I was thoroughly impressed with the Switch 2 port of Final Fantasy VII Remake when that dropped earlier this year. Compared with the base PS5 version of the game, it felt like there were no compromises, save for a slight graphical hit and, of course, the severe drain on the Switch 2’s battery life. With how good Remake looked on the Switch 2, I was very excited to get my hands on Final Fantasy VII Rebirth and see how that would perform. Here’s the short answer: it’s good enough, but don’t expect it to run as flawlessly as its predecessor.
Picking up right where we left off in Remake, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth has us jump straight back into the action with the iconic Nibelheim flashback where we finally learn more about Sephiroth’s backstory. Here, the port shines, though it won’t be long before you start to see some of its shortcomings. Running up Mt. Nibel and seamlessly transitioning between battle and exploration had me impressed all over again. The Switch 2 port of Rebirth doesn’t miss a beat when it comes to technical performance, and there were no delays whatsoever going from battle to battle.
I did, however, notice significant pop-in as I ran up the linear trail. Grass patches and trees would pop into existence right in front of Cloud, to the point where it became almost comical. Everywhere I looked, the greenery and shrubbery would jump into view, and while I don’t consider this to be a deal-breaker, it is extremely noticeable and it only gets worse once we get into the open-world areas properly.
The character models for the main cast and other important NPCs look crisp, just as they did in Remake, but I should also mention that all other NPCs look like a blurry mess. I played Rebirth mostly in handheld mode, and the game does fare a bit better when docked, but for folks who are primarily looking to enjoy this game portably, that’s something to be aware of. Again, it’s not a deal-breaker for me personally, but I can certainly recognize that this might bother players who care more about how good the game looks on the Switch 2.
As I got into chapter 2 and started exploring the Grasslands proper, the pop-in issue was only exacerbated, as I mentioned earlier. The world is big and vast, yes, but it also means more opportunities for you to be surprised by random trees and plants popping up in your face as you race around on chocobo-back. The good news is that the terrain itself is largely unaffected by this issue, so you won’t find yourself being forced to take alternative routes because something popped into existence right in front of you. I was able to navigate the open-world of Final Fantasy VII Rebirth pretty flawlessly, and I was surprised by how well the Switch 2 handled combat encounters even with so much going on in the background.
From a technical perspective, if you just want to enjoy Rebirth in handheld mode, then you’ll be very pleased with Square Enix’s efforts here. You just need to be able to get past the fact that it simply won’t look as pretty as it does on other platforms. The blurriness is particularly noticeable across the board once you reach the Grasslands and beyond, as it applies not just to character models, but to the environmental textures as well.
That being said, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t thoroughly enjoy my romp across Gaia on the Switch 2. One of my biggest complaints with Rebirth was that the open-world and its never-ending checklist of things to do felt overwhelming. None of that has changed, except that checklist actually feels more manageable now that I’m able to tackle them when I’m on the go.
I’ve been playing Rebirth on my Switch 2 while on a two-week vacation, and I was surprised by how much I was able to get done just by playing through a little bit here and there on my commute, and as I was winding down before bed. I’d simply head to the nearest tower, Divine Intel, or Fiend Intel location, play some mini-games or kill some enemies, then put the Switch 2 to sleep before jumping back in a few hours later.
Being able to hop in and out of the game on your own time with zero hassle made Rebirth so much more enjoyable for me, and I could even potentially see myself getting 100% completion in every zone. Eventually. I shouldn’t get ahead of myself. But the point is, Rebirth‘s Switch 2 port will appeal to a very specific type of player, and I just so happen to fall into that camp.
Similar to other open-world games on the Switch like Skyrim and Tears of the Kingdom, I find that this format works very well in handheld mode. I’d get all of the open-world busywork done in my own time in handheld mode, then dock it when I want to enjoy the important story cutscenes and big battles, which still look beautiful on a giant screen.
So yes, I won’t lie. Final Fantasy VII Rebirth can look pretty damn unflattering in handheld mode on the Switch 2. There’s no getting around that. The fact that Square Enix managed to get it running so flawlessly aside from that, though, is a feat in and of itself. If you can look past its rough edges, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth ends up being an excellent open-world game that’s very easy to enjoy on the go.
A review code for the game was provided by the publisher. You can check out our review policy here. Reviewed on Switch 2.
