For the past few weeks, we have been seeing some games sort of confirm that they were coming to the Switch 2. Today, it looks like someone has straight up confirmed their status.
As reported by Necro Felipe on Universo Nintendo, 3D platformer Ruffy and the Riverside is coming to the Switch 2. Felipe makes it clear that the Switch and Switch 2 are getting different ports. Developer Zockrates Laboratories tol Universo Nintendo that the Switch 2 version will be made available as soon as the platform will be out in the market. Of course, Zockrates fell short of confirming that launch date.
Nintendo Life has a glowing preview for Ruffy and the Riverside, saying that it “looks to bring some of that iconic Nintendo inventiveness into a gorgeous world full of hand-drawn characters and assets.” Ruffy’s big gimmick is that he can copy a texture and paste it in a new section, a simpler version of the power Zelda uses in The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom. For example, Ruffy can paste a vine over a waterfall so he can climb over it.
As reported by Sportskeeda, Zockrates hinted at the Switch 2 port when they announced the game two weeks ago. This was the press release Zockrates and publisher Phiphen Games released at the time:
“German indie studio Zockrates Laboratories and US publisher Phiphen Games are excited to share the completely revamped Steam page for Ruffy and the Riverside. The lovingly hand-drawn platformer is rolling out Q1 2025 on PC (Steam), Xbox One & Series X|S, PlayStation 5 and…Nintendo Switch(es)!”
Now, the wording there could be plausibly denied to mean the Switch OLED and Switch Lite, but we don’t think Nintendo would be fooled if Phiphen and Zockrates actually tried to argue that.
We had previously reported that Portia Games and Playtonic had hinted that their respective games, My Time At Evershine, and Yooka-Replaylee, would also be coming to the Switch 2. While we imagine that some AAA games are also planned to be released on the console, we don’t expect any of those publishers or developers to make such revelations.
Zockrates new statement to Universo Nintendo indicates that they know the Switch 2’s release date. Of course, they and a ton of other developers also already know all these technical details that we have been speculating on.
Like, is it magnetic? Is the Switch 2 running on the T239? Will it be a bigger 8 inch screen? Does it have a chunky dock?
It’s a little frustrating to think about how they already know these things while the Nintendo fandom is seething in frustration and losing hot chip challenges over it. But if there’s any solace to take it here, it’s that we won’t actually be waiting another year before Nintendo announces and releases this thing.
As we pointed out before, fans may just be looking forward to new hardware, or a new Nintendo thing. Many in the industry are pinning their hopes that the Switch 2 will revive the game business for them.
While we’d like to see the industry also get more business from Nintendo’s peers like the PlayStation 5 Pro, the new Xbox Series consoles, Game Pass itself, or the Steam Deck, developers are looking at Nintendo for a reason. With the way the industry has been going in the past two years, we would all like to get that relief from a successful Switch 2 launch.
In the meantime, you can watch Ruffy and the Riverside‘s latest trailer below.
