Once I brought the original Switch close by to start the transfer process, I was warned that save files for games including Animal Crossing: New Horizons and Pokémon: Let’s Go Pikachu would be removed from the original system during transfer, presumably as an anti-cheating measure. This made the whole process a bit nerve-wracking, though in the end my save files made it through with flying colors.
Kyle Orland
Switch 2 cartridges look remarkably similar to original Switch cartridges (and seem to fit just fine in the original Switch, but throws up an error if you try to play).
Kyle Orland
Kyle Orland
Aside from the color, it’s hard to tell from this which cart is which.
Kyle Orland
Kyle Orland
Switch 2 game boxes continue to be an ocean of empty space.
Kyle Orland
Aside from the color, it’s hard to tell from this which cart is which.
Kyle Orland
Switch 2 game boxes continue to be an ocean of empty space.
Kyle Orland
Kyle Orland
Kyle Orland
Kyle Orland
Kyle Orland
Surprisingly, the wireless system transfer process also wouldn’t move screenshots and gameplay videos stored on the original Switch. To move those over, I had to remove the physical microSD card from the Switch and temporarily insert it into the Switch 2. This was particularly perplexing since the Switch 2 seems to only officially support MicroSD Express cards for everything but this one setup feature.
Bigger than a breadbox
Kyle Orland
The Switch 2 (top) with a Game Boy Advance SP (left) and original Game Boy (right). We’ve come a long way.
Kyle Orland
Kyle Orland
The Switch 2 (top) with a 3DS XL (left) and original Nintendo DS (right). We’re still waiting for a dual-screen Switch…
Kyle Orland
The Switch 2 (top) with a Game Boy Advance SP (left) and original Game Boy (right). We’ve come a long way.
Kyle Orland
The Switch 2 (top) with a 3DS XL (left) and original Nintendo DS (right). We’re still waiting for a dual-screen Switch…
Kyle Orland
Kyle Orland
From top: Switch 2, Switch, Wii U Gamepad. Note how the screen takes up an increasing amount of the front-facing footprint.
Kyle Orland
Kyle Orland
The comparison shot you’ve all been asking for: a Switch 2 and a Virtual Boy.
Kyle Orland
From top: Switch 2, Switch, Wii U Gamepad. Note how the screen takes up an increasing amount of the front-facing footprint.
Kyle Orland
The comparison shot you’ve all been asking for: a Switch 2 and a Virtual Boy.
Kyle Orland
We’ve talked before about the relative size of the Switch 2 compared to other portable game consoles like the original Switch and the Steam Deck. Still, there’s something about seeing the hardware next to an original Game Boy or even a PlayStation Portable that really highlights how far handheld gaming hardware design has come in the last few decades.
Holding a retail Switch 2 unit in our hands also reconfirms what we said during our April preview of the hardware; namely, the unit feels a bit more substantial in the hand than the original Switch, but still a good deal less bulky than portable PCs like the Steam Deck, both in terms of weight and overall thickness. While it’s still early, we’d expect long-term portable play to be plenty comfortable here.
Kyle Orland
From top: Switch 2, Steam Deck OLED, Lenovo Legion Go S. It’s hard to tell from here, but the Switch 2 is a lot lighter and thinner.
Kyle Orland
Kyle Orland
Clockwise from top: Switch 2, PlayStation Vita, PlayStation Portal, PlayStation Portable. Remember when the PSP screen seemed remarkably large and clear?
Kyle Orland
Kyle Orland
Clockwise from top left: NES controller, SNES controller (with my childhood stickers), Gamecube controller, Switch Joy-Cons, Switch 2 Joy-Cons, Wii Remote and Nunchuk, N64 controller.
Kyle Orland
Clockwise from top: Switch 2, PlayStation Vita, PlayStation Portal, PlayStation Portable. Remember when the PSP screen seemed remarkably large and clear?
Kyle Orland
Clockwise from top left: NES controller, SNES controller (with my childhood stickers), Gamecube controller, Switch Joy-Cons, Switch 2 Joy-Cons, Wii Remote and Nunchuk, N64 controller.
Kyle Orland
Kyle Orland
Kyle Orland
On the control side, while the buttons and sticks on the Switch 2 are a little better suited to adult hands than those on the original Switch, they still feel a little on the small side when held right next to standard console controllers from Sony and Microsoft. That’s not true of the Pro Controller 2, though, which will feel immediately familiar in size and shape to anyone who’s played on a PlayStation or Xbox console in recent years.
We’ll have much more to say about our experience with the Switch 2 in the coming days and weeks. For now, leave us a comment if you have any specific questions that we might be able to answer as we put the console through its paces.