A Playstation hardly fits in the vacation case – but Nintendo’s Switch does. So it’s good that 2K is launching several of its classics for the mobile console.
Almost all titles in the “Borderlands” series, all “Bioshock games”, plus the strategy title “XCOM 2” – owners of Nintendo’s Switch cannot complain this summer about a lack of new, old games. Because three classics and classic series from Publisher 2K are now available as “Collection”.
But how well do the games that were once developed for other devices work on Nintendo’s hybrid console?
“Borderlands Legendary Collection” 
Indestructible: The comic graphics from “Borderlands” still look great on Nintendo’s Switch. (Source: dpa / 2K Games)
With the first two parts of the series and the additional episode “The Pre-Sequel” the “Borderlands Legendary Collection” offers a lot of play for the money – even if the differences between the episodes are limited. “Borderlands” is a mixture of first-person shooter and role-playing game in the “Diablo” style. It plays largely on the desert planet Pandora, where chaos and anarchy reign.
As a galactic knight of luck, players have to fight through Pandora alone or with friends, collect weapons and search for treasures. Warning: Despite the colorful comic graphics, the games of the “Borderlands” series are very bloody and only suitable for adults.
The implementations for the switch are well done and are particularly impressive in the console’s handheld mode. Graphical losses compared to the Playstation or Xbox versions are hardly noticeable there. There is also a motion control exclusively for the switch, which often makes aiming much easier.
A downer: The “Legendary Collection” eats up a lot of storage space when fully installed, depending on the version more than 40 gigabytes. Without an SD card in the switch, players quickly look into the tube.
The “Borderlands Legendary Collection” is released from the age of 18 and costs around 50 euros.
“Bioshock: The Collection”
Deceptive idyll: The setting for “Bioshock Infinite” is the floating city of Columbia, which is only a paradise at first glance. (Source: dpa / 2K Games)
In 2007 the first part of the “Bioshock” series caused a lot of enthusiasm among game fans. The mixture of first-person shooter, role-playing game and science fiction horror was well received, in 2010 and 2013 two sequels followed with “Bioshock 2” and “Bioshock Infinite”. All three are now available, together with all extensions, as “Bioshock: The Collection” for the Switch.
The first two parts play Rapture in the fictional underwater city. Once called paradise for the rich and beautiful, the player only finds chaos and violence here. But what happened here? And what is the role of the player in the drama? It is important to find out – also in the third part of the series, which takes place in the floating city of Columbia.
The “Bioshock” games are popular above all because of their complex stories full of surprising twists and turns and adult themes – in “Infinite”, for example, racism plays a central role in the USA.
In terms of play and technology, the games don’t have to hide from the competition either – not even on the switch. Since the titles have all been under their belt for a few years, there was no need to adjust the graphics too much. All three games look good in TV and handheld mode and run smoothly throughout. The controls only show a few quirks in the first part.
“Bioshock: The Collection” is released from the age of 18 and costs around 50 euros.
“XCOM 2 Collection”
High tension: The tactical battles of “XCOM 2” have lost none of their fascination on the Switch. (Source: dpa / 2K Games)
In 2035 the earth is occupied by aliens. The whole earth? No! Elite unit XCOM continues to exert bitter resistance – and the player is its commander. As such, he must, among other things, expand the XCOM base, set research goals and maintain diplomatic relations with allies.
At the heart of the “XCOM 2 Collection”, which contains the main game and all its expansions, are the tactical battles against the alien occupiers. Up to six characters send hobby commanders into battle step by step. The fighters get better and better over time, but can also die – and are then permanently lost. To prevent this from happening, caution and finesse are required.
With the “XCOM 2” version for the switch, this is just as much fun as on the PC and other consoles. However, the graphics quality is noticeably lower, the representation of the characters is not very detailed, which hardly limits playability and the fun factor. Only the very small font in handheld mode occasionally causes eyes to narrow.
The “XCOM 2 Collection” is released from the age of 16 and costs around 50 euros.
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