The folks over at Digital Foundry have taken a look at what many consider an impossible port for the Nintendo Switch 2, Cyberpunk 2077. Announced as one of the premiere third-party launch titles for the system (and one of the only third-party games with the full game on a cartridge), it’s kind of astonishing to see a game as dense and as detailed as this running on a portable device. While there was some speculation whether or not the game would even run well enough on Nintendo’s handheld device, the verdict is out and the results are pretty positive. It’s great for the hardware, though obviously below what you can get on PC, PS5, or Xbox Series devices.
As Digital Foundry explains, some of the more modern hardware in the Switch 2 has allowed developer CD Projekt Red to push the visual fidelity out a bit more than was possible on PS4 and Xbox One. You’ll notice that texture quality is better, overall, on Switch 2 and that it sometimes even surpasses the Xbox Series S due to having more RAM available. Cyberpunk’s high CPU demands expose the Switch 2’s CPU limitations, resulting in performance problems.
While the base game runs well enough and typically locks to 30 fps, it has issues in busier areas with some stutter cropping up when the action gets too heavy. The “Phantom Liberty” expansion, on the other hand, routinely falls below 30 fps and exposes how CPU limited this game is. It also explains why CDPR had to cancel that expansion on last-generation consoles as they never would have been able to cope. Even with compromised performance, the expansion is acceptable on Switch 2 and the game never falls apart like the disastrous launch version of Cyberpunk 2077 on consoles.
Where things get tricky is with the 40 fps Performance mode for the game. Since the Switch 2 does not support VRR in docked play, 40 fps winds up being uglier in motion thanks to added judder and frame inconsistency. It’s advisable to stick to 30 fps if you’re playing on a TV, but in portable mode, 40 fps at least provides some benefit. The game is typically just above 30 fps and while it can drop lower, the Switch 2’s VRR LCD panel helps mitigate any screen tearing. The performance, overall, still seems better in Quality mode, but Performance at least has some benefit if you’re a handheld player.
One interesting thing to note is that in addition to utilizing the Joy-Con 2’s mouse control functionality, CDPR also snuck in full keyboard and mouse controls for Cyberpunk 2077 on Switch 2. Essentially, it plays like the PC version with fully rebindable options and all. Since this port also features cross-save compatibility, you could pick up your save from any platform on here and continue to play, eventually tackling the expansion. That’s a nice bonus.
More Switch 2
Switch 2 is reportedly outselling the original console by 2-to-1
Mario Kart World tops Japanese sales charts for its launch week, Switch 2 sells 947,931 units
Leave a Comment
Written by Peter Glagowski
Peter has been a freelance gaming and film critic for over seven years. His passion for Nintendo is only matched by the size of his collection.
