Heretic + Hexen Switch Review

Heretic + Hexen Switch Review
Version Reviewed: Nintendo Switch 

Nightdive Studios continues its mission to keep gaming history alive with a return to one of the most atmospheric FPS franchises of the 90s. Heretic and Hexen carved out their own identity alongside Doom by trading sci-fi demons for dark fantasy, magic, and twisted worlds ruled by the Serpent Riders. Decades later, I’m experiencing them in a whole new way, both as a fan who once played them long ago, and as someone coming to them fresh after my memory loss. This new package not only restores the originals in pristine form, it also adds brand-new chapters built exclusively for this release, offering something for seasoned players and curious newcomers alike. What’s it Like? Wield your staff, grab a shield, and prepare to get medieval as we review Heretic + Hexen on Nintendo Switch.

For those who are young enough not to have knee and back pain, Heretic and Hexen were kind of like the cousins of Doom. While neither hit the sales heights like Doom, both Hexen and Heretic did well for the time, with Hexen selling enough copies to warrant an expansion pack.

Heretic arrived in 1994 as a fantasy-themed first-person shooter, swapping sci-fi demons for gothic magic and cursed landscapes. Playing as the elf hero Corvus, you take up enchanted weapons and mystical items to fight the first of the Serpent Riders. Its inventory system and ability to look up and down made it stand out from its contemporaries, and its fast-paced run-and-gun action gave it a clear, addictive rhythm. It followed Dooms’ formula closely, having a very run-and-gun vibe while searching for coloured keys to progress through the campaign.

Hexen followed in 1995 with a much darker tone and a heavier emphasis on exploration. Set in the world of Cronos, it pits you against another Serpent Rider, Korax. This time, you choose one of three classes: Fighter, Cleric, or Mage, and each has unique weapons and abilities. Hexen’s hub-based level structure and environmental puzzles slowed the pace down but deepened the gameplay by encouraging backtracking and careful observation alongside combat. Hexen felt like a huge shift in playstyle, more Eye of the Beholder than Doom, but that Departure also gave Hexen its own identity.

This remaster bundles both titles together in a huge slice of 90s dark fantasy shooter history. You get Heretic: Shadow of the Serpent Riders, Hexen: Beyond Heretic, and its expansion Deathkings of the Dark Citadel, plus two all-new episodes created in collaboration between id Software veterans and Nightdive Studios. Across both games, there are a whopping 117 campaign maps and 120 deathmatch arenas, playable solo or in online cross-platform and local split-screen deathmatch and co-op modes.

Heretic immediately hooked me with its familiar Doom-like rhythm that’s frantic, fluid, and endlessly satisfying. I spent most of my time sprinting through gothic corridors, blasting away without much pause, only occasionally getting turned around in the more maze-like maps. The combat has that classic 90s snap to it, and while I often forgot about the inventory system in the early levels, it became a lifeline in the later stages when healing items were the difference between victory and a reload.

Switching to Hexen was a shock to the system. Movement was still fast, but the flow changed completely. I started as the Warrior, hacking through enemies with an axe before upgrading to weapons like a hammer that hurled charged projectiles and a sword that spat green energy blasts. I experimented with the spellcaster class for a while, which was fun in its own right, but ultimately came back to the raw power of melee. Hexen’s structure is more about clever play than constant shooting, and it tripped me up early, even on the first level. The bell tower puzzle left me scratching my head until I realised this wasn’t a game that would simply hand me the next fight.

Both games carry that unapologetic 90s difficulty, and that makes a victory feel earned. Nightdive’s addition of a modern map system, similar to what they implemented in Dark Forces and Doom, is a huge help, but make no mistake, these campaigns won’t hold your hand. What’s remarkable is how Nightdive has preserved the core of each game while adding quality-of-life options to make them accessible today.

Nightdive’s remaster work is immediately visible in sharper visuals, widescreen support, smooth performance, and a modernised control scheme that just feels natural on the Switch. Quality-of-life additions like quick-save and refined HUD scaling make these once-PC-only experiences much more approachable today. The real treasure, though, is the Raven Vault. This extensive archive includes concept art, sprite sheets, early menu designs, and original development documents from both Heretic and Hexen.

It’s the sort of behind-the-scenes content most players would never have seen back in the 90s, and it’s presented here with the same care we saw in Nightdive’s sublime Dark Forces remaster. It’s another massive win for game preservation, and work like this ensures these classics are remembered for the artistry and thought that went into making them. Nightdive clearly respects the source material and handles it with an expertise that makes this release feel definitive.

The new visual polish brings Heretic + Hexen into sharper focus without losing their 90s character. Playing on Switch, the upgraded textures and widescreen support make environments feel cleaner and more defined. I switched back to the original visuals a few times for curiosity’s sake, but the remastered sharpness quickly became my default as it’s the clearest these worlds have ever looked. The only thing Switch owners miss out on is full 4K resolution, since this release is built with the Switch 1 in mind.

It’s not a dealbreaker by any means, but it’s hard not to hope for a future Switch 2 update that takes advantage of higher resolutions. Even without that, both games retain their strong dark gothic feel with oppressive cathedrals, cursed landscapes, and dark corridors that make them feel worlds apart from the Doom engine’s more industrial and sci-fi settings. The aesthetic is as distinctive now as it was three decades ago, and Nightdive’s work ensures it shines on modern screens.

This remaster debuts a completely new, enhanced soundtrack from composer Andrew Hulshult, whose work has breathed fresh life into the world of Heretic + Hexen. Known for his heavy, atmospheric scores in modern retro shooters, Hulshult has taken the original’s dark, brooding tone and elevated it with richer instrumentation, deeper bass, and a cinematic polish. The result keeps the spirit of the classic intact while making it feel sharper, more powerful, and more immersive.

For my Warriors and Clerics looking into accessibility options, there are plenty of options to make your time with Heretic + Hexen more comfortable. From high contrast text, reducing red textures, transparent projectiles, text-to-speech, speech-to-text, rebind everything, as well as customising your display scalability… there’s nearly an option for everything. At just under $23 AUD, Heretic + Hexen offer exceptional value for fans of the game, and even newcomers looking to go a bit old-school. This is the complete and definitive package, lovingly put together in a way that only Nightdive Studios seems to know how. Heretic + Hexen on the Nintendo Switch is yet another superb effort in bringing these classic games to a new generation of gamers.

So, What’s it Like? Heretic + Hexen is like Doom 1 + 2, crossed with Dungeons and Dragons.

Heretic + Hexen package is a What’s It Like Certified Exceptional game.

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