Control, the atmospheric suspense game from 505 Games is now available on the Switch as Control Ultimate Edition- Cloud Version, but there’s a catch. Since the Switch is not powerful enough to natively run Control, players can only play the game if their internet connection is stable enough to stream it.
Players are invited to download a launcher for Control and can choose between demoing a version of the game with enhanced graphics or enhanced performance. After the choice is made, a notice pops up warning you that the demo will only last a few minutes, after which the player will be invited to purchase the full version of the game. A stable internet connection are required to play the game and it will be subject to the whims of server capacity (Note: In order to test this demo myself, I am currently sitting in a slowly progressing queue with no estimated wait time.)
This method of streaming beefier games was first introduced in Japan with Resident Evil 7. Control Ultimate Edition - Cloud Version, is the North American introduction to the service. Expect more titles like Hitman 3 in the future.
Correction: October 28, 5pm: We’ve corrected the article to note that Control does not require a Nintendo Online subscription. The game is also not running on Nintendo’s servers. A rep for Nintendo clarified that the game runs off of servers tied to Ubitus, the same company that supported Switch cloud gaming in Japan.