How difficult it is to succeed an iconic queen! Rest assured, we're not asking the Switch 2 to step into the shoes of Charles III. In this case, the "Queen" is none other than the Nintendo Switch, a "small console" that has modestly sold more than 150 million units worldwide.
This nearly decade-long reign is therefore coming to an end, and for the one taking up the torch, the task promises to be arduous. This didn't stop the hype train from breaking the sound barrier when the console was officially announced on April 2nd. Since then, it's been an interminable wait. A wait that ended yesterday morning and has since culminated in long gaming and testing sessions. So here we are 24 hours later, and even though our Switch 2 didn't heat up all night, we have to confess that it didn't stay off for long...
24 hours is obviously too short for a full review. Rest assured, it will be published in a few days, but it's still enough to get a first opinion on Nintendo's new hybrid console. And since first impressions count, we're going to take the time to go over all aspects of the console, all the new features we were able to try, and especially some features that have caught our eye since this announcement at the Grand Palais, which stirred our gamer souls.
A first major shock
The first contact with the Switch 2 is also the most impressive, especially for a user who is used to playing with the console "docked" in living room mode. The beast has gained muscle, or rather, diagonal. Its larger screen is the first thing that strikes you, and 24 hours later, it's one of the things that stands out the most.
Although it's an LCD display (it's a safe bet that Nintendo is already thinking about an OLED Switch 2 somewhere in its ideas box), we enjoy using the Switch 2. Bigger and slightly brighter, the screen also has a better refresh rate (120 Hz compared to 60 Hz previously). And although some very serious companies like Apple seem to think that ordinary people aren't sensitive to this kind of technical detail (hello iPhone 16 and iPhone 16e), the fact remains that for gamers, 120 Hz matters and, above all, it's obvious!
Moving from 6.3 inches (for the Switch) or 7 inches (for the Switch OLED) to a 7.9-inch screen seemed necessary for Nintendo in order to maintain a respectable size compared to the Steam Deck and other ROG Ally X. After several hours of play, it's the physical element that remains the most striking and which doesn't only have happy consequences. The larger Switch 2 is also heavier, which, after a few hours of play, becomes noticeable. Don't worry, it's not enough to renew a gym membership, but in smaller hands, like children's hands, it could count.
Attractive Joy-Cons, the end of drifting?
The other new hardware feature that seems essential to us is the new Joy-Con. Bigger, wider, and also equipped with larger sticks, they also feature a new attachment system. Gone is the rail into which the controllers had to be slid, which was sometimes prone to annoying inversions. Instead, the new Joy-Con use two small magnets, via the L and R buttons, which have become metallic. The idea is remarkable, its implementation impeccable. The Joy-Con are clipped and unclipped with a gesture that is as simple as it is pleasant. Above all, in use, our main fear about this new system, discovered during the Switch 2 announcement, has disappeared. Indeed, to initiate the detachment of the Joy-Con, you have to press a small button on the back. But what happens if your finger slips during a wild game of Mario Kart World? Does the Joy-Con end up on the ground, and with it our hopes of victory? Well no, because here too things have been done rather well and even if you accidentally press this button, there remains a slight restraint that can only be lifted with the real will to detach the controller from the console. In other words, you can feel the Joy-Con coming out of place slightly, but it immediately and very easily puts itself back in place. Add to that the fact that there is a certain pleasure in removing and replacing the Joy-Con, the handling being quite pleasant and the little noise that accompanies it almost gratifying. Is this the end of Joy-Con drift? It's permissible to dream, but we'll wait a few months before confirming it.
When will we finally play Mario Kart World?
We won't dwell too much on the console installation process. This was detailed in detail in our unboxing and setup video for Nintendo's new console. Like any setup procedure, it has the seductive potential of a tax return and takes much longer than it should.
Once setup is complete, you're back on familiar ground. If you were expecting a software overhaul on the Switch 2, you might be disappointed. The interface is essentially identical to that of the original Switch, except for a slight redesign of a few icons. The first new features arrive when you download your online version of Mario Kart World and finally get to experience the famous virtual game cards. Aside from this specific point and the addition of a few icons (GameShare and GameChat), there isn't much to get your teeth into on the interface side, which supports the theory that the Switch 2 is primarily a hardware upgrade.
