The first look at Nintendo Switch 2 didn’t have much in the way of game footage except for a brief glimpse at a new Mario Kart. Ordinary players may be able to appreciate the preview of what Switch 2 can do, but one game developer has broken down how the footage exposes the sheer power of Nintendo’s next system.
Sungrand Studios’ Jerrel Dulay–whose previous credits include the Silver Falls game series–shared his extended look at Switch 2’s capabilities. Dulay has experience working on titles for the original Switch, so the difference between the console generations was readily apparent to him. The two “most important” things he pointed out were the true volumetric lighting–an advanced lighting technique that creates a sense of density in the atmosphere–and the extremely detailed and unique textures of the backgrounds.
Because the first iteration of Switch would struggle to run either of those features at a high frame rate, Dulay noted their inclusion suggests that “this system is significantly more powerful.” He also estimated that the RAM for Switch 2 will be between 12-16GB. Additionally, Dulay noted the real-time creation of shadows, cloth simulation on the flags in the background, reflective textures, and the higher polygon counts on the character models for Mario and his friends. Bringing all of those aspects together at 60fps demonstrates just how far Switch 2 has come from the original model.
Dulay also shared his excitement to get his hands on the Switch 2’s development tools, as the Unity game engine for the first Switch limited what he could pull off. Now, Dulay believes that games he had to set aside because of the Switch’s limitations can be brought to fruition as he originally envisioned.
Nintendo will reveal more about Switch 2 and its games during the next Nintendo Direct on April 2. Players who want to try out the Switch 2 early will be able to play demos in a handful of cities around the world starting in April. Nintendo has also revealed that the Switch 2 will be backward compatible with the majority of Switch games. There isn’t a release date for Switch 2 yet, but some are predicting a June launch.