Arms Update Out Now For Nintendo Switch, Here's What It Does

Nintendo's Switch fighting game, Arms, has received a new update, and version 2.1 adds new training exercises and changes a bunch of fighters. There are also lots of balance changes not specific to any one fighter, such as the rush gauge filling slower when your attacks miss.

In terms of specific tweaks, plenty of fighters and Arms have been buffed. Master Mummy and Mechanica now have faster movement, as do the Boomerang and Coolerang Arms. There also a few Arms that have been nerfed to some extent, such as Bubb and (ironically, given the name) Buff--they now extend slower. Take a look at the full list of changes, via Nintendo, at the bottom of this article.

Arms launched in June to a positive critical reception. Nintendo has continued to support the fighting game since, with multiple updates and free DLC. The company also revealed recently that the game had sold over 1 million copies by the end of June, while the Switch itself had shifted nearly 5 million units.

In our Arms verdict, critic Kallie Plagge called the title a "strong, substantial fighting game," but one that "takes a while to really hit its stride." Read more in our full Arms review.

In other Nintendo Switch news, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild has also been updated, adding a new Zelda-specific news channel on Switch called Tips from the Wild. The news channel, which goes live today, allows players to obtain in-game items, though it's currently unclear what those items might be. In addition, Nintendo Switch online services undergo maintenance today.

Arms Update 2.1 Patch Notes

General

• Moved Training to the top menu.
• Added five exercises to Training and added difficulty level indications.
• Adjusted the way the rush gauge fills, decreasing the amount gained for punches that do not connect with the opponent.
• When 3-4 players start a battle, instructions on how to switch targets will now be displayed. A cursor will also be displayed above the current target for a set time.
• Adjusted hitbox sizes for fighters, improving issues where hits were not registered despite looking like hits.
• Changed the pause, results, and replay menus in Training to be more convenient.
• For Best Stage in Stats, made it harder for less frequently played stages to be selected, even if you have a high win ration on them.
• Corrected issue that caused the game to hang-up when the ending was skipped at a particular time.

Fighter/Arms-Specific Tweaks

Master Mummy	Increased dash speed. Increased movement speed when jumping.
Mechanica	Increased movement speed when jumping.
Kid Cobra	Adjusted floatation when performing a jump attack.
Byte & Barq	Trained Barq to get up quicker.
Boomerang	Increased speed when throwing in a wide curve. Increased extension speed. Increased homing.
Coolerang	Increased extension speed. Increased homing.
Revolver	Increased extension speed. Improved curving performance. Increased retraction speed. Shortened the time needed from starting a rush to firing the first shot.
Retorcher	Improved curving performance. Increased retraction speed. Increased expansion rate when extending.
Parasol	Increased expansion rate when extending. Increased retraction speed. Decreased expansion rate for charge attacks.
Megawatt	Improved curving performance. Increased retraction speed.
Slamamander	Increased homing.
Tribolt	Increased extension speed. Decreased rush damage.
Triblast	Increased speed of charge attacks.
Homie	Increased rush damage.
Guardian	Made it so the electric shock when a charge attack connects lasts longer. Corrected odd behavior that occurred when a rush attack connected with a wall or platform.
Blorb	Corrected odd behavior that occurred when a rush attack connected with an opponent that was not targeted.
Seekie	Increased retraction speed. Made it so the electric shock when a charge attack connects doesn’t last as long.
Ramram	Increased retraction speed. Decreased expansion rate for charge attacks. Decreased speed of charge attacks.
Cracker, Popper, Hydra	Increased retraction speed.
Bubb, Buff	Decreased extension speed. Decreased expansion rate when extending.