Nick Fernandez / Android Authority
It’s been a few weeks since the Nintendo Switch 2 hit shelves, but if we’re being perfectly honest, there’s not much reason to buy one yet. I’ve been revisiting my OG Switch to stave off the FOMO, but I was sad to learn that my left Joy-Con now drifts so badly that Link runs in circles like he’s drunk in Breath of the Wild.
Instead of shelling out $40 for another Joy-Con with a ticking drift timer, I reached for something I hadn’t touched in a while: Switch emulation on Android. I had largely given up on the scene after the events of last year, but what I found honestly blew me away. Not only is Switch emulation alive, it’s evolved in ways I didn’t see coming. I still love playing on real hardware, but let’s just say the emulator grave Nintendo tried to dig didn’t stay filled for long.
Hard reset: The Yuzu shutdown
Aamir Siddiqui / Android Authority
For those of you who haven’t followed Switch emulation closely, it’s been a crazy few years. Ryujinx and Yuzu were making huge gains, with the latter finally releasing an Android version in May 2023. At first, performance was limited, and while it was novel and fun, few games were truly playable.
Things really kicked into high gear when native code execution (NCE) entered the chat. This clever compatibility layer lets Android devices execute some Switch code natively, resulting in major performance jumps. Suddenly, games that were once PowerPoint slideshows became playable. Skyline pioneered the use of compatibility layers for Switch emulation, but when it bowed out early in 2023 to dodge Nintendo’s legal fireball, Yuzu picked up the torch.
Native code execution is a gamechanger for Switch emulation on Android.
With NCE enabled, Yuzu finally felt like it was close to being a real option for handheld play. Sure, you still needed a reasonably beefy Android device, but it was no longer just a novelty. I couldn’t believe I could actually play Switch games on a phone, and that’s when I started to think: maybe Switch emulation on Android actually had a future.
Curtis Joe / Android Authority
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