The race goes on in TT Isle of Man: Ride on the Edge 2 (“Ride on the Edge 2”). Available on the Xbox, PS4, and PC since March 19, 2020, and now NACON and KT Racing has now brought what is considered to be one of the best motorcycle racers over to the Nintendo Switch. But will it hold up?
Disclaimer: a free copy of the game was provided to me for the purpose of this review.
Switch racing games have been hit or miss. Ports to the Switch of games already on other platforms have been even harder to hit. So believe me when I say that Ride on the Edge 2 is a pretty shocking sight. The resolution is so low, especially on the riders, that it looks like you could be playing something on an early PS3 game. This low resolution also tracks out to low visibility. Which means it’s hard to see the track ahead clearly on the TV; handheld is even worse. Even with the assistance of the line, this makes things incredibly difficult on a game built around speed.
You still get an impressive sense of speed in the game. I’d hope so when pushing speeds of 160+ on long, windy roads of the iconic route for which the game is named after. The sound adds to this with a fairly authentic experience of what it’s like to pick up speed and maintain it on a motorcycle. But the game continues to experience technical issues beyond this. Despite the severe drop in graphical integrity, the frames just can’t keep up with the action on the screen. Constant stuttering (I’m looking at you Creagh Airfield) make it look like watching the game through a zoetrope.
If the framerate issues aren’t enough, how about the meat of this motorcycle sim: the handling. I don’t think that there was necessarily any big changes to the underlying code in this case, I just don’t feel that the joysticks on any of the wide range of Nintendo controllers is up to par with the Xbox or PS4. At least not without some tinkering. This makes it a less easy to control your superbike around the twisties of the UK. Leaning in and out of the corners smoothly is difficult at best. If, however, you are using a controller other than the joy-cons, there is a saving grace in tweaking settings in the menu. You should be able to smooth things out a little, but nowhere near what you would get on any other platform.
All of the content you’ll find on the other platforms can be found in the Switch version of Ride on the Edge 2, so at least there was one area in which compromise was not made. But given the other issues, almost makes you wish something could have been sacrificed. The crazy big career mode lets you further your career as you start out in Supercross, eventually make your way to Superbike, and secure your place in the infamous event. You can earn money on the side by completing free roam challenges; while this can keep you busy for countless hours (though, some of those hours will no doubt be taken up the lengthy load times), it also provides the means by which you can customize your bike.
In reality, if you have the means to pick up and play Ride on the Edge 2 on any other platform, you should probably do that. But if you are a die-hard fan of the Sport and want the ability take the game on the go (or its your only console), just keep in mind that it’s not nearly as smooth an experience.
3 stars out of 5