And while the look is almost identical, the browsing experience takes full advantage of the engine change. Whether on the various menus, in-game or even in the Nintendo eShop, navigation is fluid. So much so that we find ourselves picking up our old Switch again to realize how much it struggled with even basic tasks.
First gaming experiences
We'll tell you all the good things we think about Mario Kart World in a future dedicated article. In the meantime, know that turning on a Switch 2 also means taking the risk of wanting to check the quality of the emulation of an F-Zero GX, Gamecube version, and finding ourselves two hours later savoring the rediscovered pleasure of a Zelda "The Windwaker"... No thanks to the Nintendo Switch Online subscription!
We'll also highlight the quality of the Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour, the little demo game that allows you to get to know all the new features of the console, like an Astro on Playstation. The care and quality given to this demo are inversely proportional to Nintendo's lack of discernment, which chose to charge 9.99 euros for a demo that was supposed to teach how to use its game console properly.
For the rest, the gaming experience benefits mainly from the larger screen and the speed of the Nvidia SoC to provide the fluidity that was so lacking in its glorious predecessor. While we sometimes find ourselves regretting the absence of an OLED screen (or anticipating the pain of having to pay 150 euros more for it in two or three years), for the rest, the gaming experience is truly enjoyable and corrects the few recurring moments of frustration experienced with the original Switch. "That's how the game should have always played," we hear from Titouan, our colleague who continues to make comparisons. "But yes, it's fluid," he hears echoing from the other side of the desk. It's barely 11 a.m. and already four Switch 2s have been unboxed at the editorial office.
The much-anticipated fluidity is great, but where are the real new features?
GameShare / GameChat: promises and limits
Alongside a significant technical evolution (with the exception of the screen), the Switch 2 also offers some new so-called social features. We have detailed the operation of GameShare, the ability to share your games, and GameChat, the option that allows you to communicate in-game with your friends. What emerges from these two new features is both a great ambition in the intention, but also certain limitations in the execution. These are technical, in the case of GameChat or contextual with a small number of compatible games in the case of GameShat. But in both cases, these features reflect a real desire on Nintendo's part to add more user-friendliness to its hybrid console. This conviviality was part of the DNA of the brand's consoles, whether on the DS (which already allowed certain games to be launched by several people), but especially on the Wii. And if the Switch is and will remain an unconditional success, we can only note that it built this success without this convivial side.
GameShare, but especially GameChat, reflect this desire to bring the pleasure of a shared game back to the heart of the console. The latter is now technically capable of it, and it's now up to players to take it on. For our part, we were amazed by the GameShare management, simple to use, intuitive and... fluid! When we tell you it's fluid, this Switch 2!
As for GameChat, the function that Nintendo seems most proud of, the one that is chanted in all the TV ads for Mario Kart World: "race together wherever you want, whenever you want", it tries to compensate for the weakness of its graphic quality by the pleasure it brings to the game. Will this be enough to establish itself as an essential function? It will probably depend on the profile of each player and the length of the friends list.
Everything that was missing from the Switch, and a few more things
Awaited like the messiah for almost 10 years, the Switch 2 is as much a new console as the improved version of its illustrious predecessor. Yes, this Switch 2 corrects all the biggest flaws of the first version. Yes, it should finally allow us to enjoy certain titles without worrying about display quality or latency. And yes, in many ways, this Switch 2 is the Switch Pro we never had.
These first 24 hours with Nintendo's new console have given us a glimpse and a taste of a console that is certainly attractive, but whose lack of an OLED screen is hard to forgive. In return, we can praise Nintendo for a true desire for innovation even though the form factor hasn't changed. Above all, besides the spectacular leap in performance, what really stands out about this Switch 2 are its social features. GameShare, but especially GameChat, aren't technically perfect, but they are undoubtedly the embodiment of what Nintendo does best: shared gaming pleasure and conviviality. It's this ingredient perhaps more than any other that could make this Switch 2 a little more than a serious, but somewhat lazy, successor.
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