Nintendo warns ‘certain Switch games’ won’t run on Switch 2, but what does it mean?
Switch 2 plays physical and digital Switch games, but it won’t have 100% support
Nintendo has reiterated that Switch 2 will be backwards compatible with existing Switch games, but warned that not every game will be fully playable on its new console.
At the end of its announce trailer showing Switch 2 for the first time, Nintendo showed a message that said Switch 2 “plays Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive games, as well as Nintendo Switch games”.
It then clarifies that this isn’t purely restricted to physical game cartridges, adding: “Nintendo Switch 2 plays both physical and digital Nintendo Switch games”.
However, it also adds that compatibility isn’t 100%, with a warning: “Certain Nintendo Switch games may not be supported on or fully compatible with Nintendo Switch 2.”
While this may initially ring alarm bells with players, the warning could simply refer to games that would be impossible to play on Switch 2 due to changes in the hardware.
For example, the Labo series of games on Switch requires the player to insert the Switch and its Joy-Cons into various cardboard creations. Since Switch 2 and its Joy-Cons are a different shape to their predecessors, it’s likely that Labo won’t work on Switch 2.
It’s also not yet clear if Switch 2’s Joy-Cons retain the infra-red camera feature found on the Switch’s right Joy-Con. If not, those games wouldn’t work on Switch 2 (unless it supports wireless connection of Switch Joy-Cons).
Other games that use bespoke peripherals may also be incompatible with Switch 2, depending on how they connect to the console, though details on this will likely be confirmed at a later date.
Similar exclusions have appeared on previous consoles with backwards compatibility support. For example, while Xbox Series X/S can play practically any Xbox One game, it doesn’t support Xbox One games that require the Kinect sensor, because Series X/S doesn’t support the peripheral.
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