Yesterday, Nintendo took the gaming world by storm with the reveal of the Nintendo Switch 2. However, the spotlight wasn’t solely on Nintendo. Nvidia, the brains behind the custom system on a chip, shared some intriguing details in their recent blog update.
During a developer roundtable, Tetsuya Sasaki, the technical director for the Switch 2, mentioned, “Nintendo prefers to keep hardware specs under wraps. We like to highlight the benefits we bring to players.” In line with this, Nvidia is keeping specifics like the number of cores and their speeds under the radar, but they’re boasting about a massive improvement—claiming a tenfold boost in graphics performance over the original Switch.
The new chip’s RT cores are equipped for enhanced lighting and reflections through hardware ray tracing. Meanwhile, the tensor cores are crucial for DLSS upscaling. This technology is expected to enable the system to support up to 4K resolution when docked and produce silky-smooth gameplay at up to 120 frames per second in handheld mode.
Nvidia adds another layer of innovation with the tensor cores, facilitating AI-driven face tracking and background removal. This is showcased in features like the new social GameChat and games such as Super Mario Party Jamboree – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Jamboree TV. However, it’s still a mystery whether these features derive from similar technology used in Nvidia Broadcast for PC.
Moreover, Nvidia confirmed that the handheld mode of the Switch 2 will have a variable refresh rate (VRR) display, powered by G-Sync, eliminating dreaded screen tearing during intense gaming sessions.
For those wondering about legacy, Nvidia also crafted the chip for the original Switch, a customized version of the Tegra X1. Despite its age, Nintendo has managed to keep pulling impressive performance out of it for over eight years, with new games still being launched.
As the June 5 release date approaches, priced at $449.99, it’ll be exciting to see how much game developers can push the boundaries of this new chip in the Switch 2. The future of portable gaming looks promising with these advancements.
