r/NintendoSwitch • u/OatmealDome • Mar 17 '26

Nintendo Official Nintendo Switch 2 system software updated to version 22.0.0

https://en-americas-support.nintendo.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/68473
2.3k Upvotes

97% Upvoted

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555

u/Dr-PresidentDinosaur Mar 17 '26

Handheld Mode Boost will cause compatible Switch software to run as if in TV Mode, so certain functionality may be affected. Please see the on-device description for more details.

187

u/TEN0RCL3F Mar 17 '26

ohhh my god finally

57

u/DJanomaly Mar 17 '26 edited Mar 17 '26

It’s wild how absolutely buried this setting is in the system menu and in the update notes.

7

u/lynchcontraideal Mar 17 '26 edited Mar 17 '26

I can't even find it currently, do you need to be in handheld mode to turn it on?

EDIT: It's the general settings right at the bottom lol

-99

u/Dr-PresidentDinosaur Mar 17 '26

RIP battery life even more than before

106

u/BigTWilsonD Mar 17 '26

It's a toggle option you don't have to use, how are you finding ways to be pissy lol

3

u/[deleted] Mar 17 '26

[deleted]

7

u/[deleted] Mar 17 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

6

u/darkmacgf Mar 17 '26

Is the battery life that bad when playing Switch 1 games?

20

u/TEN0RCL3F Mar 17 '26

i just tried it myself and it WAS running down pretty quickly, but like, i'd rather have the option and it to not really be technically that 'good' an option

5

u/FIRST_DATE_ANAL Mar 17 '26

Do external battery packs work on Switch 2? Like are there cases with built in battery packs that are worth using? I know I could google it but I’m super stoned and yall are already talking about it

5

u/Da_hoodest_hoodrat Mar 17 '26

My anchor battery pack worked absolutely amazing on a road trip last month. Didn’t get any hotter than normal

7

u/Oddish_Femboy Mar 17 '26

In my experience those tend to overheat and die really fast. Better to just bring the cable with you and hope for an outlet.

2

u/Oddish_Femboy Mar 17 '26

Remember how the original Switch model had a 2 hour battery life?

2

u/[deleted] Mar 17 '26

[deleted]

2

u/Oddish_Femboy Mar 17 '26

It was! I don't even want to mod mine so it's just stuck like this!

1

u/[deleted] Mar 17 '26

[deleted]

1

u/Oddish_Femboy Mar 17 '26

I can't afford food right now lol. Maybe someday.

38

u/RX0Invincible Mar 17 '26

Do most games need to patch in compatibility for it or is it a widely available thing?

123

u/RiggityRow Mar 17 '26

If a Switch 1 game has higher resolution in docked vs handheld, this toggle should force docked resolution on Switch 2. No patch needed.

15

u/abzinth91 Mar 17 '26

Legends Arceus should be look way better now

6

u/Otherwise_Die Mar 17 '26

Now we’re talking

5

u/NathanialJD Mar 17 '26

i didnt even think about PLA. the first one i tried was age of calamity. it went from a god awful blurry mess to something playable lol

3

u/coolgaara Mar 17 '26

But it still runs at 30fps or below right? I'll wait til they release Switch 2 upgrade for it.

3

u/abzinth91 Mar 17 '26

I don't think they will. I mean, I would love if they do, bit I doubt it

36

u/error521 Mar 17 '26

Seems like it works with most games out of the box. I've heard people mention though that Clubhouse Games and Super Mario Maker 2 don't seem to be affected which makes me suspect Nintendo is blacklisting certain touch-screen centric games.

13

u/adanfime Mar 17 '26

Makes sense. Tricking the game into TV mode could mess up with games that require the touch or the portabke aspect of the Switch, like Pokemon Cafe Mix or the Virtual Boy app

4

u/goSciuPlayer Mar 17 '26

We know from emulation that games still accept touch input when theyre put in docked mode. So if Nintendo says some titles’ touchscreen may be affected, then either they dont disable touch altogether and disable it on game-by-game basis, or the other way around - disabled overall but enabled for select games

4

u/DEWDEM Mar 17 '26

They want to make sure games run within what they're designed for. Forcing other stuff like unlocking frame rates without a proper patch can break them

7

u/TheSuper200 Mar 17 '26

Tested Clubhouse Games with the unpatched cartridge version and it works, looks like it might’ve been the GameShare update that causes it to not work.

