Nvidia claims 10x graphics performance boost on Switch 2, with DLSS and ray tracing support
A little bit more to share: When Nintendo unveiled the Switch 2, it was vague about the chip powering the device, only mentioning that it was a custom design from Nvidia. It didn’t list any specs besides general information – up to 120fps on device, 4K at 60fps, VRR, etc. Thankfully, Nvidia has shed a little more light on the subject.
Nvidia has posted a blog highlighting the features offered by their hardware powering the Switch 2 beyond the information Nintendo provided. Among them is ray tracing support.
While ray tracing is also available on other consoles, it took a while for developers to start actually using it. Spider-Man: Miles Morales and Cyberpunk 2077 were a couple of the first titles to implement RT in the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. The Shortcut notes that as of January, the list of PS5 titles with RT support has grown to 58. However, some only offer ray tracing on the PS5 Pro version.
Another bragging right Nintendo can claim is DLSS support, now a mainstay for desktop gaming. Team Red’s platform-agnostic alternative, FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR), has recently trickled into gaming laptops, consoles, and handheld PCs. Both technologies allow systems to increase image quality while maintaining performance, but Switch 2 is the first gaming handheld to offer Nvidia’s arguably superior DLSS. Thanks to its Tensor Cores, Nvidia claims Nintendo’s hybrid has 10 times the graphical performance of the original Switch.
All of this looks great on paper, but here’s the rub. While having DLSS and ray tracing on the Switch 2 is a plus, it’s up to developers to implement it. We aren’t just going to see games leveraging these features immediately. It took some time for studios to prioritize it in PS5 and XBSX games. Rockstar didn’t add it to GTA 5 until 2022 – two years after the consoles debuted. It will likely take even longer before developers implement them on a device with a comparatively smaller screen.
Even considering the boost in resolution the Switch 2 offers while docked to a TV, there is a hard push to market the device as a handheld gaming unit. Its 8-inch display at 120fps in 1080p is more than adequate for that use case. So, developers probably won’t rush to implement DLSS and RT in patches or new games for a while. Nvidia didn’t mention any games in development that would implement either technology.
The more pressing problems with the Switch 2 are its price point and that of its games. At $450 for sub-console performance, many Switch owners are taking a hard pass on the upgraded model. Nintendo’s new $70 to $80 target for new and previously released games has also raised many fans’ hackles. While the device is clearly a capable handheld, it is not on par with home consoles except in its price.
