the same difference with Mushi or DFK 1.5, both seem pretty responsive on both consoles.

Anyone else test this out? Would be curious to see if others feel the same. Maybe it's a difference with wired vs wireless controllers on Switch 2, though I briefly plugged in my Pro controllers on Switch 2 and tried that out too, and didn't notice an improvement in input lag.

[EOJ]

Hunting around a bit I found this post on Twitter that measured SDOJ's input lag in portable mode, and found it is exactly the same on Switch 1 and 2 (~5 frames):

https://x.com/TRSYJ/status/1932457503507571143

However, he didn't test it docked. If docked tests show the input lag is the same on Switch 1 and 2, it could be that the Switch 2 Pro d-pad is just less accurate (in my experience), making it feel more laggy. Still doesn't explain why I feel there is more lag on Switch 2 docked with the Pro 1 controller, unless those have more lag on Switch 2 than Switch 1? Of course, it could be a placebo effect, but I'm pretty sensitive to lag and I know this game very well, so I'd be surprised.

BTW I really prefer the d-pad on the Switch 1 pro controller. On the Switch 2 pro it feels too floaty.