Earlier this year Sega and Two Point Studios launched the latest entry in the wacky business simulation series Two Point Museum, but with a notably absent Nintendo Switch version. It was perhaps no surprise then that the game was confirmed for Nintendo Switch 2 during April’s Nintendo Switch 2 Direct, as previous games had their performance issues on Nintendo’s original hybrid console. Given the power of the Nintendo Switch 2, it’s fair to assume that Two Point Museum will be closer to its other console contemporaries. I’ve been playing the new version for almost a week now, and while it’s certainly an enjoyable experience, there are a few issues.
If you’re looking for a recommendation for Two Point Museum, I’d recommend reading our detailed review by Vikki from the game’s initial release earlier this year as here I will mostly be covering the Nintendo Switch 2 port here. Thankfully, I can attest to Vikki’s review, as this is still the great experience that Two Point Museum has been on other platforms since March, with the Switch 2 version also launching with an Explorer’s Edition that offers some exclusive content such as an exclusive research location with unique exhibit items to find. The Fantasy Finds DLC is also available as a separate purchase.
Visuals & Performance
The first thing many are probably wondering about this version is how the visuals stack up. Having only played the Switch 2 version I can’t compare directly to the other versions, however the general graphics detail looks lower compared to the other platforms, which is to be expected. The game targets a 30 frames-per-second cap in both handheld and docked modes but can slip below when things get rather busy, especially as you expand your museum.
On average I’d say the game hangs below 30fps and can hitch ever so slightly, seemingly due to loading. Thankfully, it doesn’t seem to go below 20fps, and honestly given that this is a fairly slow-paced gameplay experience the performance issues aren’t much of an problem, especially since the resolution in both handheld and docked modes are sharp for the Switch 2’s display and on a 4K TV.
The biggest issue during my experience with Two Point Museum on Nintendo Switch 2 thus far has been the loading. I counted one experience of loading into the campaign at 45 seconds, but given that the campaign sees the player switching between museum locations, these screens can stack up. Combined with the already inconsistent performance, this feels like one of the harsher compromises that perhaps could have been mitigated and one I’d like to see tackled in a future patch.
Finally, the last thing I want to mention regarding Two Point Museum’s visuals on Switch 2 is that while I had a mostly comfortable experience playing in handheld mode, there were times where text appeared very small even on the Switch 2’s greater screen and resolution. It’s obvious that adapting this UI for consoles has been challenging for Two Point Studios and it’s impressive that it works as well as it does, but some scalability for text would have been appreciated accounting for the smaller display compared to most other versions (aside from maybe PC handhelds).
Controls
Controls are probably where this Nintendo Switch 2 version disappoints the most. Given that Two Point Museum is a business sim, a genre traditionally associated with PC, it’s fair to assume that this version would be taking advantage of the Switch 2’s mouse controls for precise interaction and decoration of the museums. Unfortunately, in what seems like a baffling oversight (or an even more baffling design choice), there is no mouse control option to be found in Two Point Museum.
Like its predecessors on the original Switch, Two Point Museum also doesn’t take advantage of touch controls, making for a rather dry experience on Switch 2 overall. While the traditional button interface controls are fine and are seemingly aligned with the other console versions, there is a lot of missed potential here and even navigating this interface feels more clunky than it should be given the smaller screen.
Verdict
The Nintendo Switch 2 version of Two Point Museum is a very safe port that doesn’t take advantage of much of the system’s unique features outside of its handheld/home console hybrid and enhanced power of its predecessor. Features such as mouse and touch screen controls would have gone a long way to make this a special experience on Nintendo’s system, but as it is it’s at least still the same, great game as on other platforms.
Two Point Museum is available now on PC, Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S.
Thank you to Sega for providing a code for the game and its DLC.
