Switch 2 Quick Review

A quick follow-up on "My Two Cents on Nintendo Switch 2's Pricing" where I discuss my first impressions with the Nintendo Switch 2 hardware and other things I discuss in that article.

By: TheHans255

6/13/2025

Well, a month has come and gone since I wrote My Two Cents On Nintendo Switch 2's Pricing, and I have indeed gotten my hands on a Nintendo Switch 2 with a copy of Mario Kart World. I thought I might follow up on the speculation from that article and give a quick review of what I've experienced so far, to provide an update as to how worth it I think these games and systems are. I'm definitely going to talk more about these in the future as I get more experience with them, but for now, these are my quick reviews.

I ended up purchasing a bundle from Costco for 530 USD, which contains a Switch 2 (normally 450 USD), a digital copy of Mario Kart World (normally 80 USD), and a year subscription to Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack (normally 50 USD). Because the online subscription was only for new members, I ended up giving it away as a gift. I also bought a Switch 2 Pro Controller from Costco for 85 USD.

The Switch 2 itself has actually been a decently satisfying piece of hardware, and more or less did what I hoped it would do: upgrade the experience for my rather expansive Switch 1 library. The Switch 1 saw a lot of games released that were really a bit more than the Switch's hardware was able to chew, with games such as The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom tanking in frame rate whenever you tried to use Zonai machines or entered heavily forested areas, and the upgrade packs for those games feel very nice to play at 60 FPS. More impressive were games that did not get patches - I recall being very pleased when Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, which normally takes about 6-10 seconds to load on Switch 1, loaded near instantly on Switch 2. I do think I'm gonna be disappointed if there end up being significant hardware defects that I can't fix, or if there don't really end up being any games that catch my fancy on this system, but for now, I'm optimistic.

The new Pro Controller feels like a buttery dream. I love that the control sticks just kinda melt invisibly into your hand. I do believe that PC support still needs to be added by Steam, but I would highly recommend the controller to anyone once that happens.

Mario Kart World is interesting, to say the least. I would definitely consider it a departure from traditional Mario Kart, since most driving is actually going to take place on winding cross-country roads instead of traditional tracks, with platforming elements such as rail grinding and wall riding to keep things interesting. As such, I would say that the Grand Prix mode takes a bit of a backseat, but Knockout Tour, the 24-player battle royale cross-country elimination race, is the game's strongest mode, especially with friends. I think you'll be in for a good time if you get this game, but it might not be worth 80 USD for you, especially considering that Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, which I would consider to be the platonic ideal of traditional Mario Kart gameplay, still runs great on Switch 1 and costs only 60 USD.

As for DELTARUNE, though, the game that came out on the same day as the Switch 2's launch?

Worth every last goddamn cent.

Seriously, this game is a masterpiece. Toby Fox and his team are really cooking. The storytelling and writing is so great from beginning to end, and the gameplay systems are engaging, interesting, and thoughtful. And of course, the bangin' soundtrack has been my obsession for the last week and probably will stay that way for a very, very long time.

I know it's only halfway done, with only 4 out of 7 chapters released, but I would say there's enough content here to make what amounts to a very satisfying first part to a two part movie (and the team has explicitly said that you won't need to buy two tickets, keeping the price the same even as more chapters are released). I never felt like I was being strung along - I'm just looking forward to what happens next!

If you haven't played this game already, please do. Again, it's available on Steam, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Switch 1, and Switch 2. I will probably be writing a lot about this game in the near future, so stay tuned for that!