Why The “Impossible” Switch Ports Are All The More Impressive

It’s been nine years, but man, Nintendo Switch is one hell of a console even today. Since I haven’t bought the Switch 2 yet, the OG one is all I have, but you won’t see me complaining. I still pick it up from time to time, boot up the good old Super Mario Odyssey, and just wander around for some good old platforming fun. It reminds me of the day I held it for the first time, and was at my wits’ end seeing a handheld play AAA-level games.

Nintendo Switch was a true turning point for portable gaming. It said, “dream big,” and then delivered on it. From indies and casual party games to AAA monsters, it had everything at the palm of your hand. It’s no wonder this beautiful handheld single-handedly bullied two consoles much bigger than itself. But what surprises me to this day is how the hell did it manage to do everything with that hardware?

What Sorcery Is This?

If you take a look under the Nintendo Switch’s hood, you’ll start questioning reality, too. Despite launching in 2017, it has a Tegra X1 mobile chip from 2015, running at 1020 MHz. The custom GPU barely reaches 0.39 TFLOPS, and that’s in docked mode. In your hand, the GPU is throttled considerably to save power. And to top it all off, the console only has 4GB DDR4 RAM to play all your games.

With such meager hardware strength, how this thing manages to even start The Witcher 3 is beyond me. I mean, look at it, the specs are barely hanging by a thread, yet the Switch has a towering library of AAA games. Nintendo really worked some black magic here. I guess it’s only fair that a lot of these games run like an abomination on the Switch. What else would you expect when the console is packing so little firepower?

However, looking at it another way, isn’t it kinda impressive how the devs managed to even get these games running on this ecosystem? Recently, I played Risk of Rain 2 on my Switch, and I think Devoted Studios really did a solid job with this Switch port. Yes, the game has its performance issues, but for a handheld experience on weaker hardware, it was good enough. And that’s exactly what I want to highlight today. These Switch ports are not perfect, but they’re a feat nonetheless.

The new and improved console version of Risk of Rain 2 is here and is stable
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Switch Ports Should be Commended, Not Criticized

As diehard fans, I think we’re pretty quick to dismiss or criticize things. I remember a lot of “X game is a mess on Switch” debates. However, sometimes it’s important to acknowledge what it took to make even this much possible. Nintendo Switch is a hard platform to port to in more ways than one. It’s not a simple transfer, but more of a restructuring. You rebuild assets from scratch to render on a different GPU architecture.

All this takes a lot of effort, not to mention the internal restrictions of the weak hardware. Everything needs to be downscaled precisely to conform to the Switch’s handicapped environment. Calculated compromises need to be made, and it’s not easy. We just say “lazy port” and move on, and sometimes it’s factual, but we dismiss true effort in some cases, too. We don’t know the “behind the scenes” to get a monstrous game running on the humble Switch, and I think a little gratitude for the opportunity alone goes a long way.

I've had more fun with my Switch than any other video game in years
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That last point is especially important. You and I may have access to different platforms, but for a lot of people out there, a Switch is their only gaming device. I’d like to think we all love games equally, and if Switch users get to play a game they were looking forward to, no matter how downgraded, I’ll call it a win. It’s still better than watching it on YouTube; interactivity is the name of the game after all. These “Impossible” Switch ports are not only a testament to the devs’ expert work, but a good step towards making gaming more accessible.