Lies of P: Complete Edition on Nintendo Switch 2 Technical Preview: Performance That's No Lie

When the Nintendo Switch 2 was first announced, a few critics, myself included, raised their eyebrows at Nintendo's focus on the improved technical specs for the console. Those things were certainly nice to have, considering the age of the original Switch, but I wondered how many consoles they'd shift, considering Nintendo's biggest selling point is often on its own IP, while the technical improvements for the new console mainly sold the idea of more ports. At the time, I failed to understand just how impressive it is seeing games like Cyberpunk 2077, Split Fiction, and now Lies of P running on the console.

Lies of P feels like an underrated game. Even millions of players and plenty of accolades later, it's still worth remembering that Round 8 Studio and Neowiz delivered what remains the best Soulslike game not developed by FromSoftware itself. The worldbuilding, the combat, the visuals are all excellent in Lies of P. A spiritual successor to the greatness of Bloodborne and Sekiro that retains its own uniqueness throughout. A game that if it hadn't have launched among the plethora of other amazing releases that came out in 2023, very easily would have risen to the top of many GOTY lists. Now, it's on its way to being available on a new platform, and thankfully even with just a short amount of time with it I'm at liberty to praise Lies of P's Nintendo Switch 2 performance.

That is, if you're playing in Performance Mode. At least on handheld, which is where I've spent the majority of my time playing Lies of P: Complete Edition so far. There is a day one performance patch arriving on the 6th of August, when the game launches for Nintendo Switch 2, but in the state the game was in during my preview, switching to Quality immediately led to a drop in frames, which proved quite jarring, even if the increased visual fidelity was nice to look at. Reflections, light and shadows looked better in the game's Quality mode, but in handheld the frames were really choppy. On Performance mode, though, Lies of P: Complete Edition is an incredibly smooth Switch 2 port, even when you take it on the go.

I was pleasantly surprised at the smoothness of the frame rate (which is only set to improve with that day one patch I mentioned), something that's key when you're facing challenging, fast-paced combat. You want your deaths in a game like Lies of P to be blamed on your own skills or lack thereof, not jittering frames or any lag. There were some popping visuals when initially loading in, as well as a few drops in the framerate when entering a new area or doing big, E3-inspired sweeps with my camera, but nothing stopped me from cutting puppets to pieces at my leisure in Performance Mode. Without the enhanced visual fidelity, it was easier to notice some blurry, close-up faces, as well as a few other drops in quality, but realistically it was nothing you'd notice while playing, and Lies of P is easily one of the best-looking games I've played on Nintendo Switch 2 so far.

While docked, both Quality and Performance Mode ran fine for me, but one of the main benefits of a game coming to Nintendo Switch 2 (unless it's your only gaming machine) is that portability element. Lies of P did launch on Xbox One and PS4 back in 2023, so perhaps it's not surprising the game has a really solid Nintendo Switch 2 port, but it's still something worth praising. I also found that the console didn't run too hot nor did it create a lot of noise while I was dashing around Krat. At first, I thought the fans were roaring at full capacity, only to find out it was the noise of the game, with the wind and rain lashing down around my red-nosed, lying puppet. What I will say about the effect the game has on the console is that it drains battery life fast on handheld. Around 60% of my Nintendo Switch 2's battery was gone within an hour of playing Lies of P: Complete Edition.

Its Quality Mode may be a bit of a gameplay death sentence right now in handheld, but overall Lies of P: Complete Edition on the Nintendo Switch 2 is a smooth and very solid port from what I can tell with early impressions. It offers all the gameplay improvements in the years since it first released, as well as the Overture DLC, and the same, satisfying experience you'd get on another console or PC, with a slightly lower frame rate and visual fidelity. I'm more than willing to take that bargain, if it means I can take my adventures in Krat on the go.