The Virtuos Games studio, known for its ports and remasterizations, has set its sights on two heavyweights from Rockstar: Grand Theft Auto V and Red Dead Redemption 2. In an interview, their representative Andy Fong confirmed that they would love to adapt these titles to the Nintendo Switch. The relationship between the two companies is not new, as Virtuos worked on the remasterization of L.A. Noire for the hybrid console. However, Fong speculates that Rockstar might prefer to release these ports on the future Switch 2, leaving the possibility of seeing them on the current platform up in the air.
The Technical Challenge of Compressing Two Open Worlds into a Portable Console 🎮
Adapting GTA V and RDR2 to the Switch would involve considerable optimization work. Both games were designed for desktop hardware, with extensive maps, detailed physics, and high-resolution textures. Virtuos would have to reduce graphical quality, adjust the frame rate, and compress the data without losing the essence of the titles. The experience with L.A. Noire, which achieved a functional version albeit with visual sacrifices, serves as a reference. But these two games are more demanding, which casts doubt on stable performance on Nintendo's current hardware.
The Switch 2, the Lifeline Everyone is Waiting For (Except Your Wallet) 💸
Virtuos is volunteering, but the fate of these ports seems tied to the future Switch 2. And watch out, because if Rockstar gets going, they might just sell us GTA V for the fourth time, but now on a console that barely runs The Witcher 3. That said, Nintendo fans will be able to boast about playing Red Dead Redemption 2 in the bathroom, even if it's at 15 fps and with PlayStation 2 textures. The question is: how many more versions of GTA V does humanity need? The answer, as always, is one more.