“Next-gen” upgrade fees are coming to Switch 2. Ahead of the console’s launch in June, more and more publishers are sharing new details about the Switch 2 versions of games that are already on Switch, and many will require a $10 fee in order to unlock them. But what exactly are you paying for?
In the case of first-party Nintendo games, it’s pretty clear. The Mario maker already revealed new content and features coming to the Switch 2 versions of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom for an extra $10, such as additional story logs, achievements, and daily stat bonuses for Link. Super Mario Party Jamboree, meanwhile, is getting new modes and Kirby and the Forgotten Land is effectively getting a DLC expansion, both for $20 more than the existing versions.
While making some of that stuff exclusive to the Switch 2 versions of the games is perhaps questionable, it’s at least clear what you’re getting for paying to upgrade (or alternatively, you can access the new content for “free” with a paid Switch Online membership). In the case of third-party games, however, it’s much less obvious. Hogwarts Legacy owners on Switch recently reported seeing an option for a $10 upgrade to the Switch 2 version in the eShop, and a similar option is already listed for Civilization 7.
Warner Bros. Games says the $10 upgrade pack gets players DLSS support, no load screens in the open world, faster broom flying, 1080p resolution in handheld mode, and mouse controls. Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma players will need the upgrade pack to access better frame rates and mouse controls as well. The Switch 2 version of Civ 7 follows a similar pattern, but also supports increased map sizes, higher player counts in multiplayer, and GameChat (Behavior Interactive is making the new version).
While fans could just play the Switch 1 version on their new Switch 2s using backwards compatibility, neither game looks particularly good on the current hardware, providing an extra incentive to upgrade. Nintendo’s hardware developers previously said that Switch 2 is different enough from the current console to require a layer of software emulation for backwards compatibility, but it’s hard to no in any given case just how fully-fledged the upgraded versions of games are.
Not every third-party game is going this route. Sonic X Shadow: Generations is $50 on Switch 2, the same as its price last fall on Switch 1. Though unfortunately on its website, Sega confirmed there’s no upgrade path at all between two versions. It also remains to be seen how indie games like Hades 2, which launches on both Switch 1 and Switch 2 at the same time, bridge the next-gen gap. Supergiant Games previously confirmed the action-RPG roguelike runs at 1080p on the newer hardware, but wouldn’t say if that would cost fans extra.
Players have been through this song-and-dance before when games jumped from $60 to $70 between PlayStation 4/Xbox One and PS5/Xbox Series X/S. Even that rollout happened more slowly, though. PS5 upgrades for Sony games were free up through Horizon Forbidden West, which the company backed down on charging for following online backlash. After that, Sony at least tried to sweeten the pot with new accessibility settings and bonus “Director’s Cut” content in some cases, like Nintendo is doing now.
But plenty of third-party “next-gen” upgrades, like Borderlands 3 and No Man’s Sky, have remained free like Borderlands 3 and No Man’s Sky. How many game upgrades on Switch 2 will do the same? For launch at least, it doesn’t look like many. And I assume Nintendo is only just getting started with finding ways to double-dip on its back catalog with Switch 2 editions of other games like Splatoon 3, Luigi’s Mansion 3, and Super Mario Odyssey. Maybe other publishers will follow suit. Who’s ready to pay $10 for a version of Mortal Kombat 1 or Doom (2016) without insane load times?
Update 5/13/2025 3:16 p.m. ET: Added information from 2K’s Civ 7 FAQ about Switch 2 version and Sonic X Shadow: Generations upgrade path.
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