The Outer Worlds release on Nintendo Switch understandably had to make some major trade-offs when it comes to visuals, as the Nintendo Switch simply doesn't have the performance of its competitors. That doesn't mean that developers like Obsidian don't want games like The Outer Worlds to look their best, however. As evidence of their continued support for the Nintendo Switch, Obsidian's gone ahead and issued a new patch for The Outer Worlds that improves visuals and performance.
Five feature areas were the focus of Obsidian's efforts for this The Outer Worlds Switch patch. First, Obisidian implemented half-resolution SSAO, which should add more lighting/shadow effects for assets in the world. Second, clouds have been added to The Outer Worlds' skybox. SSR, surface-based reflections, has been replaced with SphereReflectionCapture, which is assumedly an improvement. Finally, Obisidan's disabled subsurface profile shading and added Depth of Field to The Outer Worlds' Conversation Camera.
While those are relatively big changes when it comes to visuals, Obsidian also made a variety of smaller changes. For example, some changes were made to improve CPU performance, textures were packed to save on memory, and a variety of other optimizations were noted. These changes likely allowed Obsidian to make the above feature additions with the reclaimed free performance. Other changes include some redesigned buildings and AI issues.
The Outer Worlds may not have been built for the Nintendo Switch, but that doesn't mean that Obsidian isn't taking the port seriously. Hopefully, these improvements also pave the way for The Outer Worlds DLC Peril on Gorgon, and future DLC, to come to the platform soon. Expect Obsidian to continue supporting The Outer Worlds on Switch going forward.
The Outer Worlds is available now on PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
Source: Patch Notes