Nintendo Switch 2: Game developer assumes Steam Deck-level performance – with a catch

The upgrade you want most for the Switch successor is more power. This will probably come true, but one developer still sees a hurdle

The Nintendo Switch 2, if that’s even what it will be called, could have about the same performance as the Steam Deck, but software limitations may hold it back.

This is why it’s important:One of the biggest criticisms of the Nintendo Switch is its low performance compared to other consoles. Even at release, the console was significantly slower

• In oursurvey on the Nintendo Switch 2, “More performance” was the most requested improvement from you.
• In second place was backwards compatibility and in third place a higher resolution in docked mode.

In detail:The well-known leaker and insider Moore’s Law is Dead spoke with game developer Matthew Cassells fromAlderon Gameson the “Broken Silicon” podcast.

MLID asked him how the developer feels about the leaked specs of the Switch 2:

• The current Nintendo Switch only has 4.0 GB of RAM, which is too little for him. The system effectively only has 3.0 GB left for games, as the CPU and GPU have to share this. An upgrade to 12.0 GB would therefore be welcome;
• According to Cassells, the Switch 2 should be roughly on a par with the Steam Deck.
• However, the game developer believes that the console’s performance could be slowed down by protective measures against jailbreaks.

What specs the Switch 2 could have:In the meantime, there are manyleaks and rumorsabout the successor to the Nintendo Switch.

The rough picture of the hardware looks like this:

• Nvidia Tegra T239 processor
• 8 x ARM Cortex A78C with 8 MiByte L3 cache
• 1,536 CUDA cores, 48 Tensor cores, 12 RT cores
• 12.0 GByte LPDDR5X RAM with 7,500 MT/s

It remains to be seen whether this picture will prove true and to what extent protective measures will ensure lower performance

The release of the Switch successor is expected in the first quarter of 2025.

What wishes do you have for the Nintendo Switch 2? Apart from improved performance, are there any other features, functions and improvements you would like to see? Do you think that security measures against jailbreaks will lead to a drop in performance? Or is low Nintendo console performance one of the least of your worries? Let us know in the comments!