High on Life Switch 2 Review

High on Life Switch 2 Review
Version Reviewed: Nintendo Switch 2

When I first reviewed High on Life on Switch 1, I called it a competent, foul-mouthed shooter that brought surprising personality to Nintendo’s family-friendly platform. At just over $50 AUD, it was easier to recommend than most new releases, even if it was visually compromised. The game’s short but packed campaign, oddball humour, and included High on Knife DLC made it a solid package, though I noted it might have been better served waiting for the next generation of hardware. Fast forward to now, and Squanch Games has delivered exactly that. In the middle of developing High on Life 2, they’ve surprise-dropped a free Switch 2 upgrade that improves visuals, boosts performance, and even adds new control options. It’s the kind of update I didn’t expect, and it’s enough to alter the overall score. Kudos to Squanch for supporting existing players while building toward the sequel. What’s it Like? Grab your gatlian, suit up, and don’t forget knifey as we review High on Life for Nintendo Switch 2.

The premise is delightfully absurd. Aliens invade Earth and discover that humans make the perfect narcotic. You play as an ordinary protagonist who stumbles into the role of bounty hunter, tasked with taking down cartel leaders and saving humanity. Beneath the constant absurdity, there is a thread of genuine intrigue, and the script leans heavily on surreal, self-aware humour. The talking guns are the star attraction. Each has its own personality, voice, and style of banter that follows you through every encounter. At their best, they deliver sharp, unexpected lines that feel perfectly timed. At their weakest, the dialogue can fall back on an endless stream of swearing that loses impact after a while. Thankfully, there is an option in the settings to control how chatty they are, which helps balance the comedy with the action.

The gunplay itself is more solid than you might expect. On the surface, it is a familiar first-person shooter, but the creative weapon abilities and movement options give it a distinct flavour. Alternate fire modes keep encounters varied, while your knife doubles as both a weapon and a traversal tool, letting you whip to ledges or swing past incoming attacks. Boss battles stand out as the highlights, each one introducing new mechanics that force you to rethink your strategy. There are stretches where the game slows down for exploration or exposition, which can interrupt the pace, but when the action flows, it delivers a surprisingly tight combat loop.

The most striking upgrade comes in the visuals. Character models now carry far more detail, from sharper facial features to cleaner animations that better sell the game’s offbeat humour. Environments benefit too, with higher resolution textures and improved VFX that give alien worlds more depth and colour. What once looked soft and washed out on Switch 1 now feels sharper and more defined, which makes a big difference in a game that leans so heavily on visual gags and environmental storytelling. Performance targets 30 frames per second across both handheld and docked play. It is not flawless, and handheld mode tends to dip a little more often, but the overall experience is still a huge leap forward compared to the Switch 1 release. Docked play is the most stable, reaching up to 1080p with noticeably cleaner image quality that pairs nicely with the upgraded textures. On top of that, Joy-Con 2 support introduces a mouse-style aiming option. It takes a moment to adjust, but once you do, it adds a welcome layer of precision that pairs well with the game’s fast-paced gunplay. The loading barriers are also now removed in the Switch 2 version, for example, the sewer doors when heading into the slums are now a seamless transition instead of the player waiting until they open. If you want to see the technical breakdown in action, be sure to check out our full performance video on the channel, where we put both versions side by side.

For my bounty hunters looking into accessibility, I’m pleased to report that there are a myriad of options to accommodate players. There are plenty of thoughtful additions like Auto Firing, Aim Assist, Speaking Indicators, Subtitles UI and Text sizing options, Legible text options, Camera Motion and Colour correction. It’s so great to see these sorts of options on a release like this, and kudos to the Squanch Games team for adding them.

At the time of writing, the Switch 2 upgrade is only available in North America. Here in Australia, I had to jump through a few hoops to access it, but I expect that rollout will widen soon. The upgrade itself is completely free for existing owners, and that alone makes Squanch Games the MVPs here. This is not a barebones patch either. Between the massive visual overhaul, improved performance, and added features like Joy-Con 2 mouse-style aiming, it feels closer to a remaster than a simple upgrade. For those who do not already own the game, High on Life can now be purchased directly as a Switch 2 release. While I am still waiting on official pricing for the local storefront, the North American version is listed at the same price as the original Switch 1 release. That makes it one of the more affordable Switch 2 games currently available, and the added polish makes it far easier to recommend today than when it first arrived. Considering the eight-hour campaign, side content, and the included High on Knife DLC, it offers a strong amount of content for the price point.

While the offbeat humour can still be grating at times, I enjoyed High on Life much more on my second run. When the jokes land, they really land, and when they do not, they tend to drone on. The difference this time is that the stronger visuals, smoother performance, and added control options make it easier to focus on what the game does best. The gunplay is consistently fun, the puzzles are clever without ever being punishing, and the free upgrade makes it hard to beat on the value front. With the included High on Knife DLC, you are getting a sizeable and entertaining package at a price that undercuts most new releases. High on Life for Nintendo Switch 2 is a fantastic shooter, and this upgrade finally delivers the version the game deserves on Nintendo’s new hardware.

So, What’s It Like? High on Life is like Rick and Morty, crossed with a first-person shooter.

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