New Nintendo Switch 2 Update Just Made a Huge Improvement to Handheld Games

Nintendo has released a huge new update for Switch 2 consoles today that makes Switch 1 games better to play than ever in handheld mode. For the most part, Switch games that are played through a TV when the Switch 2 is docked both look and perform better. While the Switch 2 provides a fantastic handheld experience as well, there is a pretty clear drop-off in quality when playing on the go. Fortunately, Nintendo has now looked to resolve this just a bit through a major new feature.

As of today, Nintendo Switch 2 firmware version 22.0.0 has gone live and has made numerous tweaks to the platform. By far the biggest change, though, is the arrival of “Handheld Boost Mode”. This feature, which can be turned on in the Settings menu, will allow original Switch games to run like they would when docked and played on a TV while still in handheld mode. Although this feature doesn’t extend to Switch 2 games, it makes the backward compatibility function of the latest Nintendo console that much better.

Outside of this major new addition to the Switch 2, Nintendo has made a variety of smaller tweaks to the console as well. This includes changes to Friend Lists, GameChat, and accessibility. All in all, this is one of the biggest Switch 2 updates that the platform has seen since its launch last year and shows that Nintendo is still looking to make big upgrades to the hardwarw when possible.

To get a look at everything that Nintendo has done with this new Switch 2 update, you can find the full patch notes below.

Nintendo Switch 2 Update 22.0.0 Patch Notes

• Changed the on-screen text and animations when you load a virtual game card in the HOME Menu.
• Added the ability to save notes about friends on your Friend List. The note content is not displayed to friends.
  • Added the ability to see and edit these notes from the Nintendo Switch App. The app must be on version 3.3.0 or higher to use this feature.
• The following features were added to support GameChat:
  • Added the ability to invite friends to GameChat rooms you’re participating in. Some friends may not be able to be invited, such as supervised accounts.
  • Friends that haven’t finished GameChat initial setup can now be invited to GameChat. Some friends may not be able to be invited, such as supervised accounts or those who haven’t used a Nintendo Switch 2.
    • It may take a while for this change to be reflected after updating your console to system version 22.0.0.
  • Improvements were made to the quality of the game screen shared in a GameChat when expanded.
• Added the ability to rewind 10 seconds/advance 10 seconds with the ZL and ZR Buttons when watching a full screen video in News or Nintendo eShop.
• Added the option to add the following data to “Automatic Uploads” from Album.
  • Clip Video, Video saved as a screenshot, and screenshot with added text.
• Added Portuguese (Portugal) and Russian to “GameChat Voice ⇔ Speech to Text” languages in Accessibility.
• Text-to-Speech, under Accessibility, can now read the text in Album and during first-time setup.
  • Please see Nintendo Switch 2 First-Time Setup and Connection for instructions on how to turn text-to-speech on in the first-time setup.
• Added the ability to see the breakdown of storage capacity by data type for the system memory and microSD Express card.
• Added the ability to perform an audio test when “Linear PCM 5.1 Surround” is selected for TV Sound in Audio.
• Changed the “Hong Kong/Taiwan/South Korea” region to “Hong Kong/Taiwan/South Korea/South East Asia” in Device.
• Added “Handheld Mode Boost” to Nintendo Switch Software Handling in System.
  • Handheld Mode Boost will cause compatible Switch software to run as if in TV Mode, so certain functionality may be affected. Please see the on-device description for more details.
• The following features were added to Airplane Mode:
  • When Airplane Mode is activated, the previously set preferences for Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or NFC while in Airplane Mode will be saved and applied.
  • Added the ability to individually enable or disable Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or NFC during Airplane Mode from the Quick Settings.
• Added the ability to see a notification in the Nintendo Switch Parental Controls smart device application when the Parental Controls PIN is input successfully on the console. This can also be set up to be a push notification to your smart device.
  • The app must be on version 2.4.0 or higher to use this functionality.
• General system stability improvements to enhance the user’s experience.