Resident Evil Requiem is a weird game. It somehow balances tense horror with B Movie action for an enjoyable if messy ride. I usually play RE games on PC, but with how much focus Nintendo and Capcom have been putting on the series arrival on the Switch 2 I had to check out this port. Like the game itself, it's messy but works surprisingly well. You can read our full review of the game by Henry Viola here, as this article is going to focus solely on the Switch 2 version. So scrape together some ammo and healing herbs, hide under that desk, and boot up Resident Evil Requiem.
The first thing I was struck by was the fact that this port targets 60 frames per second, both in docked and undocked modes. Going in, I was sure this would be locked to 30 or, at most, offer a blurry performance mode to reach that coveted 60 fps, but it somehow manages to both look good and run well... sometimes. The first major section of the game, the care center, runs fairly well, getting close to, if not fully reaching that target. Some rooms and conditions can hit 60, but most will be hovering just under at 58 or 59, imperceptible enough to be acceptable. There are a few rooms filled with enemies and clutter that noticeably dip, but for the most part the game's just chugging along. Some of these aforementioned rooms run better in portable mode, while others run better docked, but on the whole, portable seemed to have the advantage more often than not. Both work well and I'm still thoroughly impressed that the game can look and run this good on a portable console.
Without spoiling anything, the second major area is where things get shaky. It's much more open than the cramped corridors of the Care Center, and you'll regularly see the game drop to the mid-50s. It's still playable, and a bit easier to swallow in portable mode once again, but it's definitely harder to look at. I never found the frame dips to affect my gameplay much though, I was still taking down zombies with roundhouse kicks or sneaking past them as well as I would have on another platform. These are issues I'm willing to deal with to get that portable option.
Especially when the game still looks this good. You're not getting the fancy shadows or ray tracing the PC version has, and there are a few bits that look a little weird like the sweat on character's skin, item close ups having weird jpeg style outlines, or text being a bit blurry in some cases like on safes, but it still looks pretty dang good. Compare it with PC or PS5 and it's night and day, but for Switch 2, Requiem shines. It also looks a lot better in motion than it does in screenshots, so be sure to check out our video review to see the game in action. DLSS is pulling a lot of weight here, and does so with aplomb.
There is exactly one section of the game where DLSS cannot save the internal 600p resolution, however, and that's a sniper section with Leon. Here, you've got to protect Grace from zombies as she tries to carry a child to safety. You're on a nearby rooftop, and have to use your newly acquired sniper rifle's scope to take out anything in their way. On Switch 2, however, it's more like squinting at pixelated blobs that might resemble Grace and various zombie types, even when using the scope. It's not impossible (though it is absolutely impossible if you don't attach the scope) as the game will occasionally mark Grace's position with a handy arrow, but it is more difficult than it should be.
The game also adds motion control aiming, which is always a welcome feature. It's disabled by default, so you have to go into the options menu to toggle it on, but once you do you get the comfort of a controller along with a bit more precision similar to a mouse. This only goes into effect when you're aiming, so no need to worry about a scare causing you to jump and move your camera all over the place. There's no option for mouse controls, which is a bit disappointing, but I assume that's because the game wouldn't be able to keep up with how fast you'd be able to move the camera there causing theoretical performance issues.
Resident Evil Requiem on Switch 2 isn't perfect and a little messier than it should be, but I'm still flabbergasted that it works as well as it does. It pretty much never dips too far below the target of 60 fps and looks great while doing it. The game looks and runs a bit better in portable mode, so this is a great choice if you plan on playing mostly in that form factor. I've played through the game two and a half times at this point, so it's absolutely doing something right.
