Fallout 4: Anniversary Edition Now Available on Switch 2

Wasteland Goes Portable#

According to Nintendo Life, Fallout 4: Anniversary Edition is now available on Nintendo Switch 2. The release includes all six official add-ons and over 150 Creation Club items, bringing the complete Fallout 4 experience to Nintendo's latest hardware.

The Anniversary Edition packages the base game alongside expansion content that was previously released separately. Players can explore the Commonwealth and venture into additional storylines without needing to purchase DLC individually. For anyone who skipped Fallout 4 on other platforms or wants a portable version of Bethesda's post-apocalyptic RPG, this is essentially the definitive package.

What's Included#

The Switch 2 version bundles:

• All six official add-ons (Fallout 4: Automatron, Fallout 4: Wasteland Workshop, Fallout 4: Far Harbor, Fallout 4: Contraptions Workshop, Fallout 4: Vault-Tec Workshop, and Fallout 4: Nuka World)

• Over 150 Creation Club items (including weapons, armor sets, settlement objects, and gameplay tweaks)

• The full base game experience with all post-launch patches and improvements

This marks Fallout 4's debut on a Nintendo platform, nearly a decade after its original 2015 release on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. The game puts players in the role of a Vault dweller searching for their missing son across an irradiated Boston wasteland, with freedom to build settlements, modify weapons, and shape the fate of various factions like the Brotherhood of Steel, the Institute, and the Railroad.

The included expansions add significant content beyond the base game's already substantial runtime. Far Harbor delivers one of the series' most atmospheric storylines on a fog-shrouded island off the coast of Maine, while Nuka-World lets players lead raider gangs through a twisted post-apocalyptic theme park. The workshop add-ons expand the settlement building system with new objects, automation options, and vault construction tools that appeal to players who treat Fallout 4 more like a post-apocalyptic Minecraft than a traditional RPG.

Creation Club content, which originally launched as Bethesda's curated mod marketplace, includes everything from new weapons and armor to quest lines and gameplay features. While the Creation Club was controversial at launch for charging for mods when free alternatives existed on PC, bundling 150+ items with the Anniversary Edition makes it a much easier sell. You're getting content like the Anti-Materiel Rifle from Fallout: New Vegas, Chinese Stealth Armor, and various settlement decoration packs without additional purchases.

Performance Considerations#

The big question for any Bethesda RPG on new hardware is how it runs. Fallout 4 was notorious for performance issues even on high-end PCs at launch, with the settlement building system and dense urban areas like downtown Boston causing frame rate drops. The original console versions struggled to maintain 30fps in certain areas, particularly when settlements grew complex or combat got chaotic.

Switch 2's improved specs should handle the game better than the original Switch could have, but whether Bethesda targeted 30fps or 60fps for this port will significantly impact the experience. The game's VATS system (which slows time during combat for targeted shots) makes frame rate less critical than in pure action games, but smooth performance still matters when you're fighting off super mutants or exploring the Glowing Sea.

Portable play could be a game-changer for Fallout 4's slower-paced elements. Settlement building, inventory management, and crafting sessions that feel tedious on a TV might work better in handheld mode during commutes or downtime. The game's quest design also supports shorter play sessions despite the overall length, you can knock out a few side quests or work on your settlement without committing to multi-hour story missions.

A Second Chance at the Commonwealth#

Fallout 4 launched to strong sales but mixed reactions from series veterans. Some praised the improved gunplay and settlement building, while others criticized the simplified dialogue system and main story that railroaded players into caring about a missing child regardless of their preferred roleplay. The game leaned harder into action-RPG territory compared to Fallout 3 and New Vegas, which worked for some players but alienated others who preferred deeper dialogue trees and more flexible character builds.

Nearly ten years later, the game's reputation has settled into a more balanced place. It's not the RPG purist's favorite Fallout, but it's a solid open-world shooter with addictive crafting loops and enough environmental storytelling to reward exploration. The settlement system, initially divisive, has developed a dedicated following who've built elaborate communities across the Commonwealth.

For Switch 2 owners, this represents a chance to experience or revisit Fallout 4 without the baggage of launch-era discourse. The Anniversary Edition includes years of patches, balance adjustments, and quality-of-life improvements that weren't present at release. If you bounced off the game in 2015 or never tried it because you didn't own the right platform, this is arguably the best time to jump in.

The timing also matters in the context of the Fallout franchise's recent resurgence. The Fallout TV series brought renewed attention to the series, and with Fallout 5 still years away (Bethesda is focused on The Elder Scrolls VI first), Fallout 4 remains the most recent single-player entry for newcomers curious about the games after watching the show.

Switch 2 owners can now take the full Fallout 4 experience on the go, complete with the crafting systems, companion mechanics, and branching questlines that defined Bethesda's take on the post-apocalyptic RPG. Whether you're building elaborate settlements, hunting down legendary weapons, or just wandering the wasteland looking for environmental stories told through terminal entries and skeleton arrangements, the Commonwealth is now portable.

Are you planning to revisit the Commonwealth on Switch 2, or will this be your first time exploring the wasteland? And more importantly, will you side with the Minutemen, Brotherhood, Railroad, or Institute this time around?