Nintendo Switch Port Review: Metro Redux Collection

 

• As with all port reviews, this is mainly of review for the quality of the port, but if you want to read our full review of Metro: Redux, the link can be found at the bottom of this article.

When I played the original release of Metro 2033 in 2010, it caught me by surprise.  It was a game that I knew little about and the only reason that I played it was due to the fact that it was my next random postal rental.  It then went on to be one of my favourite games of that time.  Then when its sequel released in 2013 with Metro: Last Light, I was more prepared as to what to expect and this was the sequel it deserved, because it expanded on what made the original game so good to begin with.  To this day, I firmly believe that both Metro 2033 and Metro: Last Light are among the most underrated games of their times.

So when Metro: Redux released in 2014 for what is now (at the time of writing) current gen systems, it not only gave the series the chance to be introduced to a new audience, but also came with improved visuals and performance, as well as all additional DLC.  But how do both games perform on the Nintendo Switch?  Well, they both look reasonably well, despite the original game being a ten-year old game and naturally, Metro: Last Light looks the better of the two.  At close inspection, the textures do look a little dated for obvious reasons, but that’s not to say that they’re not nice looking games, because they most certainly still are.  There are noticeable dips in framerate from time to time, mainly during cut-scene moments and quite oddly, during Last Light.  If either game was to suffer with framerate dips, I’d expect it to be the older of the two games.  However, whether you’re playing docked on the TV or in handheld, both games appear to perform on a reasonably level playing field.

However, an issue that I had with the original games was that combat and the movement can feel a little sluggish and heavy, so I would recommend perhaps upping the controller sensitivity in the options.  Speaking of controls, the Nintendo Switch Joy-Cons isn’t really to the benefit to how either of these games plays and if you want to get the best out of your manoeuvrability, then the Pro Controller is the way to go in my opinion.  The games do still suffer from quite long load times when starting a new mission, so it’s a shame that this hasn’t been improved upon, but the loading times aren’t too bad following death and it does bring you back into the action quite quickly.

Metro: Last Light Redux also comes with all previously released DLC, including new story modes and weapons.  In terms of extra story based content, without giving anything away, Last Light comes with the Faction, Tower and Chronicles Pack.  There is also the Developers Pack, which adds a Shooting Gallery, an Arena where you can battle against some bots and the Metro Museum where you can freely explore and learn about certain aspects of the game without the fear of being attacked.  The Developers Pack also features its own story mission that takes you into the Spiders Lair (lovely) and you’ll also get two new weapons to use in the campaign, the Abzats Heavy Automatic Shotgun and the RPK Machine Gun.

Both Metro 2033 Redux and Last Light Redux also features the additional difficulty mode, The Ranger Mode, which removes the HUD, User Interface, limits your resources and makes the enemies even more of a challenge.  Both will also feature the two play-styles, ‘Spartan’, which is a more “slow-burn”, survival horror approach and ‘Survival’, which is more action orientated.  All additional modes can be selected from the main menu, before starting a new game.

The one main negative that I would say about the Nintendo Switch ports however, are the prices.  From what I can tell at the time of writing, is that unlike the PC, PS4 and Xbox One ports, where you can buy both games as part of the Metro Redux Collection, on the Nintendo eShop, they can only be purchased individually at a price of £22.49 each and as much as I really like these games, at a digital launch price of £44.98, that is a very steep price and £30 for the both would have been more reasonable in my humble opinion.  However, for the same digital launch price, the physical copy does cost about the same price, and depending on which retailer you use, the physical version can come with both games, as well as a pin badge, art cards, a poster and one or two other bits ‘n bobs.

Pricing aside, Metro 2033 and Metro: Last Light are still quite fantastic games, and they might have the occasional dip in framerate and textures may look a little dated now, but both games still handle very well, whether you’re playing docked or handheld, and they offer one of the most intriguing stories for their time.  Plus, if you want to get in on the most recent release Metro: Exodus (on PC, PS4 and Xbox One), as long as you can hold out for a price drop, then it would be a great time to give this somewhat under-appreciated series a moment of your time and to see what all the fuss is about.  That said, to this day, Metro 2033 and Metro: Last Light are among the most unique horror experiences in the the First-Person Shooter genre.

Finally as promised, you can read our full review of the Metro: Redux Collection here.