Modern Warfare 4 on Switch 2 measured: 125ms input lag, more than double the PS5
Digital Foundry measured Modern Warfare 4 multiplayer on Switch 2 at 81ms docked and 100ms average in handheld mode, against 49.1ms on PS5, with the worst handheld reading reaching 125ms.
Hero image: official screenshot from the Steam release of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4, Activision.
Digital Foundry published its Switch 2 tech review of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 on October 30, and the frame rate story is mostly good. The input lag story is where the port stumbles. Measured in multiplayer with wireless controllers on both platforms, the Switch 2 version responds about 31ms slower than a PS5 when docked, and about 51ms slower on average in handheld mode, where individual readings went as high as 125ms. Digital Foundry called the handheld latency "actually deleterious to performance".
What Digital Foundry measured
The numbers come from Digital Foundry's video review and the written version on its own site, both dated October 30, 2026. The test used a Switch 2 Pro Controller and a Sony DualSense, both connected wirelessly, which matches how most people actually play. One note from DF applies to everything below: the latency figures cover multiplayer only.
In docked mode, multiplayer input latency measured 80.7ms. In handheld mode the average was 100.0ms, but the readings varied a lot, from 83ms at best to 125ms at worst. On PS5 at 60Hz, the same test produced 49.1ms. That puts the Switch 2 at 64 percent more latency docked, and roughly double in handheld mode, where the worst reading sits at about two and a half times the PS5 figure.
DF's own wording: "responsiveness here simply isn't as good as on other consoles", and Switch 2 players "face a competitive disadvantage as a result of the added input lag, especially in portable mode."
The numbers side by side
| Platform and mode | Multiplayer input latency |
|---|---|
| PS5 at 60Hz, DualSense wireless | 49.1ms |
| Switch 2 docked, Pro Controller wireless | 80.7ms |
| Switch 2 handheld, average | 100.0ms |
| Switch 2 handheld, best to worst | 83ms to 125ms |
Frame rate context matters here, because latency and frame rate are separate problems. Multiplayer targets 60fps and holds it most of the time, with drops into the 50s or high 40s during heavy firefights, dense smoke, or when looking through the transparent visor of a riot shield. VRR support smooths those dips on compatible displays, though handheld play drops out of VRR range more often. The campaign is locked at 30fps, and DMZ targets 40fps on 120Hz displays.
Resolution runs dynamic everywhere. Docked with DLSS the game targets 900p and fell to 450p in the Paris vehicle chase, while the native SMAA mode scales up to a 1080p target. Handheld targets 720p and can sink to 360p under load. None of that affects input latency directly, but it shows where the headroom went.
Why COD returning to Nintendo matters at all
Modern Warfare 4 is the first Call of Duty on Nintendo hardware in 13 years, since Ghosts on Wii U in 2013. The return comes from the 10-year commitment Microsoft made to Nintendo while seeking regulatory approval for its $69 billion Activision Blizzard acquisition. Until the game arrived on October 23, simultaneously on Switch 2, PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC, that promise was just a filing in an antitrust case.
The port itself was handled by Digital Legends with support from Infinity Ward, and DF's overall verdict on the conversion is positive. It keeps the full engine feature set, every mode, and full cross-platform multiplayer. The cutbacks are real but specific: lower-resolution textures up close, reduced bump mapping, screen-space reflections removed entirely (the Xbox Series S loses them too), lower shadow quality, and no self-shadowing on campaign characters, though multiplayer restores it. The install weighs 88GB against 120GB on PS5.
A game of this size running at all on Switch 2 says something about the platform's pull with third-party publishers. It landed the same week Nintendo shipped the Ocarina of Time remake, which opened at 95 on OpenCritic, so the machine is collecting both legacy remakes and current-gen shooters at once. Our Ocarina of Time Switch 2 launch coverage has the details on that release.
What this means if you are buying
If your plan is the campaign, or casual couch play with friends, the lag numbers should sit low on your list of concerns. The campaign is locked at 30fps, performance holds, and the visual compromises are the kind you notice in direct comparison rather than in motion.
If you care about ranked 6v6 and your K/D, the calculation changes. Crossplay puts Switch 2 players in the same lobbies as PS5, Xbox and PC, and against those opponents you eat 31ms of extra delay docked and around 51ms handheld before accounting for skill. On the handheld numbers alone, docked play is the better setting for competitive matches, and handheld is the worst way to grind ranked on this platform. For context on how the Switch 2 compares with the Windows handhelds in the same price conversation, see our Black Friday handheld guide.
The practical advice from these numbers: play docked when it counts, keep the Pro Controller rather than Joy-Cons, and expect the latency fix to be the loudest community request. DF itself expects a patch to be the main ask and has said it wants to re-test after updates. Whether Activision delivers one is currently unknown.
What we did not test
We did not reproduce any of these measurements. GameIsWave has no latency capture rig, so every number in this article is quoted from Digital Foundry's published review and video, as relayed by Eurogamer. We also did not run the campaign or DMZ on Switch 2 ourselves, so the resolution drops and frame rate behaviour above rest on DF's testing as well. Anything about a future patch is speculation until it ships.
