Apex Legends Switch 2 Review

Apex Legends Switch 2 Review
Version Reviewed: Nintendo Switch 2

Apex Legends was originally EA’s answer to Fortnite, dropping in 2019 to positive critical reception. Switch owners would later get Apex Legends to play in 2021, which failed to receive the same attention due to poor optimisation, terrible framerates, and lacklustre graphics. I recently covered how Apex Legends ran on the Switch 2, noting a significant improvement in performance, but EA and Respawn Entertainment decided to go one better and create a native Switch 2 version for us to play. I’m going to drop in hot to see how things have improved, and to find out if this is the Apex version of the game. What’s it Like? Follow your jump-master, lock and load, and keep your head on a swivel as we review Apex Legends for Nintendo Switch 2.

For the uninitiated, Apex Legends is a first-person battle royale that has fast and fluid traversal in a similar vein to Respawn’s other leading franchise, Titanfall. Players will drop in groups of 2 or 3, loot supplies, and duke it out in an arena where a ring constantly shrinks, ultimately leading you into a final battle. Players will work up ranks, unlocking Apex Packs, which are essentially loot crates that offer unique cosmetic customisations. There are 27 Legends (or heroes) in the game that you can pick from when starting a match that fall under specific role archetypes, and all have their own unique abilities. Pathfinder, for example, is a friendly robot who has a grappling hook, whilst Bangalore is a soldier who can deploy smoke, and also an air strike as her ultimate ability. This class and role makeup doesn’t restrict your party in a match, as all characters can revive each other, but a more varied group makeup can help you make the most of your team, and potentially give you the upper hand in battle. One round, we had a particular support character who didn’t have to stay idle while reviving us, and she was able to quickly revive us while engaging the enemy, allowing us to get back on our feet and join the fray faster. Another round saw a character deploy a zipline to high ground that allowed us to move closer to the safe zone faster. It’s the dynamic team makeup that makes each round interesting, and I was excited when I had a new character in my team that I hadn’t seen before, which somehow changed our playstyle each time. New or free players have a more limited selection of legends, but a bit more on that later.

The game features a fantastic ping system to counter the lack of solo play, allowing you to tap R to highlight enemies, weapons, and points of interest, and I found that most players in Apex Legends rely heavily on this system which makes playing with randoms much more enjoyable, especially for introverts like me who don’t feel comfortable on open comms. The ease of the communication system became apparent when I joined a random group who were much more experienced than I was. They highlighted weapons and upgrades I should grab, as well as pointing out enemy locations and our preferred direction of travel. Through many battles, we persevered and took the win, and while the Ping system is now featured in many online shooters, it was Apex Legends that revolutionised this system in 2019. The only communication issue I found is that if someone sends you a friend request, the game seems to constantly spam you until you accept or decline it. There were many times I was trying to open Apex packs while friend requests would pop up, I would press B to hide them, only for them to reappear literally a second later. This would happen 5 or 6 times, and I’m sure it’s a minor UI bug that should be patched out soon.

With the Switch 2 version comes a complete visual overhaul, and Apex Legends once again shows off the potential of the handheld system. It features significantly higher detailed character models, lighting effects, and render distance. The environments feature higher detailed lush foliage, better water effects, and shading. Combat is a spectacle of bullets, tracers, and debris and is exciting and intense, especially the closer you get to the end of the match as the desperation and intensity increase. All of this comes with stellar sound design, like hearing the echoes of combat in the distance or being deafened by it when close, as well as the communication system allowing the banter between your teammates. It’s all very well done. With all the upgraded bells and whistles comes the question: How does it all perform? Apex Legends tends to run close to 60 FPS even when the action gets heavy, flicking between the 50-60 fps mark for the duration. Due to the improved performance, I never felt like I was at a disadvantage like when I played the Switch 1 version. Did the framerate help me get better at the game? No, but it was nice to be outmatched on a more even playing field. The performance and visuals hold strong in both handheld and docked modes, remaining consistent throughout some solid testing sessions. While I was waiting for an appointment, I played tethered to my mobile hotspot and enjoyed some great rounds of Apex while taking advantage of the gyro controls, which I normally dislike. Fans of the Switch 2’s mouse joycons can also take advantage of a bit more precision, and they worked well, mimicking a PC type setup. Apex Legends on Switch 2 also now features crossplay, and with it enabled, there’s a queue time of about 2-3 minutes between matches, making the game feel a bit more rapid fire than its Switch 1 counterpart. Unfortunately, with all these bells and whistles comes a hefty install size, weighing in at a whopping 78 gigabytes, even larger than WWE2k25, which held the crown on my Switch 2 for the most space-hungry title.

As always, with free-to-play games, just how free to play is it? Well, there’s only a handful of heroes free users can use without buying the Battlepass, which comes in a few different forms. There’s a premium pass which can be purchased for 950 Apex coins, which will set you back $13 AUD, or if you don’t have Apex coins you can buy the Ultimate Pass for $13 AUD which comes with some additional cosmetics and unlocks, and then there’s the Ultimate+ pass for ust under $26 AUD which has legendary skins, some additional instant rewards, and allows you to play as all legends for the duration. Legends can be unlocked with earned or purchased currency permanently, but obviously, the earned currency is going to take you a fair bit longer than just outright purchasing. These prices are fairly in line for the most part with other free-to-play games, and one could argue that, as each legend has different abilities, the monetisation could be perceived as going beyond cosmetic only. That said, as a newcomer to the series, I found the selection of available heroes off the bat to be just fine and didn’t feel like any one Legend was more overpowered than the next. With every free-to-play game I try, I often like to buy the battle pass to support them, and despite slow progress, I didn’t regret my purchase.

For my legends looking into accessibility, I’m pleased to report that there are a myriad of gameplay and accessibility options such as colourblind mode, voice to text, text to chat, reducing screen shake, changing FOV and adjusting sensitivities. As always, I recommend further research into finding out whether Apex Legends suits your needs.

When announced at the latest Nintendo Direct, Apex Legends Switch 2 Edition felt like a passing curiosity for me. But after playing the game fairly solidly since launch, I’m so pleasantly surprised with just how good Apex Legends is. The gameplay is fun and exciting, the ping and communications system means there are no issues playing without voice chat and with randoms, and the community seems pretty solid, especially with crossplay enabled. The whopping 78 gig install is a big ask, especially for gamers with limited space, but those who are looking for an action-packed, battle royale shooter are going to be in for a great time. Apex Legends is a highly polished, fast-paced, community-centric shooter, and I can’t wait to drop in again.

So, What’s it Like? Apex Legends is like Titanfall crossed with Fortnite.

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