Skyrim has arrived on Switch 2, but fans are reporting that the 14-year-old game is struggling to run on the system. Bethesda has re-released the wildly popular RPG on so many platforms that it’s become something of a meme in the gaming community. However, many fans aren’t happy with the way the latest port of The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim has gone so far.
Bethesda shadow dropped Skyrim on Switch 2 on December 9, 2025, promising improved load times, enhanced resolution, and general performance issues compared to the version released on the original Switch. The Switch 2 version also includes everything in the Anniversary Edition of the game, so there’s a lot of content to enjoy, and better yet, anyone who already owns the Switch 1 version can upgrade to the new port for free. While all that sounds great on paper, these promises have not played out the way many had hoped.
Skyrim Fans Report Poor Framerates and Input Lag on Switch 2
It didn’t take long after Skyrim dropped on Switch 2 for fans to encounter issues with it. One user on the Nintendo Switch subreddit called it a “disaster,” citing how difficult it was to even get the free upgrade. According to the user, they had to manually delete all of their existing Skyrim files before downloading all 53GB of the new version of the game. Once in the game, they called the input lag “beyond playability” and said Skyrim only runs at 30 FPS. Skyrim isn’t unique in that regard, as Final Fantasy 7 Remake also runs at 30 FPS on Switch 2, but unlike other titles with framerate issues on the system, Skyrim is over a decade old. Another post on Reddit called it “an absurdly poor effort,” saying the input lag and optimization were so bad, they’d rather play the Switch 1 version.
The same complaints about low framerates, input lag as high as an entire second, and difficulty upgrading to the new port echoed across multiple posts on both the Switch and Skyrim subreddits. Many users also cited how the game’s age made the performance issues seem even worse. While Todd Howard has gone on record saying he wished Bethesda supported Skyrim for longer, the game hasn’t gone untouched since its release, receiving multiple patches and updates, even on systems that came out long after the title itself, over the years. With such a long amount of time and experience launching Skyrim across different platforms, it’s easy to see why some fans are surprised to run into such dramatic problems on Switch 2.
The Switch 2 version is not the first port of Skyrim to run into similar challenges. Some users commented that they recall the original Switch version also encountering significant issues at launch, only to receive improvements in the weeks after. Hopefully, patches are on the way for the Switch 2 edition, but it’s unclear if and when those might come for now. Even with its age and bugs, the game has remained a fan favorite since its release 14 years ago. As recently as April 2025, Skyrim‘s player count got a boost, with fans diving back into it after the Oblivion remaster rekindled interest in The Elder Scrolls.
Looking forward, Microsoft has stressed its commitment to Switch 2 support, so hopefully that means Bethesda, which Microsoft owns, will work on a solution to these issues before long. There could also be future Elder Scrolls releases on the Switch 2 in light of those comments, but the future of the series on the platform is uncertain, and things are still frustrating for Skyrim fans at the moment.
- Released
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November 11, 2011
- ESRB
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M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Sexual Themes, Use of Alcohol
- Developer(s)
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Bethesda Game Studios
- Publisher(s)
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Bethesda Softworks
