There is something in store for Nintendo players. Yes, that’s right. If you’re a Nintendo player, not only will you be able to save the world. But you will also be able to shout at strangers online and throw grenades. So, it took 13 years, but Call of Duty is finally returning to a Nintendo console.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 launches tomorrow for the Nintendo Switch 2. The game arrives on the same day as the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S and PC versions. Activision has also confirmed crossplay between Switch 2 and the other platforms. Exciting times, I tell you.
The last main Call of Duty game released on Nintendo hardware was Call of Duty: Ghosts in 2013. And if you had one, you know that game arrived on the Wii U. A console that deserved more love but also had a controller large enough to serve lunch on.
Since then, Call of Duty has continued appearing on almost everything except Nintendo. There have been yearly releases, several reboots and enough downloadable content to occupy an entire hard drive. Sadly for Nintendo players, they had to watch from a distance. But the wait is finally over, and that’s all that matters, right?
But the return does come with a rather obvious question. How well will one of gaming’s biggest shooters run on a handheld console?
Early impressions have been more positive than I expected. IGN played the Switch 2 version during Gamescom and found that the frame rate remained steady, even though the visuals could not match those of the more powerful consoles.
This probably sounds fair, because nobody should expect the Switch 2 version to look exactly like the game running on an expensive PC that contains enough lights to guide aircraft. Nintendo’s console offers something different, which we can all appreciate. You can play Modern Warfare 4 on the television and then continue in handheld mode when someone else decides they would like to use the screen.
The campaign reportedly runs at 30 frames per second on Switch 2. Now, I agree that competitive players may prefer a faster performance, especially in a game where being a second too slow usually results in watching somebody else celebrate. But for those who mainly want the campaign and the freedom to play away from the television, the compromise may be worth it.
The other thing is that this is a native Switch 2 version. It does not stream the game from a distant server while your internet connection decides whether you deserve to see the next frame. The console actually runs it, which is amazing.
Digital Legends helped bring the game to Nintendo hardware. The studio has experience working on mobile games and previously supported titles such as Call of Duty: Mobile, Warzone and recent Black Ops releases. So Activision clearly knew what they were doing. But the bigger question is whether Nintendo players still care.
I mean, thirteen years is a long time and a lot has happened since then. During that time, Nintendo built an audience around games such as Animal Crossing, Splatoon, Mario Kart and The Legend of Zelda. Those players haven’t spent their time brooding over Captain Price. But one thing is for sure.
The Switch audience is enormous. So a portable Call of Duty could attract players who already own the game elsewhere, as well as those who simply prefer Nintendo’s hardware.
There is also something amusing about playing one of gaming’s loudest military shooters on the same console that allows you to race as Mario and decorate a peaceful island. You could water flowers and blast somebody to hell, all in the same day. But of course, the Switch 2 version must prove that portability is worth whatever visual and performance compromises it makes.
Crossplay also means Nintendo players will compete against people using more powerful hardware, although I doubt anyone will accept “I was playing in handheld mode” as an excuse for losing.
Still, Call of Duty returning to Nintendo feels important. It suggests that Switch 2 may receive more large third-party games instead of watching them pass by.
Nintendo players have waited 13 years to return to the battlefield.
Let’s hope they remembered to reload.