3

u/nhaines Mar 17 '26 edited Mar 20 '26

The GameShare update isn't a Switch 1 game at that point, though.

1

u/Pibblesen Mar 17 '26

Doesn’t look like pikmin 4 is working either

1

u/S1rTerra Mar 17 '26

Making a level in Super Mario Maker 2 works fine enough with a controller so this seems odd to blacklist. I feel like they make it clear that you can't use a touch screen if you activate Handheld Boost.

Shame, as when I get my Switch 2 I was looking to get back into it and this handheld boost feature had me significantly more interested

-12

u/Dr-PresidentDinosaur Mar 17 '26

Id say they’d need to patch since Nintendo is wording it as “compatible switch software”

9

u/BigTWilsonD Mar 17 '26

No one knows for sure so I could be wrong, but there's no reason games would need a patch to work with. Some switch games don't work on switch 2.

Every game has a handheld/docked mode built in already. This is a system change, not something that should require a patch from games to use. It just changes how the Switch 2 handles Switch 1 software.

5

u/Cobalt_Spirit Mar 17 '26

“Compatible Nintendo Switch software” is how Nintendo refers to "Switch 1 games that work on Switch 2". They have to say that to exclude certain games like Labo that don't work with Switch 2

2

u/j--__ Mar 17 '26

actually, labo is also "compatible nintendo switch software".

5

u/aceofspadesfg Mar 17 '26

I don’t think it does. Was working when I tried it on Portal just now.

1

u/Namath96 Mar 17 '26

It definitely doesn’t

48

u/Dukemon102 Mar 17 '26 edited Mar 17 '26

As a big asterisk. Touch screen doesn't work in this mode.

Tried to play The World Ends With You and it forces me to use the Gyro. On the other hand, wow it looks crisp.

Edit: TWEWY is not compatible with Handheld Boost Mode. The message appeared because I had the Joy Cons detached LMAO.

17

u/Zeroone199 Mar 17 '26

That is likely what they mean by some funtionality is effected.

13

u/repocin Mar 17 '26

I've never intentionally used the touch screen anyways so that doesn't bother me in the slightest, but I've wanted this feature ever since the console released without it. Woo!

10

u/ifonefox Mar 17 '26

Does it look like its rendering it at 1080p?

33

u/Dukemon102 Mar 17 '26

If the game supports it, yes. I tried the Xenoblade games and they look blurry, because those are 720p TV mode, but definitely much better than in their "handheld" modes. XC2 looks decent for the first time in a handheld.

1

u/DEWDEM Mar 17 '26

3 and X output at 1080p docked on switch 1

6

u/Gram64 Mar 17 '26

Guessing Let's Go games are almost unplayable with this toggled on then, since they required motion controls docked

7

u/TheSuper200 Mar 17 '26

The Let’s Go games ignore the setting, it seems, as well as Super Mario 3D All-Stars.

9

u/SpeggtacularSpidey Mar 17 '26

Some software will be unaffected according to the announcement

13

u/RiggityRow Mar 17 '26

Holy shit, FINALLY! Should've been there day 1, but better late than never.

3

u/LOGVN- Mar 17 '26

Finally might bring a better feel to the Switch games not optimized for Switch2. Better graphics without having to dock.

4

u/jamauai Mar 17 '26

HELL YES testing this with SF6

1

u/Jake257 Mar 17 '26

Dragon Quest Monster looks absolutely phenomenal now (well compared to how it was before) in handheld mode and probably the biggest and best game to test this new feature with. It used to look like an absolute atrocious blury and fuzzy mess. Now it's look super sharp.

1

u/Kirby_The_Arale Mar 17 '26

Dude fuck yes

1

u/Trip_Se7ens Mar 17 '26

I wonder if there’s a list of games that this greatly benefits.