It Takes Two on Switch 2: Free Upgrade and Full Cross-Play Are Live With Update 1.700

It Takes Two Switch 2 Cross-Play Is Live

Hazelight Studios just dropped update 1.700 for It Takes Two, and it is the kind of update most five-year-old games never get: full cross-platform play across PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and the brand-new Nintendo Switch 2 version. The patch went live October 15, the same day the native Switch 2 edition hit the eShop. If you have ever tried to convince a friend to play this co-op masterpiece and been blocked by the console-wall, that excuse is dead.

This is a bigger deal than it looks. It Takes Two is a co-op-only game. There is no single-player mode. The entire design assumes a second player shows up, so every platform barrier shrinks the player pool. With this update, Hazelight has folded everyone into one matchmaking pool, from a day-one PS4 copy to the fresh Switch 2 download. Games like this live or die on their long tail, and this is exactly how you protect one.

What Update 1.700 Actually Changes

The headline is cross-play, but the patch is really the Switch 2 launch vehicle. The new native version targets 1080p at 60 frames per second in docked mode, which is a meaningful jump over the original Switch port from 2022 — that one ran, but only just, and the always-on split-screen made the handheld experience questionable. Nintendo Life called the original a Game-of-the-Year experience dragged down by graphical compromises, so a native port with faster load times and sharper visuals is exactly what Switch players have been waiting for.

The Friend's Pass carries over too. One copy still lets you play the entire campaign with a partner who owns nothing — the same system that made the original such an easy recommendation for couples and siblings.

The Free Upgrade, Explained

Own It Takes Two on the original Switch? You do not need to buy it again. The Switch 2 upgrade is free in supported regions: digital owners upgrade through the eShop, and physical owners use the in-game upgrade icon to open the eShop path. EA requires the Switch copy to sit on the same Nintendo Account, which is the usual fine print. Buying fresh? The standard edition is $39.99.

There is one catch worth knowing. Switch 1 players can only play online with Switch 2 players if the Switch 2 side drops back to the legacy Switch version. So if you upgraded and your co-op partner is still on the old hardware, you lose the visual improvements while playing together. It is a minor tax, and GameShare helps — a second household can play locally without a second purchase.

Why This Matters Right Now

The timing is not an accident. The Switch 2 is in its first year, and Nintendo's library-building strategy has leaned hard on upgrades of beloved last-gen games — we covered a similar move when PEAK landed on consoles, and the Switch 2 dock market is already moving, as our best Switch 2 docks roundup showed. It Takes Two arriving day-one with full cross-play, a free upgrade path, and 1080p/60fps makes it one of the strongest third-party additions to the Switch 2's early library.

For a game that won Game of the Year 2021 and has sold over 30 million copies, this is Hazelight playing the long game. Studio founder Josef Fares built his reputation on co-op that actually requires cooperation, and update 1.700 keeps that philosophy alive on every screen you own. If you have somehow never played it, this is the version to start with — and if you have a Switch 2 docked and ready, your partner has no excuse left.