According to Digital Foundry, the recent free updates forSuper Mario Odyssey,Link’s Awakening, andEchoes of Wisdomfor theSwitch 2are all so good that they’re basically remasters in all but name.
Although the Switch 2’s launch library is basically justMario Kart World(which has been insome very hot water recently), Nintendo has managed to keep things interesting by updating some of the originalSwitch’s best games, fromSuper Smash Bros. UltimatetoBreath of the Wild.
While some Switch games have been lucky enough to get the Switch 2 Edition treatment, most of them have simply hadbasic free updates that bring them up to speed on the new console. As it turns out, though, these updates have been significant enough to basically be remasters on their own.
Super Mario Odyssey, 3D World, And Link’s Awakening Don’t Even Need Switch 2 Editions
Free Updates Are Giving Us Everything We Could Have Wanted
This is all according to the tech experts over at Digital Foundry, who recently shared their findings from some of the Switch 2’s recent free updates in both video and written form. Several games are highlighted by Digital Foundry, but some of the most interesting discoveries come from a select few.
For example,Super Mario Odyssey has seen a big resolution boost that makes it a better fit for 4K displays(as well as looking better at 1080p in handheld mode). Digital Foundry describes the image quality as “sharp, crisp, and impressive”, while noting that frame-rate drops that were there in the past (such as in New Donk City) are now a thing of the past.
Odyssey didn’t really need the update, but the same can’t be said of Link’s Awakening and Echoes of Wisdom, which are both notorious for frame-rate drops. That isn’t the case anymore, though, as both games are locked to 60fps at all times, with Digital Foundry calling it “one of the most impressive upgrades” of the bunch and “like a free remaster”.
As we reported last month,Super Smash Bros. Ultimate even benefited from the Switch 2’s hardware, as it now loads a lot faster and doesn’t have issues with alternate costumes.
Some of the other games that Digital Foundry notes have seen improvements includeSuper Mario 3D World(and Bowser’s Fury), Captain Toad’s Treasure Tracker, andSplatoon 3. The only game that doesn’t really seem to have notably been changed is New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe, but that’s hardly a stopping point compared to the wins.
