Fast Fusion review – As essential Switch 2 launch game

If you’re looking for an exclusive launch game on Nintendo Switch 2 that isn’t Mario Kart World or (heaven forbid) Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour, then there’s really only one option. Fast Fusion is the third Switch 2 racer we’re covering (following MKW and Ridge Racer), and this one is the cheapest and arguably the most interesting of the bunch.

Developed by the technical wizards at Shin’en – best known for Fast RMX and The Touryst – Fast Fusion attempts to push the limits of Switch 2 hardware further than any other game, much like their past titles have done for other consoles. As a result, Fast Fusion has you blazing through tracks so fast that your peripherals blur, creating a tunnel-vision of racing action. If you focus on anything but the track ahead of you and other racers, you’ll almost certainly crash out and burn up.

Like the Wii U’s Fast Racing NEO and Switch’s Fast RMX, Fast Fusion includes a color-swap mechanic where you flip your vehicle from blue to orange and back again with the tap of a button. Boost pads on the track are also color coded, and you’ll need to match the color or else you’ll take damage. It’s a small thing that isn’t difficult to get the hang of, but it ensures that you’re constantly paying attention.

Shiny orbs dotted around the track refill your Boost gauge, and efficient use (and sometimes abuse) of this gauge is what will get you victories in Championship races. They’re not always easy to grab though, often hovering in the air forcing you to use a new jump mechanic to access them. Jumping for orbs can give you the burst of speed you need to win, but it’s also dangerous, putting you at risk of flying off the track.

The initial selection of lightning-fast hovering race cars is pretty bland, but there’s a store of purchasable vehicles (in-game currency only, no microtransactions) that you can fuse to access new hybrids. If a vehicle has great Top Speed and Acceleration, but rubbish Boost, you can fuse it with a vehicle that has a good Boost for a well-balanced machine. Smartly fused vehicles are undeniably better than the stock options, but you lose access to the individual machines while they’re fused.

The problem is that the game isn’t quite as generous with funds as I’d like. Winning Championships grants you enough funds to unlock the next Championship easily enough, but if you want to purchase vehicles and experiment with new fusions, you’ll have to jump into other modes – like Superhero or Time Attack – or replay earlier Championships for the cash. Superhero asks you to replay any race you wish, but you must come first and not crash out even once, which can be more difficult than you’d expect, especially in the faster difficulty modes. Time Attack meanwhile has you racing against Shin’en staff ghosts.

It’s undeniably a good time when racing through stages. Boosting into other racers slows them down and forces them to hand over their Boost orbs, allowing you to blaze into the lead. It’s as fast as the name implies, and if you stop to take a look at the backgrounds, it also looks pretty magnificent.

Shin’en has pushed the boat out in terms of fidelity, but it has come at a heavy cost. Digital Foundry did the heavy lifting and confirmed what many had already guessed: Fast Fusion is using the Switch 2’s custom DLSS implementation to upscale a very low-res internal image up to 1080p, 1440p, or 4K on compatible TVs. An internal resolution of 720p is only available at 30 fps; if you want 60 fps – and you do – then you’ll have to settle for a blurrier image while in motion. I said your peripheral vision blurs, and this is part of the reason why, especially when combined with a fish-eye effect when boosting.

It usually isn’t an issue, but sometimes I found corners hard to see when speeding toward them on a busy road, especially when playing the game in handheld mode where the internal resolution takes an even further dip. This isn’t a deal breaker, and Shin’en has promised a “Pure” mode offering raw pixels with no upscaling along with additional content coming in the near future, but when moving at speed – which you almost always are – it’s very obvious that you’re not looking at a 4K, or even 1080p, image, and it’s distracting.

Image quality aside, Fast Fusion is a speedy racer with a lot of content, and it’s also one of the cheapest Switch 2 launch titles, only being beaten by Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour. It’s a minor shame that there’s no real online matchmaking, but at the price point, Fast Fusion still presents the best deal you can get at launch on Switch 2. If you’re still eager for a new F-Zero, Fast Fusion will fill the void in your heart for now.