How does Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade demo really run on Nintendo Switch 2?

Square Enix is the latest studio to work on an incredibly ambitious Nintendo Switch 2 port by releasing Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade on the platform.

Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade is the first part of a remake trilogy of Final Fantasy 7 and includes the Intermission DLC where players can play through additional content as Yuffie.

The game first released on PS4 back in 2020 and proved a hit as it focuses on the first portion of Final Fantasy 7 set in Midgar.

Square Enix shadow dropped a demo for Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade on Nintendo Switch 2 ahead of its release on 19 January 2026 and players can play through the iconic first mission, destroying Mako Reactor 1. The game will also be releasing on Xbox Series X/S on the same day.

So how does the demo run on Switch 2? I've played it through and these are my thoughts.

Square Enix shadow dropped a demo for Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade demo on Nintendo Switch 2 / Jake Brigstock, indy100 & The Independent

Switch 2 ports have been a bit of a mixed bag - there have been some fantastic ports such as Cyberpunk 2077 and others that have not quite met expectations such as Hitman: World of Assassination.

If the demo is anything to go by, Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade is very much on the Cyberpunk 2077 end of the spectrum.

When docked, it seems the game runs at 1440p (2K) resolution at 30 fps (frames per second) and upscaled to 1080p at 40fps in handheld.

This is really impressive for a game of this size, especially when during my playthrough of just under an hour I did not encounter any noticeable performance issues at all. That's despite all of the action in gameplay and huge moments in cutscenes.

I'm really nitpicking here - but there are a couple of visual sacrifices I noticed, including hair textures being a little bit fuzzy and some of the character's faces not quite being as detailed.

But these are very minor things and in no way affected my enjoyment of the demo. Across both docked and handheld, the lighting is exceptional.

Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade on Nintendo Switch 2 is shaping up to be an excellent port / Jake Brigstock, indy100 & The Independent

Quickly running through some features of the demo, when starting a new game, there are four different difficulty options - two easy and normal modes each with the classic options where players automatically attack and defend or normal option where players can perform these actions manually.

You can also start the game as normal or play with a head start where you begin with higher level characters and a lot of gil, armour and materia if you want to start with that. Progress made in the demo carries over to the full release if you decide to purchase it.

From my experience with the demo, I'm incredibly encouraged about Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade on Nintendo Switch 2.

Granted, this is just the opening mission, but it didn't miss a single beat through the brilliant cutscenes or fast and frantic gameplay.

At the moment, for those who have yet to play Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade and have a Switch 2, or want to play it whenever they are on the go, this is very much shaping up to be the best way to enjoy it.

Elsewhere from indy100:

• Final Fantasy 14 Patch 7.4 Into the Mist: Everything that's new
• Dragon Quest VII Reimagined preview: Square Enix is nailing another remake

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