Playing Doom Eternal on the Nintendo Switch seemed like a challenge, but in this review we will show you that miracles are possible
It is March 20 when Doom Eternal makes its appearance on the market for 4 PlayStation, Xbox One and PC. Immediately both the public and the critics welcome him, and we too, in our review, we enjoyed id Software's new masterpiece. The optimization on Nintendo Switch was much more cumbersome, however, which, after various postponements, arrived on December 8th. After almost 9 more months of gestation, will the developers have managed to make it usable on the Nintendo platform? Let's start this Doom Eternal review for Nintendo Switch and we discover this little miracle that we have witnessed.
Before continuing, however, it seems obvious to me to specify that in this review we will not talk about the game itself, already extensively described in the single player review, in the multiplayer review and in the one relating to the first DLC released last October. In this review we will talk about the porting and that's it, documenting how the game performed on this platform.
Miniature demons
I will be sincere, I never expected to be able to play this title on Nintendo Switch. The motivation was obviously not purely dictated by the size of the game itself, but by the lack of power of the console compared to those of the competition. After all, it is well known that the Switch is not a monster of power, but of engineering and optimization. The various postponements of the release and the lack of a physical version due to the "weight" of the title have further thickened this haze that had been created over the months.
Yet here I am writing the review regarding Doom Eternal for Nintendo Switch! Initially I did not believe it myself and with a skepticism raised to the nth degree I started the game. After the first stages of the tutorial, I found a "miniaturized" world in my hands that I never thought I could explore in this way. Although previously seen on the PlayStation 4, find it on such a small screen - most of the time I played it in a portable version, you will understand why later - it still had an effect.
Blasting demons, performing epic kills, and jumping and flying here and there even while lying comfortably on a bed, left me with a bittersweet aftertaste. Surely my expectations have been completely overturned positively, although in some ways Doom Eternal turned out to be what I expected. But stop the chatter and try to understand what worked and what didn't.
Smooth as on other platforms - Doom Eternal review for Nintendo Switch
As mentioned earlier, a Nintendo Switch cannot be compared, in terms of power, to a PlayStation 4 or an Xbox One. The main reason why a lot of games don't get carried to this platform then is just that. So to play decently it takes a truly flawless optimization and often you have to also make big sacrifices in terms of graphics. If one of these were to be missing, we would face catastrophes like the port of The Witcher 3.
Fortunately for us, id Software's developers were flawless from these points of view. They have in fact achieved a small miracle, allowing all Nintendo users to be able to play a truly intriguing title as if they were on a more performing console, at least in terms of fluidity.
In fact, during the whole experience I have not never had performance drops. The initial skepticism gradually turned into amazement, to the point of leaving me totally speechless. During the most agitated phases of the game, with hordes and hordes of demons constantly shedding, the console never suffered and guaranteed a seamless experience.
Bloody Graphics - Doom Eternal Review for Nintendo Switch
Obviously, maintain optimal performance for the duration of the adventure it requires quite a substantial sacrifice. In this case, of course, it was decided to sacrifice graphics of the game. Visual depth above all has suffered from this indispensable choice, remarkably underlining all the shortcomings of this platform. However, although at a long distance the graphics make our eyes "bleed", up close you can see almost the same details that characterize the game on other platforms as well.
In short, although it is not exactly the best in terms of graphic rendering over long distances, close up there are almost no differences. Obviously, on the console screen these details are barely visible or in any case not excessively, thanks above all to the small size of the latter. A very different speech, on the other hand, occurs when you connect the console to the TV. As the image is much larger, the graphic flaws pop up like dolphins out of the water.
A little further portability issue, it's about the game menus. Although there is no problem on the TV, reading the various game menus on the console screen can be quite difficult. The texts in fact turn out to be really small and difficult to read in the long run. In short, from this point of view we say that the developers were not really careful.
Conclusions
We have reached the end of this review on Doom Eternal for Nintendo Switch and at this point a question arises: Was it really necessary to have a port that would so clearly undermine a finally renewed graphics? Obviously if you are a lover of every visual detail, the answer to this question is no. However, an example of optimization of this magnitude certainly deserves an opportunity.
Certainly you will not be able to enjoy the wonderful views that have characterized Doom Eternal and that have been the backdrop to the various frenetic fights. However, we can face the latter in complete tranquility, focusing on the various demons that will attack us, without ever having a drop in performance, not even in the most challenging ones that will put us against hordes and hordes of enemies.
In short, the developers managed to perform a real miracle, despite the weakened graphics, for bring a game of this size to a console that is not quite up to par. So if you're wondering if this game on Switch is worth buying, then the answer is an absolute yes. Being able to have such a high quality of gameplay on a console that is not exactly performing is really no small feat.
That's all for this Doom Eternal review for Nintendo Swtich. In order not to miss future news and reviews from the videogame universe, keep following the pages of techigames!
8.5 Absolutely recommendedPoints in favor
- Unmatched fluidity
- All the pros of Doom Eternal
Points against
- Limitations of the console
