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It's surprising, yet we're already closing in on the new Switch 2 console's half-year mark. By the time the upcoming Metroid Prime 4 debuts on the fourth of December, it will be possible to deliver the device a fairly thorough assessment due to its impressive roster of Nintendo-developed early titles. Heavy hitters like Donkey Kong Bananza will dominate that check-in, yet it's the company's latest releases, the Pokémon Legends installment and recently Age of Imprisonment, that have enabled the successor pass a key challenge in its opening six months: the hardware evaluation.

Addressing Hardware Concerns

Ahead of Nintendo officially announced the successor system, the main issue from gamers about the then-theoretical console was concerning hardware. When it comes to hardware, the company fell behind PlayStation and Xbox over the last few console generations. This situation began to show in the original Switch's later life. The expectation was that a successor would bring smoother performance, smoother textures, and modern capabilities like 4K. That's exactly what we got when the console was debuted this summer. Or that's what its technical details suggested, at least. To really determine if the Switch 2 is an improvement, we required examples of major titles running on it. We've finally gotten that in recent days, and the assessment is favorable.

The Pokémon Title as an Initial Challenge

The first significant examination came with the October release of Pokémon Legends: Z-A. The franchise had notable performance issues on the initial console, with titles such as Pokémon Scarlet and Violet releasing in highly problematic conditions. The system wasn't exactly to blame for that; the game engine driving the developer's games was aged and getting stretched beyond its capabilities in the franchise's move to open-world. This installment would be a bigger examination for its developer than anything, but there was still a lot to observe from the title's graphics and performance on Switch 2.

Despite the release's basic graphics has initiated conversations about Game Freak's technical capabilities, it's clear that Legends: Z-A is far from the performance mess of its preceding game, the previous Legends game. It runs at a consistent 60 fps on Switch 2, whereas the older hardware tops out at thirty frames. Some pop-in occurs, and you may notice plenty of blurry assets if you examine carefully, but you won't experience anything like the moment in Arceus where you begin airborne travel and watch the complete landscape transform into a rough, low-poly terrain. It's enough to earn the Switch 2 some passing marks, however with limitations given that the developer has separate challenges that exacerbate restricted capabilities.

The New Zelda Game serving as a More Challenging Tech Test

Currently available is a more compelling tech test, yet, thanks to Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment, launched earlier this month. The latest Musou title challenges the upgraded system due to its action-oriented style, which has users confronting a massive horde of creatures at all times. The series' previous game, Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, struggled on the original Switch as the hardware struggled with its quick combat and sheer amount of activity. It frequently dropped below its target 30fps and gave the impression that you were pushing too hard when being too aggressive.

Fortunately is that it also passes the performance examination. I've been putting the title extensively during the past month, experiencing every level it has to offer. In that time, the results show that it's been able to deliver a consistent frame rate compared to its predecessor, reaching its 60 fps mark with more consistency. Performance can dip in the most heated of battles, but I've yet to hit any time when the game turns into a choppy presentation as the frame rate suffers. A portion of this might be due to the reality that its compact stages are careful not to put overwhelming hordes on the battlefield concurrently.

Notable Compromises and General Verdict

There are still foreseeable trade-offs. Primarily, splitscreen co-op experiences a significant drop around 30 frames. Moreover the initial Nintendo-developed title where there's a clear a noticeable variation between older OLED technology and the new LCD display, with particularly during cinematics having a washed out quality.

But for the most part, Age of Imprisonment is a complete change compared to its predecessor, just as Pokémon Legends: Z-A is to Arceus. If you need any sign that the new console is delivering on its performance claims, even with some caveats still in tow, both games demonstrate effectively of the way the new console is significantly improving series that struggled on old hardware.