While countless Switch 2 hardware leaks painted the picture of a console unusually similar to its predecessor, Nintendo spent much of this week’s official Switch 2 Direct trying to prove its next machine was more than just a simple upgrade. Sure, the console can still connect to your TV or live as a handheld, and yes, with the exception of one new button, the device’s form factor looks remarkably similar. But, Nintendo said, dig into the capabilities hidden behind that one new button, or in the Joy-Con 2’s new mouse functionality, and there was still that spark of creativity that sets the company apart.
After four hours with Switch 2, and time with all of its new first-party games, I can see it – though the console’s more experimental side is also its weaker. Of course, there is absolutely nothing wrong with creating a better version of a hugely-successful console, keeping the main Switch concept of hybrid play intact while improving the elements that needed an upgrade: the Switch 1’s aged processing power, its fussy Joy-Con attachments, its basic online social capabilities. With Switch 2 in your hands, you hold a console that can tick off a string of current-gen console standards: 4K, HDR, VRR and 120fps, at least on some titles. And while I’ll leave the pixel analysis to Digital Foundry, it is evident just from a quick play with Switch 2’s first-party software that Nintendo is now able to feed off of significantly more power under the hood.
Mario Kart World’s open landscape is a dramatic revolution for the series – a gamble that I believe pays off, and a new landmark entry that seems likely to rival the huge popularity of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe over Nintendo’s last generation. I’ve written my detailed thoughts on Mario Kart World’s brilliance elsewhere. And then there’s Donkey Kong Bananza, which ended the Switch 2 Direct in a slot many had expected to be reserved for a long-awaited new 3D Mario, but after some hands-on time actually feels just as exciting.
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Across huge floating 3D areas with massive demolition potential, Bananza sees DK burrow, stomp and slap his way through enemies and rocks, tunneling beneath levels, smashing through walls, and creating projectiles out of stone slabs scooped out of the floor. At first glance, this might look to be any other 3D platformer. But dig deeper, literally, and the possibilities of this game’s destructible environments become clear. This is not just about the 3D space you can see, but the 3D world beneath DK’s hairy ape feet – the metres of rock that hide secret paths and collectibles – or the sheer cliff faces he can scamper up with ease (no Breath of the Wild stamina meter here).