When I first played Lies of Pback in 2023, one of the things I genuinely wished was that, as a smaller, more focused Soulslike experience, it could be brought to the Nintendo Switch. When I previewed Lies of P: Overture, I even asked if there were plans to bring it to the Nintendo Switch 2, but never received an answer. Well, apparently, it was because they didn’t want me to spoil the surprise, as this puppet has truly cut its strings on Nintendo’s hybrid handheld.
Seeing Elden Ring announced for the Nintendo Switch 2 certainly laid the groundwork for a lot more impressive Soulslike experiences to find their way onto the system, and Lies of P: Complete Edition is no exception. Like almost every game I’ve done a comparative analysis for, it’s a port that is genuinely remarkable, but does come with a few caveats.
Lies of P: Complete Edition is true to its name. It is a complete rerelease that includes both the base game and the Overture DLC, which becomes available after Chapter 9. The collection also includes several DLC costumes, including the Mischievous Puppet’s Clothes and Hat, the Great Venigni’s Signature Coat, Hat and Glasses, and the Armour and Bandana of the Honourable. Aside from that, it is a fairly straightforward rerelease of the game.
Anyone familiar with my work knows I have played a lot of Lies of P. I completed the base game twice and the Overture DLC once, along with about a quarter of it during my preview time in Los Angeles, all in a little under a year. Combined with my general experience with Soulslike games, that gives me a solid understanding of how this game should look, feel and play. While playing Lies of P: Complete Edition with the Nintendo Switch 2 docked, I found it almost comparable to the PlayStation 4 version and perhaps even the PlayStation 5 version.
“It really goes to show that, post-patch, Lies of P remains such an incredible game that even with some issues, it is still immensely playable, and incredibly enjoyable.”
Lies of P: Complete Edition offers three graphics options while playing in docked mode: Performance, Balanced and Quality. Performance appears to output a fairly clean 1080p image, with some muddier textures helping the game maintain a consistent 60 fps. Quality increases the texture detail to what looks like a crisp 4K image, but drops the frame rate to 30 fps. Balanced splits the difference admirably, with cleaner textures that still look slightly softened, as though someone smeared Vaseline on the screen. The game maintains a relatively stable 45 fps in this mode and can approach 60 fps in less demanding areas, although some frame drops remain.
No matter which mode you choose, you may notice subtle object pop-in, particularly with environmental details. Almost every time I panned the camera, I saw distant buildings appear suddenly. Although the effect was usually minor, it was still noticeable. When playing in docked mode, Performance is likely the best option because its consistent 60 fps better supports the combat in Lies of P, which relies heavily on blocking and parrying.
Playing in handheld mode was a little rougher, but not enough to interfere with gameplay. Balanced mode is not available in handheld, so Performance remains the best option. It lowers the resolution to 720p while targeting a higher frame rate that usually sits around 60 fps, although there is some slowdown. A day-one patch is expected to help the game maintain a more consistent frame rate in Performance mode.
Quality mode increases the resolution to a sharper 1080p but locks Lies of P: Complete Edition at 30 fps, with some frame-rate stuttering. Thankfully, Lies of P uses clear attack animations, so timing parries remains manageable even at the lower frame rate. I breezed through the Parade Master in handheld mode, parrying almost every attack and defeating him without losing a life.
It shows that Lies of P remains an incredible game even with a few technical issues. It is highly playable and enjoyable, and its linear design, generous save points and faster, more aggressive combat make it well suited to handheld play. In many ways, it feels like the kind of Soulslike Nintendo might create, and it feels right at home on the Nintendo Switch 2.
And while Lies of P: Complete Edition does utilize the Switch 2 hardware to deliver the experience on a handheld platform, I am a little sad that it didn’t attempt to do a little more with it. Obviously mouse controls were never going to fly, but motion controls could’ve been fun. I’m just saying if Cyberpunk 2077could do it as in-depth as it did, other games can figure it out too.
Despite some roughness, Lies of P: Complete Edition is an amazing game to have on a portable system like the Nintendo Switch 2. Hopefully the Day-One patch irons out the few handheld kinks, because a game this good that plays this smooth is really nice to have on the go!
