Calum Petrie reviews Metro Redux on Nintendo Switch…
Many big games have been receiving ports to the Nintendo Switch; games such as The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Alien Isolation and DOOM (2016) have all been received well. The issues when porting have usually been sacrifices to performance and visuals to compress the current gen huge file sizes and carry them to the Nintendo hybrid console. Now 4A Games have brought their fantastic Metro Redux to the Switch platform, allowing an even wider audience to play this impressive story.
The Redux (for anyone who does not already know) is an enhanced version bundle of Metro 2033 and Metro: Last Light. The games are based upon the fantasy book series by Dmitry Glukhovsky, set in a dystopian future Russia where people retreated to the Metro system of Moscow to hide from nuclear warfare.
When this was released on Xbox One and PS4 during the early stages of this generation this version had a steady 60 FPS frame rate and enhanced visuals to enrich and adapt the game world from its previous gen versions. While the Switch version does not have all the same enhancements as the Xbox One and PS4 versions of the Redux, it still puts out better than last gen’s original versions of the game.
The first issue I will address is one I think most people will also notice before long – the loading times. When loading up new sections of the game our protagonist Artyom narrates diary entries to recap the story. When playing the Switch version of the game I would be able to hear the entries in their entirety, while on the Xbox One and One X version the game was loading long before the entries were finished being narrated.
This resulted in me picking up my phone and losing interest quickly in the early stages, where these loading screens happen at fairly regular intervals. This broke the immersion rather quickly and on more than one occasion resulted in me walking away from the game, only to come back 20 minutes later with tea in hand.
The loading times do not have this issue with every single loading screen, and they are much more forgiving in matter of respawn after death. Though it is an issue, it does become less of an issue once the combat and exploration parts of the game become more gripping.
When playing the actual game, I did not like controlling the game with the “Joy Con” Controllers, and instead I opted for a “pro-style controller”. I did not find the Joy Cons allowed for the accuracy of a more “standard” style controller, though I imagine an official Nintendo Pro-Controller to do the job fine.
The experience on Switch does feel slightly different, with Metro Redux feeling more of an exploration-narrative game. The experience on Xbox One felt more of an FPS style game, with much tighter controls and more responsive combat. The standard button prompts/layout carry over throughout both versions of the game, so returning players will be able to hit the buttons with muscle memory and hopefully not have any issues.
The game’s running between docked and handheld mode does not vary much either, and the console puts out a consistently smooth experience at the 30FPS mark. I am not usually one for talking frame rates, but the difference is extremely noticeable when playing them on Xbox One X. The Xbox experience is a 60 FPS with little or no skipping, screen tearing or unpleasant surprises or dips in performance. The experience on Switch is not inferior however, it’s just different to the more powerful consoles.
The game still tells the same story, and still puts out the same scripted and non-scripted set pieces of the game. The experience certainly does not feel watered down; I imagine much like The Witcher on Switch it is a slight downgrading to make it run as well as possible on this hardware. The in-game textures and models will look slightly rougher and not as sharp on Switch, which is perfectly okay. These are tactical choices I imagine to keep the graphics looking as best they can where they matter within the game.
The game on Switch, both docked and handheld, does seem to come across extremely dark. The game does take place in a lot of dark environments, but it certainly needs to be played in a dark environment to match. The daylight sections of the game required me to use the torch in broad daylight as I even found some of these areas hard going.
Most of the time I was waiting until evening or pulling the curtains shut to play this title, even with the brightness turned all the way up. Its visuals though beautiful certainly required the in-game lamp/torch more than I thought necessary. Though the same issue is not as apparent on the Xbox One version, I found the game’s ambient lighting to be more forgiving on the other console.
Although I appear to have had a fair few negative things to say in this review, I am not saying that Metro Redux on Switch is a terrible port. The game is fantastic and what they have crammed from their original Redux version into the Switch is amazing. The game is a story worth telling, and the Switch is a great way to deliver this story into many more people’s hands. I am ashamed to say that when the chance to review this title came up, I was thrilled as Metro Redux has sat on my “pile of shame” and not played for a long time.
The journey of Artyom is a thrilling journey and although I was playing it on two separate consoles, I really have enjoyed the Switch version -though the idea of sharing saves across all devices could be a great addition somewhere down the line. 4A Games should be proud of their in-house Switch port and allowing a wider audience to experience the joys of a nuclear war torn world.
Pros
- Steady 30 FPS frame rate
- No cut content from original release
- Fantastic world setting
Cons
- Games ambient lighting can be very poor
- Switch native controls feel lacklustre
Rating – 8/10
You can follow me on Twitter – @Cetrie
