Nintendo patent hints at AI-enhancing technology for Switch 2

The next version of the Nintendo Switch, often called “Switch 2,” is generating a lot of buzz with new leaks. Recently, a Nintendo patent revealed plans to use AI-powered upscaling technology to optimize games for the console’s cartridges.

This new method aims to compress large 4K texture files, making them smaller. Using techniques similar to Nvidia’s DLSS or PlayStation 5 Pro’s PSSR, the technology allows native 1080p assets to be upscaled to 4K resolution. This means that storage-intensive games, such as a native 4K title with a 60GB download size, can fit into the 32GB storage of current Switch cartridges.

The patent, filed in July 2023 and recently made public, shows Nintendo’s effort to balance technological improvements with easy-to-use physical media. Industry expert Laura Kate Dale highlights the benefits, especially in keeping download sizes manageable while ensuring high-quality images.

Perhaps the most interesting thing about this, after extensive reading, is that one example use case given is explicitly reducing the overall size of games, to adapt a modern game to “lower capacity physical media”, e.g. cars Switch, which become exponentially more expensive. for larger capacity cars.

The example given is that a game with native 4K textures might need a 60GB download, but a native 1080 version might only need 20GB (which would allow it to fit on a 32GB Switch Cart, the current maximum size that Nintendo produced for Switch 1). The idea is to make a 4X improvement on the device in real time.

In addition to the patent news, new images of what appear to be internal components of the Switch 2 have emerged online. These leaks confirm previous glimpses of the console’s design, including its motherboard and a second USB port on top.

The photos suggest that the Switch 2 will maintain much of its predecessor’s hybrid design, but will include key upgrades. Reports indicate a slightly larger size, magnetic attachments for the Joy-Con, and a new “C” button on the right Joy-Con, the purpose of which is still unknown.

Nintendo has yet to confirm any details about its next-generation console. However, the company has stated that it plans to reveal the Switch 2 before the end of its current fiscal year, which ends on March 31, 2025.