Riders Republic is heading to Nintendo Switch 2 on December 9, Ubisoft announced on October 20, and it's bringing a gift for everyone else. The same day, the game gets Nomad, a mode that lets you play most of it offline, on every current platform.
Ubisoft revealed the Switch 2 version during a special fifth-anniversary livestream, Nintendo Life reports. For a game that has needed an online connection since launch, the offline news might be the bigger story.
Nomad: Riders Republic without the internet
Here's what Ubisoft says Nomad covers. Most of the single-player game works offline: exploring the open world, progressing your careers, unlocking landmarks and customizing your rider. When you reconnect, nothing is lost. In Ubisoft's words, "every bit of progress made while offline is fully reintegrated into your overall Riders Republic progression."
Some things still need a connection, and Ubisoft lists them: the shop, season progression, sponsors, multiplayer and user-created events. So the mass races Nintendo Life describes, with "50+ other players", still need you online. Nomad is about the solo side of the game.
That's a meaningful change for a handheld. Switch 2 players are the obvious winners, since a portable open-world sports game is much more useful if it works on a train or a plane. But because Nomad arrives on December 9 across all current platforms, players on other systems get offline play too.
What the Switch 2 version is
Nintendo Life sums up the game itself: a multiplayer open-world playground set across US national parks, including Bryce Canyon, Yosemite Valley and Mammoth Mountain, covering mountain biking, BMX, skateboarding, snowboarding, scooters and wingsuit racing.
What Ubisoft hasn't said yet is just as useful to know. Its post doesn't give a Switch 2 price, editions, performance details or whether progress carries across from other platforms. If those matter to you, wait for Ubisoft to confirm them before pre-ordering anything.
The anniversary extras, with dates
Ubisoft is marking five years with a stack of events:
- Free Weekend: October 22 to 26. Ubisoft's post doesn't list which platforms.
- Sale: up to 90% off on the Ubisoft Store through October 26, and up to 80% off on PlayStation and Xbox through November 4.
- Henri PFR concert: an in-game show from October 22 for about two weeks, airing twice a day on a big screen in the Ridge, with a reward for watching. The tracks join the in-game radio from Season 21.
- 5th Anniversary user-generated event: October 21 to November 4, with anniversary skis in week one and an anniversary BMX in week two.
- Ridge Full Send event: November 25 to December 9, featuring every Toy released in the past year, running right up to the Switch 2 launch.
If you're curious and not yet sure, the free weekend is the easy way in. If you already own Riders Republic, the anniversary events give you rewards to collect before December.
The next firm date is December 9, when the Switch 2 version and Nomad both arrive. Until then, the open questions are price and cross-progression for Switch 2, and Ubisoft hasn't answered them yet.
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