Fallout 4 Switch 2 Review vs PS4/PS5/Xbox Series S - 30/40/60FPS Modes Tested!

Hot off the heels of its Skyrim port, today Fallout 4 gets an anniversary edition release on Switch 2 that exceeds expectations. At its core, it is a faithful translation of a PS4 and Xbox One era title, bundling six main DLC add-ons into the bargain. The rusted retro futuristic world returns as realized on Bethesda's creation engine with all the systemic depth you'd expect from navigating its character dialogue trees and missions. Expect no miracles on Switch 2, though in fixing the game's original quirks. It's worth stressing that you will spot lowquality textures on Switch 2 in line with the PS4 and even PS5 versions. While obvious shadow draw distances, pop-in, and visual bugs are part and parcel with the classic Fallout 4 experience. Just to put this up front, it is a faithful release for better or worse. The good news, however, is that on a tech level, Switch 2 doesn't just simply settle for 30 frames per second gameplay, and instead it pushes the boat out to include a 60 fps mode as well, while a 40 fps option also appears if you've a 120 Hz display connected. Better still, all three of those modes stay available even while playing as a handheld. It's a surprising turnout. And as an aside, in my experience, Fallout 4 launches with none of the input lag issues we saw with Skyrim's own Switch 2 port at launch, which has since been fixed in that case. So, just how does Switch 2 stack up visually to the other machines? Can it compete with Series S or PS5 in overall settings? And flipping over to performance testing, which of the three frame rate modes on offer is the best pick? Let's find out. This video is sponsored by the Inerson GA27T1M monitor. This 27in 1440p display has a 1 millisecond response, support for G-Sync, and a max refresh rate of 320 Hz with additional options for 120, 144, 165, and 180 hertz. Using a mini lead panel, the GA27T1M also has robust high dynamic range support with highlights of up to 1,000 nits via a full array local dimming setup with 1152 zones. There's also MPCS technology, effectively using black frame insertion to boost motion clarity and reduce blur. With display port 1.4 4 and HDMI 2.1 support. The G271M is good for supporting both high refresh rate display gaming on PC as well as accepting signals from your gaming consoles at up to 120 Hz. There's also USB hub functionality and a headphone jack along with rear RGB lighting. The display ships in a smart white color with accompanying color matched power supply and cables with a discrete profile thanks to narrow three-sided bezels. And a metal stand is bundled with the screen. Available at sale prices now on Amazon. I had fun checking out this display playing HDR Cyberpunk 2077RT Overdrive at over 300 frames pers. So check out the video description below and click through to learn more. Let's kick off with Switch 2's modes first. The bottom line is that the only major visual difference of note between the 60, 40, and 30 FPS options is resolution. That's it. All settings for shadows, textures, draw distances, and volutric lighting are consistent across each mode. Rather, each mode scales GPU load on Switch 2 by adjusting pixel counts alone. And so, while docked, we get a clear 1440p at best, go down to 720p at stress points. This range applies to all modes, meaning that the maximum 1440p figure there is theoretically possible at 60 fps in rare moments. In practice though, for typical gameplay, there is a noticeable drop in image clarity at 60 fps as it occupies lower numbers on that scale. Hence, as we charge towards a complex downtown area with multiple enemies ahead, frame rate drops on the 60 fps mode combined with a Vaseline- like smear as the DRS hits a low of 720p and potentially lower. There's no ignoring this issue really because the cost of attempting to run at 60 fps on Switch 2 is that clarity can take a real nose dive. Adding to the issue is that all modes currently use Bethesda's temporal anti-aliasing method with the same behaviors in image breakup as the other console versions. I say currently because Bethesda has tweeted that a future Switch to update is coming with DLSS support, putting it in line with Skyrim. Though it is obviously a shame that we don't have DLSS at launch, but it is on the horizon. Ultimately, each mode lives and dies by that reliance on DRS. So, let's get some stats up to show a relative difference between them. Now, this does not account for extreme lows when going into combat, for example, since it's hard to get a perfect match in those chaotic moments. Still, I've got four examples while stood perfectly still, including the infamously taxing Corvega factory rooftop, the woodlands near the opening vault. Thirdly, Concord Town, and last of all, a sky shot, which should in theory give us higher results overall. Inevitably, then the 30 fps mode hits 1440p most consistently in every test. It's pin sharp across this test suite, while the 40 fps mode hovers at a still respectable 1080p even on the Corovega rooftop. As we've seen though that 60 fps mode hits visibly low figures marked in red here 864p lowest in this test regimen while 720p is possible in battles. Switch 2's image quality while playing as a handheld of course takes a