Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition - Switch 2 Review

Back in 2019, the announcement of The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt coming to the original Nintendo Switch shocked many, myself included. Being able to get 2015’s Game of the Year running on a tablet with an already outdated graphics chip was nothing short of witchcraft, and now at launch, CD Projekt Red has brought its newest massive open-world RPG, Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition, to Nintendo Switch 2, and, let’s just say, I’m even more blown away than I was six years ago.

Cyberpunk 2077 has you play as V, a mercenary in the bustling, crime-riddled town of Night City. On a mission predicted to be his big break, he finds himself entangled and a key suspect in the murder of Saboru Arasaka, along with a chip in his brain that’s slowly eating away at him by the legendary terrorist Johnny Silverhands (Keanu Reeves).

Lastly, similar to my review of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt six years ago, I’m not going to say too much about the game itself, as Cyberpunk 2077 is a five-year-old game that has been reviewed and analysed by almost every video game news outlet under the sun. This review will be mostly about the game’s performance on the Nintendo Switch 2, along with its unique features.

The Good

There is absolutely no better way to demonstrate what the Switch 2 is graphically capable of than this port—hands down. If you’re unaware, Cyberpunk 2077 had a pretty rocky launch; the game was incredible, and it ran well on PC and next-gen consoles (PS5 and Xbox Series X|S), but the PS4 and Xbox One versions were so horrendous that refunds were offered and CD Projekt Red’s reputation took a sizeable hit. The graphics were poor, bugs ran rampant, and any goodwill the game had built up by launch had been replaced with a slew of videos and articles demonstrating how much of a botch its launch was. While Cyberpunk 2077 has since been patched up and goodwill has been restored to their fans, having such a graphically demanding game running on a tablet hybrid console such as the Nintendo Switch 2 is a technical marvel and, quite frankly, a wonderful achievement—and at launch, no less. Now if we’re to talk about how well it runs on the Switch 2, I played the game in its entirety and not once did I think to myself, ‘Gee, I wish I was playing this on more powerful hardware.’ The port has two modes: Quality Mode at 30 frames per second and improved visuals, or 60 frames per second at lesser visuals; I chose the latter, and while there is certainly a difference in graphical fidelity, the benefits of 60 frames per second far outweighed the lack of bells and whistles. It ran well when it needed to, there were little-to-no hiccups, and being able to experience this game in such a way that suited the console’s hybrid nature was worth any small trade-off.

Many third-party ports to the Nintendo Switch (and likely for the Nintendo Switch 2 in the future) simply do the minimum in terms of having the game playable with basic game pad controls. The fact that The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt implemented touch screen controls was never a necessity but they did it anyways, which showed how much they wanted to ensure the port effectively utilised the importance, and CD Projekt Red has outdone itself with Cyberpunk 2077. Here, we are treated to a slew of control methods, providing the player with the freedom of choice in more ways than one. Gyro controls have been added to help fine-tune aiming, and the accessibility to customise sensitivity and whether this is just for aiming or in general provides a significant level of player freedom. Furthermore, having mouse mode available at launch demonstrates just how well first-person shooters will and should perform on Nintendo Switch 2. Mouse Mode here is so incredibly intuitive that I now have a second Nintendo Switch 2 dock at my desk for games that intend to utilise the feature. I’m not one to play games on PC, as I work all day on one, but for the sake of this review and for others in the future, I played in every mode and, well, Mouse Mode was probably my favourite way to play. Now I’m even more excited for Metroid Prime 4: Beyond!

Like I said before, I won’t delve into the actual game itself all that much because it’s been reviewed to death, but for the sake of touching on it for the sake of this review, there is certainly a reason why this game is held in such high esteem today. The story is gripping, pulling you left and right all the time, never letting you become too comfortable and complacent, and the gameplay is top-notch, exactly what you’d expect from the developers behind The Witcher 3. Furthermore, the world and lore are incredibly captivating; Night City is a bustling metropolis and its dystopian underbelly paints a grim picture of a neo-genesis future that, at this rate, would be less than a century away; and not to go too tin foil hat on you but with the way some things are heading, it seems to hit just a liiiiittle too accurately.

TL;DR

• A graphical flex for the Switch 2
• A slew of control options
• A damn good game

The Bad

I went on and on about how impressed I was that Cyberpunk 2077 performs as well as it does on Nintendo Switch 2, but that doesn’t mean it’s perfect. The general dialogue moments and story beats run flawlessly, but combat and testing moments (driving being one of them) have their fair share of frame rate dipping. I also mentioned that I played the game in Performance mode, so you can just imagine how Quality mode runs (hint: not great). None of this is a deal breaker (unless it is for you), as these compromises aren’t drastic by any stretch of the imagination; it’s just not ideal. Despite how cool it is to be playing Cyberpunk 2077 on Nintendo hardware, and on a hybrid no less, if you had the choice of playing it on more powerful hardware, I’d advise it.

Exclusive to the Nintendo Switch 2 version, you have plenty of different control options to play with. However, especially during the tutorial section within the first hour of the game, these can be quite overwhelming, especially to new players. Said tutorial mode also comes around quite abruptly, so if you want to spend some time figuring out your ideal play style, you’re taking a jarringly long pause during a time when the game is setting the scene story-wise.

TL;DR

• Performance issues during high-octane moments
• Overwhelming and abrupt tutorial due to the myriad of control schemes

Final Score: 9/10

I’ve wanted to play Cyberpunk 2077 for a long time now. I’ve had it wishlisted on both my PC and my Xbox, waiting for sales and a time when life gifted me with the spare time to do so. While the game has been on sale quite frequently, life hasn’t been as kind with giving me time to unwind with a game like this and the backlog is brutal, so I did not expect for Cyberpunk 2077 to be ticked off my list for the sake of a Nintendo Switch 2 review.

For the most part, I didn’t feel hindered by playing it on less powerful hardware at all; in fact, in some ways, it provided me with more freedom and convenience. The performance is serviceable, but the mere fact that the game is running on hybrid Nintendo hardware at launch is an impressive feat for both CD Projekt Red and Nintendo.

As previously stated, I wasn’t going to say much about the game itself, but to summarise it in just two words: it’s incredible. If you want the freedom of multiple control schemes and hybrid play styles, then the Nintendo Switch 2 version is a fantastic way to do that. But if you’re looking for more pretty lights, better textures and smoother frame rates, and being tied to a TV or PC monitor isn’t a deal breaker, then certainly opt to play the game on more powerful hardware. Regardless, either way, you can’t go wrong.

Thank you for checking out our Cyberpunk 2077 Switch review, thank you to CD Projekt Red (via Bandai Namco AU) for providing the review code and thank you to our Patreon Backers for their ongoing support:

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