Overwatch (Switch) – Review

It has already been three years since Overwatch was released on Xbox One and PlayStation 4 and it was clear that the game was properly adapted for console play. With Paladins, the Overwatch clone, being released for Nintendo Switch, it was only a matter of time before Blizzard followed suit and released their competitive shooter on Nintendo’s platform as well. The day has finally arrived for us to kick ass, chew bubblegum and get our hands on a load of loot boxes.

Story

When playing the game, you’ll find no story value in Overwatch. There is a small cinematic at the beginning of the game, and that’s all you’re going to get. If you truly wish to know about the lore and the different characters, you’ll have to direct yourself to the official website to learn more. It’s quite normal for a competitive shooter to be without any story, so it’s not really missed.

Graphics

Graphically Overwatch looks a lot less detailed than on the PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Nonetheless, thanks to the comical style of the game, it’s not really that noticeable that the graphical prowess has been diminished to properly run on the Nintendo Switch. The game runs smoothly and there aren’t any frame drops, which is very important for a competitive shooter. It’s clear that the developers opted for a small cutback in graphical quality in order to make sure that the users wouldn’t suffer from frame drops and latency issues. There are rendering issues when the game shows you the play of the game. More than often characters don’t render and you’re looking at someone shooting thin air in this small recap after the match.

Sound

The music in Overwatch is rather mild and timid and only comes to the foreground when the situation desires it. When playing an actual match, you’ll hardly notice what is going on in the background, which is certainly a plus, as you’re able to focus on the game as much as possible. The different characters have a few voiced lines, which are sometimes in the native tongue of the character, who is screaming their battle cry or one-liner.

Gameplay

Overwatch is a competitive online shooter that’s based on team play. The game will pit you together under different circumstances, where you have to attack or defend targets, or complete/obstruct escort missions in order to win. The game is presented in a first-person format and is pretty much a comical take on other online shooters such as Call of Duty. While this comparison might not be completely correct, it’s hard to compare the game, as others in the genre are less known, such as Paladins, the free-to-play clone, or Battleborn which failed miserably to garner enough attention after its initial release.

Certain changes have been made compared to when we took a look at the Xbox One version. Now, before you start a match, you’ll have to pick the role you wish to play, which is certainly a plus. When you find a match, you can only pick a character from the role you picked, so the team balance remains intact. People can still leave as they please, but when having predetermined roles available, players will be more motivated to stay. It’s clear however that the Switch release isn’t getting as much attention as the initial next-generation console releases, as waiting in the queue can take quite some time. More than once we found ourselves waiting longer than five minutes in order to find a match, and after each completed match, we had to go through this process again. This is certainly somewhat annoying if you wish to play a few short matches online, but you spend equally as much time in the queues.

Handling the game is pretty much the same as the other console versions, but the Switch also has gyroscopic controls. This means that you can move your Switch around in handheld mode to adjust your aim. There is an auto-aim also available, but still, you’ll have to enjoy playing like this to opt for this scheme. You can also choose to play in gyroscopic mode with the Joy-Cons detached or with a pro controller, but these feel a lot clumsier. Nonetheless, it’s a fun inclusion and shows that this release wasn’t a simple port.

Conclusion

The Switch version of Overwatch is a great addition to the platform’s library of games. The game runs smoothly on the handheld system and plays well both in handheld and docked mode. It’s clear that the game hasn’t been directly ported from the PC or the other console versions as it has been adjusted to run smoothly without any frame drops and the new mode of controlling the game is a fun twist. If you haven’t played the game yet, the Switch version is certainly recommended if you lack any other platforms or don’t have a decent gaming PC.

Ibuki

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Aspiring ninja.

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