Some original Switch games will run better on Switch 2; some won’t run at all

We’ve known for a few months now that the Nintendo Switch 2 will support backward compatibility for older Nintendo Switch games, and as of today’s presentation, we also know that some Switch games will get special Switch 2 Editions that add new features and support higher resolutions and other features.

Nintendo’s product pages for the Switch add more details, including the status of backward-compatibility testing for original Switch games and a small handful of first-party Switch games that will get “free updates” to enhance them for Switch 2.

First, some good news. There will be a second tier of updates for original Switch games that Nintendo says “may improve performance or add support for features such as GameShare in select games.” These won’t include the extra features or higher resolutions of Switch 2 Edition games, but they’ll be available for free, and they ought to improve playability. Nintendo lists a dozen first-party Switch games that will benefit from free Switch 2 updates:

• Arms
• Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker
• Super Mario Odyssey 
• Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury
• Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics
• The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening
• The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom
• Game Builder Garage
• New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe
• Pokémon Scarlet
• Pokémon Violet
• Big Brain Academy: Brain vs. Brain

Nintendo says “the contents of these free updates will differ depending on the game.”

Compatibility testing is ongoing

We still don’t know whether non-updated Switch games running on the Switch 2 will perform better by virtue of the updated hardware; we’ll have to wait to test the console ourselves to know for sure. (There are, for better or worse, many Switch games with performance issues that we could use to test.)

Though Nintendo’s plan is to support the vast majority of the Switch library on the Switch 2, there are some games that won’t run, some games that will have specific requirements, and others that are still being tested.

All of Nintendo’s first-party games have passed “basic compatibility testing,” meaning they should play more or less as reliably as they do on current Switch hardware. The one incompatible game is the Nintendo Labo Toy-Con 04 VR Kit, which requires you to put the Switch into a cardboard VR headset; since the Switch 2 is a lot bigger than the original Switch, it won’t work.