further drop. Again, there's no difference between any of the modes while in a portable state. It's all hinging on dynamic resolution to hit those frame rate targets while running off the battery at lower GPU and memory clocks. The 30 fps option gets us to the target maximum 1080p in portable play. A 1:1 match for Switch 2's own display with signs of drops in the Core Vega factory there. That's as good as you could reasonably hope for. As for 40 fps, that drops to an 810p to 990p range, while the 60 fps option sees image quality scale as low as 54p and then rising up to 900p at less taxing points. The upside is that no visual settings are cut back compared to docked play on a TV. So at 60 fps comparing portable to docked, all shadows, LODs, and textures remain intact. Image quality is the big point then. And once again, that 60 fps mode does push the limits of what's pleasing to look at in portable play. Accepting that all modes offer the same visual features, let's see how Switch 2's 60 fps mode stacks up to Series S and PS5's own 60 fps option with visuals mode selected. Firstly, it's surprising to find that Switch 2 is identical in upclose details. Texture quality is at times low resolution across Fallout 4's world for materials like wood, smashed tiles, and the advertising billboards. It's true of even the PS5 version, though, which carried most materials directly over from the original 2015 PS4 release. Hence, there's ultimately no change on Switch 2 either. And the same applies to shadow quality. For better or worse, buildings and trees project shadows at the same quality level on Switch 2, Series S, and PS5. and character shadows in thirdp person view run at the very same setting as well. Likewise, shadow draw distances run at the very same limited preset, meaning environmental shadows have a similar cascade ahead of the player in this downtown Boston run. First impressions are respectable then, but longer views reveal some cutbacks on Switch 2 here. The level of detail setting for foliage, objects, and buildings are a closer match for base PS4s. And by comparison, Series S and PS5 run at higher LOD presets all around. Fallout 4 randomizes its foliage distribution, but it's clear that Switch 2 does not in any mode match the foliage setting of any current gen machine here. Nor does Switch 2 render in all the very distant building details while panning the camera from the Corvega factory rooftop. This is hardly a dealbreaker, though it does mean more details will fade or pop in as we start sprinting forward. In the end, Switch 2 is more akin to a lastg PS4 visual setup with those foliage, object, and building LEDs are identical. Also, image quality bears mention here. Switch 2's dynamic resolution scaling at 60 fps here often takes it to lower figures than Series S, which itself runs in a 1080p to 1440p range, while PS5 is at a much sharper 1,800p to 4K. Zooming in close, Switch 2 resolves with the blurriest image overall. And for it to compete in image quality terms, you'd really have to drop back to the 30 fps mode to get a comparable 1440p picture. Moving on to performance testing, the 60 fps mode clearly has the greatest allure on first booting the game up. To be blunt, though, it's too much for Switch 2 to realistically hold 60 across the game's most complex regions like downtown Boston, the Corvega factory, or major battles with swarms of enemies. Still, it does get to 60 for a surprising stretch of play elsewhere, notably the opening areas. The initial vault tutorial section easily holds 60 FPS, for example. While the sparer Commonwealth region beyond the city is usually solid, too, by way of dropping resolutions and essentially using base PS4 settings, a bulk of Switch 2's output in these spots is genuinely hitting that top line. Impressive stuff. Once we venture into the big city, though, reality starts to hit. Rapid travel towards dense city spraws, new locations, or enemies reliably triggers alert down with Switch to wavering from 30 to 60 FPS in the extreme cases and even just under 30 at points. The task of streaming in the downtown Boston area has always proven a challenge, even for higherend consoles like PS5. So, the prospect of Switch 2 doing any better was always unlikely on stricter CPU and memory limits. In the end, compared directly with Series S and PS5's own 60 fps modes, it expectedly trails behind in identical scenes. The added snag, of course, is that there's no VRR support on Switch 2 while docked to help smooth out the perception of those drops under 60. Traversal is highly variable with erratic frame times that present in a raw fashion on any 60 Hz display, which is a shame. Likewise, battles with mutant hordes don't fare much better. And in one scene, we're consistently at the 50 FPS mark on Switch 2, while the other machines hold at a tight 60. A route around Diamond City shows a similar unique stress point for Switch 2 down to the 50 FPS line again, while Series S only drops a few frames here. And finally, no Fallout 4 test is complete without a look at the Corvga factory. PS5 and Series S each run at a similar 53 FPS while taking this fixed long view of the city below. But Switch 2 hovers constantly at a lower 40 fps to restore a stable frame rate and boost image quality in the process. The 30 