It’s hard to believe, but the Switch 2 is already almost a year old, and it has led to some great exclusives from Mario Kart World to Donkey Kong Bananza. Best of all, original Switch games still work on the system, both physically and digitally. When docked, players could experience a natural boost last year while playing old games on the Switch 2, but not so much while in handheld mode.
That changed with a recent update. So, for several Switch games that didn’t run or look their best on the original hardware, now is the time to check them out while on the go with the Switch 2. From Astral Chain to Xenoblade Chronicles 2, let’s get to why these games deserve a second shot.
Astral Chain
A Forgotten PlatinumGames Classic
Astral Chain was a relatively early action game for the Switch, developed by PlatinumGames. Set in a futuristic city, players were part of a police force that utilized Persona-like entities, handcuffed to their bodies, to combat crime. Fans of Bayonetta and other action titles from PlatinumGames were not disappointed in Astral Chain upon release because the world was cool, and the combat system had an interesting twist.
That said, even as an early game for the Switch, it was already not meeting the standards of other Nintendo first-party games. There were blurry visuals mostly, but the framerate could take a dip too, but now it looks and plays a bit better on the Switch 2, so anyone who missed the game in 2019 initially should give it a second chance, as it is still an exclusive.
Fire Emblem: Three Houses
A Complicated Tactical RPG
Fire Emblem: Three Houses may be the biggest entry in the Fire Emblem series to date in terms of fans who played and enjoyed it. Unlike the other games, this one had a branching path system that let players choose one of three factions to follow early on, which dictated where the story would go later. It also gave players different party members, and each one could be bonded with back at headquarters between the tactical matches. The maps played out similarly to the other games with grid-based movement and combat, so there was nothing groundbreaking there.
Most of the game ran and looked great, but there were times in combat when characters could slow down slightly while attacking, or cutscenes weren’t fully up to snuff. The Switch 2 makes an amazing game look and play even better, and getting into Fire Emblem: Three Houses now would be good practice for Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave whenever that drops in 2026.
The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening
These Toys Look Lifelike
The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening is one of the best-looking games in the Zelda series because the developer Grezzo. chose a unique art style over pushing the graphics beyond what the Switch could handle. The original game launched on the Game Boy in 1993, followed by a color remake in 1998, but this 2019 remake was the first time it was rendered in 3D.
Grezzo gave Link, the other characters, and the world a toy-like aesthetic, which really makes it pop. That’s why it was weird how the framerate noticeably dropped between exploring and combat. Usually, Zelda games launch with absolute polish, but this was an exception. The Switch 2 boost does improve it, where it won’t happen anymore, or if it does, it is very rare.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus
Pokemon Gone Wild
Pokemon Legends: Arceus was one of the most ambitious games Game Freak ever made for the Pokemon franchise. While it’s technically a Pokemon spinoff, it had mainline vibes. Taking place in the Sinnoh region within the past, players are dropped in, Isekai-style, to an undeveloped semi-open-world game. Instead of battling Gym Leaders and collecting Gym Badges, players were free to explore and catch Pokemon out in the open. They could throw Pokeballs without ever having to start a battle, and if combat was initiated, it was a more seamless transition. It was impressive for what the game was, but it wasn’t perfect, as it suffered from typical open-world issues.
Graphically, the environments weren’t that well detailed, there was some blurriness to textures and in combat, and it could run a bit slowly. Pokemon Legends: Arceus was nowhere near as disastrous as the launch Pokemon Violet and Pokemon Scarlet, which have now received an official Switch 2 boost. Pokemon Legends: Arceus doesn’t have a proper upgrade, but it does naturally look and run better on the Switch 2, even though some areas still aren’t fully detailed.
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This article originally appeared on GameRant and is republished here with permission.
