A video comparing Apex Legends arrived on the Switch with much fanfare on March 9. Fans were looking forward to playing the title on a new, more portable platform, and many were hoping that the battle royale game would garner a new audience on Nintendo's hybrid console.
A day before Apex Legends' Nintendo Switch release, the developers gave an interview revealing Apex Legends' Switch resolution and FPS. The game runs at 720p in docked mode and at 576p in handheld mode. In both modes, the game's frame rate is locked at 30fps. While this is in line with other Nintendo Switch ports of popular third-party games, it was concerning that the numbers were so much lower than that of the game's PC version, which clocks in at a maximum of 144fps and a potential 4K resolution.
A new video compares the two versions, showing just how stark the difference is between the PC and Nintendo Switch versions of the game. VG247 recorded a run-through of one of the game's maps on both PC and Nintendo Switch in docked mode. Both versions are showing the maximum possible settings for their respective platform. The PC version's visual settings are turned all the way up, while the docked mode version of the Switch game promises a higher resolution than the handheld mode. In this comparison, the Switch version comes off very poorly. The textures are muddier, the grass is nonexistent, and distances are blurrier.
This last point in particular has Switch players advising others to avoid the game's crossplay feature. Turned on by default, the crossplay ability allows Switch players to compete against players from other platforms, like PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. Reddit Ann0ying shared comparison screenshots from the Switch and Xbox One that highlight how difficult it is to see other players at a distance. In the Xbox One version, a faraway player is at least mostly discernable as a character model. In the Switch version, it's impossible to tell if an enemy player is actually there or not. This leaves Nintendo Switch players at a significant disadvantage, as players on other platforms will be able to see competitors coming from further away. If players turn off the crossplay function, they'll only be matched with other Switch players, which makes for a more level playing field.
Fights happen quickly in Apex Legends, and players need every advantage they can get. Even if crossplay is d as one of the assets of the Nintendo Switch version of the game, the differences in resolution and frame rate make it impossible for Nintendo fans to stay competitive when matched against players from other platforms. While it's hard to be truly surprised at the Nintendo Switch's performance - Nintendo consoles are historically underpowered as compared to other platforms - it's also a little unfair to compare it against a powerful PC's performance. No one expects powerhouse performance from a portable Nintendo system. Even so, the game's performance should still be adequate enough for players to stand a chance against each other, especially if crossplay is a highly-d aspect of the title. In that respect, the Nintendo Switch version of Apex Legends falls significantly short.
Apex Legends is available on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC, and Nintendo Switch.
Source: VGM247, Ann0ying/Reddit