fps mode offers one possible solution. If you don't have a 120 Hz display, therefore removing the 40 fps option in docked play, this is honestly the next best alternative. Across hours of testing, there's a mostly flat 30 fps readout on switch 2, and only a few small hiccups remain on traveling through those taxing downtown areas. For the most part, rendering each frame at 33.3 milliseconds effectively disguises the traversal stutters we might otherwise be seeing at 60 fps. Compared to say base PS4, which targets 30 fps, it's a significant upgrade in consistency all round for similar routes through the town. Returning to Diamond City or the Corvga rooftop also sees Switch 2's Fortunes turn around completely. It's a great turnout and if you're okay with 30 fps play, this is surprisingly stable. Last up, the 40 fps mode offers a perfect middle ground while docked if your display allows it. That is in demanding a 25 misecond render time per frame. Latency is greatly improved over the 30 fps mode, while clarity in motion is a significant step up too. Better yet, in capping at 40 FPS, we avoid all those wild fluctuations seen at 60 Hz. Here in a three-way split showing all Switch 2 modes, the cap at 40 is surprisingly well held across the usual stress test areas, notably the Corvega Factory Overlook, which now simply holds at 40. General world traversal is more stable all around, too, with so much of the choppiness at 60 FPS ironed out as we approach Boston's inner streets. The only catch is that the higher 40 FPS threshold doesn't hide as many hitches and lurches as that 30 FPS option. As you might expect, world traversal is still occasionally a problem, and anything that previously dropped below the 40 FPS line will prompt a frame time spike. It simply pierces through that 40 fps cap, like this initial charge into the city. On the whole, though, 40 fps is a drastic upgrade over 30 in the fluidity of its motion. and if it's available to you, it's the ideal fit for Switch 2's capabilities while docked. As for Switch 2's portable play, the situation is a little different because we do of course have VRR support enabled on its built-in display. Alas, there's no frame rate testing in this case, but going by eye, the 60 fps option is infinitely more viable now with VRR engaged. Moving the camera viewpoint around over the Corvega rooftops, for example, reveals a perceptible shift in screen refresh between 40 to 60 fps, but VRR still does a reasonable job of smoothing those frame time fluctuations out. It's not a magic bullet, of course. Frame rate lurches during traversal remain, but overall, this is still my preferred mode while playing handheld. Despite Fallout 4 being a more taxing follow-up effort to Skyrim and one built for an entirely different console generation, no less, Bethesda's porting effort to Switch 2 is a success. Yes, the 60 fps frame rate mode is a stretch too far for the systems capabilities while docked, but the offering of a 40 fps mode puts Switch 2 in a performance sweet spot. Picking between the three modes while docked to a TV and assuming 120 Hz support is available to you, 40 is an easy pick for both image quality and stability. On top of that, its visuals generally hold up to the standard of the base PS4 release. You get matching textures, shadows, and a similar draw distance setting. Plus, at 30 fps, Switch 2 often gets to a higher 1440p than that last gen version. There was some trepidation going into this one, especially after Skyrim's launch day issues on Switch 2 and some unflattering early gameplay footage in a February 2026 Nintendo Direct. In fairness, even today, visual bugs and engine oddities remain from the other versions. Accepting that though, it's a surprise to find that Fallout 4's anniversary edition on Switch 2 has transpired to be a very playable, robust rendition of the game in its final release. That's all from me today, though. If you did find this video useful or insightful in any way, feel free to like or subscribe. And don't forget to hit that bell for instant notifications as any new video lands. To support what we do at Digital Foundry, do check out our Patreon. And to get in touch directly, you know where to find us. But for now, thanks for watching.

Many thanks to Innocn for sponsoring this video. The Innocn GA27T1M monitor is a 27-inch, 1440p 320Hz MiniLED display with HDR and G-Sync support. Check it out here: https://geni.us/DigitalFoundry-GA27T1M A faithful port of the other console releases in most respects, Fallout 4 arrives on Switch 2 with an ace up its sleeve: support for 30, 40 and even 60fps. Without question the 40fps mode is the ideal middle ground for improved latency, while Switch 2's visuals tend to match the base PS4 release closest. Tom goes in-depth on how every mode and console - including PS5 and Series S - stack up by comparison, and which is the most optimal way to play while handheld too. Visit the DF Website: https://digitalfoundry.net Go here to check out DF merch! https://store.digitalfoundry.net Subscribe for more Digital Foundry: http://bit.ly/DFSubscribe 00:00 Introduction 01:42 Sponsored by Innocn 03:11 30/40/60FPS Modes Compared 04:46 Native Resolution Tests In Docked/Portable 06:43 Switch 2 vs Series S/PS5/PS4 09:09 60FPS Performance Tests 14:19 Verdict