A Developer Has Gotten Batman: Arkham Knight And More To Work On The Nintendo Switch

ComicBook.com Staff

11/09/2017 05:35 pm EST

There aren't too many third party developers doing games for the Nintendo Switch right now, mainly because they're probably concerned with how the system will handle more powerful games. However, a developer has come up with a rather convincing argument as to why they shouldn't be afraid to give it a try.

A developer with the Rainway App team by the name of Andrew Sampson has managed to do the unthinkable – he's gotten a trio of blockbuster hits to work on hardware that it was never intentionally developed for. He's posted three different tweets that show Batman: Arkham Knight, NieR: Automata and The Witcher III: Wild Hunt up and running on the system.

Well, "up and running" isn't entirely the proper term. You won't see these games running at the same resolution as they would on a PlayStation 4. But the fact they're operating to some extent is really something, and shows off the technical prowess of what the Rainway app may be capable of.

We've broken down the three posts in the following pages, so you can see each individual game – and, again, the potential to bringing third-party hits to the Switch!

Batman: Arkham Knight

In this 15 second video, Sampson shows off the latest Batman game, Arkham Knight running on the Nintendo Switch. Now, it's not gameplay, mind you, but rather just an intro to Batman overlooking a huge part of the city. There is a noticeably smaller frame rate with the clip, but everything else, including the modeling and lighting, appears to be spot on. And keep in mind, this is work done through an app, and not something that was programmed directly for the system. It's a very impressive piece of work, and has us wondering just how well actual gameplay would run.

The Witcher III: Wild Hunt

For his second post, Sampson showed off a screenshot of The Witcher III: Wild Hunt running on the Nintendo Switch. Now, it's a bit hard to tell just how detailed the game is, since it's not a running video clip like the others he posted. However, it does give you an idea of the scope of detail that the system – and more importantly, the Rainway app – is capable of. We haven't seen the game running yet, but, thus far, it looks like Geralt would have no trouble kicking ass and taking names on Nintendo's platform. A pipe dream, but, hey…

NieR: Automata

Finally, if you're looking for a lengthier gameplay clip, check out this one-something minute long clip from Square Enix's highly impressive NieR: Automata, running on the Rainway app. While the frame rate may not be as smooth as it would be running on a high-end PC or PlayStation 4, the amount of detail is nevertheless impressive, and the fact that the app doesn't show any signs of skipping or slowdown (save for close details with the grass) is really something. Hey, Square Enix, a port of this game wouldn't be a bad thing, y'know…

What Is the Rainway App?

For those of you wondering just what this Rainway technology is, it's an app that allows players to stream their PC gamers to any given device – even game systems. Though performance doesn't quite keep up on the same level as, say, a high-end PC, the fact that the games can still run suitably is still really something. However, that said, the Rainway app hasn't been announced for Nintendo Switch yet, as Nintendo hasn't given any kind of approval.

We hope it eventually comes, because opening up PC compatibility with the system would provide a gold mine of games that the system wouldn't get otherwise.

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