Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Complete Edition for Nintendo Switch review- 540p Magic

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is one of the biggest and graphically intense games of this generation of systems, so how ow does it run on Nintendo’s admittedly underpowered handheld?

Developer: CD Projekt Red
Publisher: CD Projekt Red
Platforms: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC
Release Date: October 15th, 2019 (Nintendo Switch), May 19th, 2015 (other)

The Nintendo Switch was always going to be at a pretty big disadvantage when it came to getting quality ports of AAA-level games that are on current hardware because it’s just not nearly as powerful as a PS4 or an Xbox One. Still, there have been some pretty amazing ports of games that shouldn’t run on the system. Divinity: Original Sin II, Diablo III, Doom and Skyrim, Dark Souls all are great Switch ports that arguably make it the preferred way to play the game in some instances.

Still, the Nintendo Switch has a somewhat inconsistent record in this regard.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is one of the most acclaimed games of this generation, and some of that is the well-written characters and story; but, a good portion is also just how gorgeous the game can look. The key word here is “can”. While Witcher 3 looks pretty good on a decent TV with a PS4, if you’ve got say a high-end PC or a really good TV with an Xbox One X, it looks absolutely stunning.

The Nintendo Switch would obviously never be able to achieve such graphical heights with The Witcher 3; the hardware just can’t do it. Could it even run the game in a reliably playable mode?

Surprisingly, the answer is yes, The Witcher 3 runs fairly well on Nintendo’s handheld/console hybrid. Not too concerned about how the game looks and just want a functional version of Witcher 3 to play on the go, all DLC included? It’s right here and kind of a miracle it exists and isn’t a buggy trash fire.

The bad news is to get it running, there sure were a lot of sacrifices made. Character models are fairly low resolution, the draw distance is pretty noticeable and there are definitely some noticeable frame rate issues in some places. If you play this version docked or while your significant other is playing another on the TV, it will not hold up favorably.

However, playing it undocked without another version to directly compare it to, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt remains a game that draws you in. The appeal is still there and it still works really well and performs properly when it really needs to (i.e. there are no stuttering or frame rate drops during fights that I encountered).

If there were any issues you had with Witcher 3 that put you off of it, this version won’t change that as they are all still very present. Most notably, the combat is generally considered a tad clunky, and I won’t really disagree there. There’s still the huge drag in the middle to find Geralt’s friend Dandelion, etc.

As with many, many ports to Nintendo Switch, there is the infamous “Switch tax”. Games, regardless of prices on other platforms, tend to be at a premium on the Nintendo Switch, and The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Complete Edition is no exception. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a ton of game for what you are paying. A minimum of 150 hours between the main game and the two meaty DLC expansions included, and obviously having it on the go is an additional value, but it’s also often on sale on other platforms for $20 or less. Essentially, unless you absolutely, positively need to have The Witcher 3 available to play on the go and can’t wait for a sale, this is a super hard one to recommend. Even though it’s a competent port with tons of content, there are so many good big long RPGs on the Nintendo Switch where you will get more bang for your buck. It’s still the worst version by a significant margin and your paying quite a premium for it.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Complete Edition on the Nintendo Switch runs pretty well all things considered. But it’s also got a high price tag for that convenience of portability compared to other versions. No means a bad port, it’s still the worst version you can own.

A copy of this game was provided to App Trigger for the purpose of this review. All scores are ranked out of 10, with .5 increments.
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