The Nintendo Switch 2 is the first Nintendo console to feature support for HDR, but it isn’t without its quirks. Outside of having a display that doesn’t feature all the hallmarks required for an accurate HDR experience, its HDR configuration menu initially seems lacking. That’s a mistake, it seems, with Nintendo hiding a vital setting behind a confusing UI choice.
When configuring the Nintendo Switch 2 with an HDR-compliant display, you’re initially greeted with a familiar screen that lets you adjust the maximum peak brightness level the console will output. Once you’ve finished setting that point, the Switch 2 transitions to what initially just seems like an image to demo the changes you’ve just made. That isn’t the case, however, with the screen containing an “Adjust Brightness” slider that you can access by hitting Y, which is more important than you might think.
This brightness slider actually controls the paper white point of the image, which is used as a reference point for numerous other HDR settings behind the scenes. But leaving this at its default, you’ll likely overexposing the entire HDR image, losing details in midtones and shadows as a result. It’s frustrating that this slider doesn’t have a corresponding nit value (with white points usually configured between 200-300 nits), but it’s definitely a setting to adjust immediately if you’ve been finding the HDR presentation while docked lacking.
It’s also not the only setting to take note of if you’re looking to get the best out of the Nintendo Switch 2. As with other HDR-compatible consoles, you’ll want to make sure that Dynamic Tone Mapping is either off or set to HGIG on your display, so that mapping is done by the console instead. Once done, you’ll want to run through the HDR setup again just to ensure that your previous settings are still accurate. While there, make sure to set HDR to only turn on when playing supported games, and not on at all times as is the default.
