The ambitious port of Barcelona Apex Legends landed on Nintendo Switch earlier this month, so how does it hold up? Digital Foundry has tested the Panic Button conversion, testing the latest version of the game based on patch 1.07.
In terms of resolution, the game runs at 720p in docked play, with “the dynamic resolution scale falling to 1066×600 minimum” and 576p dynamic in laptop, with a “960×540 minimum”.
DF highlights a number of cuts: textures lack an immense amount of detail, shadows are affected, drawing distance recedes and is obscured by fog, effects are reduced, and details of trees, shrubs, and terrestrial objects they are also reduced en masse. Then there is the removal of the “vast majority” of grass and foliage, which is considered a “cut too long.” It translates into a passable experience:
“What users actually get is a fairly low, albeit lower, interpretation of the game world. Everything is as it should be and is reproduced correctly within reach. Think of it as a less complex but sufficient interpretation of the world. The reflections are also preserved, the flares of objectives are maintained, while the physics of the fabrics are present and correct.The enemies are also shown to be in the same range, fundamental for a fair experience for all players. Exclusive advantages of switches are thin on the ground, but gyroscopic lens is included. “
Performance is obviously the most important talking point of Apex Legends on the Switch: frame rates drop to “20 fps” during firefighters. Other than that, it keeps the 30 FPS target, but it’s still only half of the framerate players on other console platforms, which are running the game at 60 FPS.
“The main problem is that frame rate problems are introduced during clashes with other players, exactly where the best performance should be. In addition, there is a feeling that the frame rate can start to decrease simply. being close to other players – an unlikely early warning system? “
Digital Foundry claims the cuts are “so severe” that its final recommendation is to turn off cross-game functionality (which is automatically activated) to play exclusively with other Switch users and even with the playing field.
Have you tried Apex Legends on the Nintendo Switch? What thoughts do you have so far? Leave a comment below.