Doom for the Switch

[VideoGameCritic]

I was thinking about getting Doom for the Switch. I enjoyed the PS4 game but hated how you needed to be online, even to play single-player.

Well it turns out the Switch version requires an one-hour download just to play. So much for getting this game on physical media. Pass!

[Atariboy]

Are you sure that you need this patch for single player? I may be mixing games up, but I thought that the patch just enabled multiplayer mode with single player entirely on the cartridge and ready to go.

Either way, these large day 1 patches have sadly been a problem and likely will continue to be one for many of these high profile 3rd party releases, thanks to the higher media cost on the Switch

And unlike on the competition, the internal memory of the Switch is modest. And the expandable media to boost that costs a small fortune for the larger card sizes, which are still smaller than probably any HDD in production today. So even for those happy with digital, it's going to become a problem for many people.

I love that it's getting some solid support though. And maybe as media cost go down, this will start to become less commonplace for the bigger 3rd party releases.

[ESauce]

Yeah i think the patch is just for multiplayer. I’m pretty sure I played single player without downloading it (but not positive because I did at some point download the patch to try the multiplayer)

[VideoGameCritic]

It's possible that Brent downloaded the patch by default, not realizing it was for multiplayer.

If it's true that the single player mode can be played without downloading anything, I might be interested in buying this. Maybe somebody can verify.

Unfortunately, game companies don't tend to be forthcoming about this kind of stuff - they want you to download EVERYTHING.

[Retro STrife]

Ha, when I first saw this topic title - "doom for the Switch" - I misread it, thinking it was going to be the Critic telling us why the Switch is doomed. Close call...

As for the game... Another downside - the Game Informer review noted that the graphics in the Switch version are a noticeable step-down from the PS4 version, due to the Switch not having the same power. On a positive note - I think I recall the review saying that it was otherwise pretty identical to the PS4 version in the gameplay department.

[Atariboy]

For what it's worth, I searched and found several articles from last Fall from mainstream gaming news sites that said what I thought I had read. So I believe you'll be safe.

[ESauce]

Ha, when I first saw this topic title - "doom for the Switch" - I misread it, thinking it was going to be the Critic telling us why the Switch is doomed. Close call...

As for the game... Another downside - the Game Informer review noted that the graphics in the Switch version are a noticeable step-down from the PS4 version, due to the Switch not having the same power. On a positive note - I think I recall the review saying that it was otherwise pretty identical to the PS4 version in the gameplay department.

I didn’t play the PS4 version to compare but the graphics on the Switch version are good. The game performs well and at no point did the graphics hinder my enjoyment of it. People get too hung up on minor technical details that don’t affect the game at all.

[Retro STrife]

I didn’t play the PS4 version to compare but the graphics on the Switch version are good. The game performs well and at no point did the graphics hinder my enjoyment of it. People get too hung up on minor technical details that don’t affect the game at all.

Agreed. The Game Informer review basically said the same thing - the graphics were good on the Switch, just noticeably down from the PS4, but that otherwise the game played the same. So, certainly no reason to avoid the Switch version. Plus, it noted that the downgrade was made up for by being able to play Doom on the go. But when all other things are equal, and you own multiple systems and are deciding between which version to buy, I think things like graphics, online gameplay, etc. are worth considering.

For the specifics, this is an excerpt of the quote from GI's review:

To get this game up and running, the teams had to make some clear performance concessions. The framerate is 30 frames per second (compared to 60 in other versions), and the resolution supposedly tops out at 720p, though I have a hard time believing the game even reaches that modest crest. Textures are noticeably muddy nearly everywhere you go, and though motion blur while traversing attempts to mask these shoddy graphics, they stand out like demon blood splattered against the sterile science lab walls. The drop in graphical fidelity becomes even more pronounced when playing on your TV while the Switch is docked, but this is the understandable price you pay for getting a cutting-edge game on a portable console.

If you can look past the technical inferiorities, Doom offers the same great single-player campaign that came to the PS4, Xbox One, and PC last year. ... Technical limitations make the Switch version the worst way to experience id’s fantastic Doom reboot, but the stellar campaign is still there underneath the layers of muddy textures and resolution dips. Despite its less attractive veneer, being able to play such a demanding game on the go is still a strong selling point.

http://www.gameinformer.com/games/doom/ ... to-go.aspx
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[ptdebate]

From 60fps to 30fps is a huge difference, but like with all the other differences, if you haven't played the other versions it won't make any difference to you.

[ESauce]

From 60fps to 30fps is a huge difference, but like with all the other differences, if you haven't played the other versions it won't make any difference to you.

Maybe this is just me, but not once in my life have a played a game and thought, thank god this is 60fps. I don’t know that I could tell between 30 and 60 even if they were displayed next to each other.

But I agree that if you’re deciding on a version to get then you take every little thing into account. For me the portability is worth a lot more than the graphics, but if portability doesn’t matter for you then there’s really no reason to get the Switch version.