Dragon Quest 11 is (almost) the ideal Switch 2 conversion

External factors keep this Switch 2 Edition from being a home run

Dragon Quest 11 on Nintendo Switch 2 is the easiest slam dunk of all time. Back in the early days of the first Switch, during the peak “port-begging” period, a handheld edition of the latest major Dragon Quest adventure was accidentally leaked, and fans threw a hissy fit, feral for official confirmation. Thanks to Square Enix’s efforts to make the classic RPG staple a thing in the west finally starting to pay off, the demand was almost as intense as it was for Persona 5. And when Dragon Quest 11 “S” finally did drop, it was one of the most impressive releases of its kind. Not only did it have tons of new content, DQ 11 S ran shockingly well on the Switch, thanks to its use of Unreal Engine 4 (and some sincere elbow grease). It looked pretty darn good, too! That game was an early look into a window of possibilities for then-current generation games running on handhelds. Possibilities that are, largely, finally here with the Switch 2 and some of its peers.

What’s interesting about evaluating DQ 11 S is that it’s… kind of… natively a Switch game? The original Dragon Quest 11 was released for PlayStation 4 and PC, and when it came time for the Switch version, many adjustments were made under the hood. Rather than just messing around with how the visuals were scaled, the devs made alterations to geometry, lighting, and even made updates to what iteration of Unreal Engine was powering the whole game. So when it came time to bring the new content and whatnot back to other platforms, that version was ported wholesale, rather than adding that content to the previous version. So if you look at, say, DQ 11 S on Steam, you’ll see the visual differences compared to the original release if you put them side-by-side. In some cases, such as the textures and geometry, there’s a bit of a downgrade. But in others, perhaps the most easily spotted being the lighting, there’s a pretty significant improvement. Weird, right?

Here, that’s important because we’re back on the Switch architecture, meaning the software really shines on the Switch 2. So instead of something like Final Fantasy 7 Remake, for which Square Enix had to lock it down to make sure it ran ok and looked good (and it does!), DQ 11 S has a nice optimization toggle that lets you swap between a Quality or Performance mode. And the difference really depends on how you’re playing. For example, if you’re playing on TV mode on a 1080p display, it’s actually suboptimal to choose Quality over Performance. That’s because Quality mode in TV Mode makes the game target 1440p in exchange for a 30 fps frame rate, and Performance mode hits the 1080/60 sweet spot, with a barely noticeable shift in aliasing or lighting. It’s hard to tell because I had to literally squint at the screen to see tiny changes happening in the far distance when I swapped modes. What’s wild is, aside from the more jagged geometry inherent to this version, you’re playing something that’s sharper, more dynamic, faster, and smoother than the original PS4 release. On the Performance mode. Sure, it’s almost a ten year-old game at this point (good lord), but that’s incredible.

If you play on Handheld Mode, there is a more pronounced difference between the optimization options. Quality offers a crisp, clean 1080p with all of the lighting and aliasing from TV Mode intact, of course with the frame rate dropped down to 30 fps. Conversely, Performance mode gives you the 60 fps speed, but does visibly crank the visuals down a bit, with fuzzier textures and significantly less complicated lighting. The UI remains crystal clear, however, and the image is also clear despite the lessened detail and more jagged edges on the characters and their clothing. This seems to imply the resolution still targets 1080p, but the other settings come down. That’s just based on my eyeballs, mind. Still, compared to playing the original version, even with the boost mode on via backwards compatibility, you’re getting a vastly improved image on top of the higher frame rate. Best of both worlds, likely thanks in part to this version being tailor-made for Nintendo’s architecture in the first place!

While that all sounds great, there is an elephant in this room, one that isn’t exactly unique to this game but is a decision-impacting factor nonetheless. Publishers throughout the industry can’t seem to settle on a consistent way to release games on both the Switch and Switch 2 that includes people who might be in the midst of upgrading from one to the other. The reasons likely vary from case to case, but we’ll likely not get to know any time soon, unless Nintendo starts getting chattier about its internal policies and relationships to other companies, retail context, and whatever else impacts this stuff. Either way, Dragon Quest 11 S is not only on a Game-Key Card if you want a physical copy, but there’s also no upgrade path if you already own the Switch version. There isn’t a way to transfer your save either, so if you’d like to bump your DQ 11 experience up a level, perhaps if you just recently bought it during the 40th anniversary sale, you’re gonna have to pony up the full price and start the whole story over. That’s a bummer, and while Square Enix isn’t alone in struggling with this stuff, its willingness to update a bigger chunk of its back catalogue makes it stand out more.

Obviously if you’re playing on PC, you’ll get all of the above and then some. But from a handheld perspective, there’s no way you’ll get a comparable experience when playing Dragon Quest 11 S on the Steam Deck, for example. From the fidelity and performance to the ergonomic experience from the hardware itself, this is probably the best way to play one of Square Enix’s best contemporary RPGs on a handheld. It’s annoying that double-dipping doesn’t come with any conveniences you might find elsewhere; there’s no dancing around that. But as someone who has more than double-dipped on this game already (I even played this bad boy on Stadia), the Switch 2 version is perhaps my new favorite way to play. So if you somehow spent the last decade without enjoying one of the truest modern JRPG classics, here’s a fancy new opportunity.

Dragon Quest 11 S: Echoes of an Elusive Age - Definitive Edition is available now for the Nintendo Switch 2. A code was provided by the publisher for this article.

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