Nintendo recently confirmed that the Switch 2 console has two versions of Nvidia DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling), confirming long-term rumors. According to the latest test by foreign media Digital Foundry, the two DLSS modes are the standard con...
Nintendo recently confirmed that the Switch 2 console has two versions of Nvidia DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling), confirming long-term rumors.
According to the latest test by foreign media Digital Foundry, the two DLSS modes are the standard convolutional neural network (CNN) model and a newly developed lightweight version called "DLSS Light". The standard CNN model can upgrade the game to 1080p, with high-quality and smooth images, and maintain excellent anti-aliasing effects when moving images and camera switching. DLSS Light can upscale the picture to more than 1080p (up to 4K in host mode), but the picture quality will decrease during movement, showing temporary quality degradation and occasional grid phenomena, because the reconstruction technology is simpler. However, the frame time cost of DLSS Light is half that of the complete CNN model, allowing higher resolution even with limited handheld/console hardware.
Switch 2 is still unique in the console market because it has a built-in Nvidia Tegra T239 SoC (codenamed "Drake"), 12 stream processors based on Nvidia Ampere GPU architecture, AI Tensor core based on DLSS upgrade, and RT core that supports hardware-accelerated light tracing. This is in sharp contrast to competitors SONY and Microsoft Xbox, which use traditional AMD GPUs. The Switch 2 hardware is an eight-core ARM Cortex-A78C CPU, 12GB LPDDR5X (split into two 6GB slices), and 256GB capacity (increased from the Switch's 32GB). It supports up to 2TB microSD Express cards to increase download speeds.
Digital Foundry evaluates the DLSS performance of a number of upcoming or already-released Switch 2 games, such as "Avatar 2077", "Storm 6", "Hogwarts Legacy", "Star Wars: Outlaws", "The Touryst" and "Fast Fusion", and confirms "Fat DLSS" (full CNN model, up to 1080p) and "DLSS" Light" difference. DLSS Light will temporarily stop updating when the lens moves or moves quickly to prevent the GPU from being overloaded and temporarily reducing the picture resolution. Fat DLSS has more stable image quality and smoothness, but the hardware requirements are limited to 1080p.
Developers familiar with Switch 2 DLSS confirmed that both modes are indeed available. The lightweight version is newly developed to match the hardware limitations of Switch 2. We have yet to see Nintendo’s first-party games adopt DLSS, which may reflect that Nintendo values precise control and game response rather than absolute graphics upgrades. Whether Nintendo's flagship games will use DLSS in the future is still unknown.
Nintendo Switch 2 supports two different types of Nvidia DLSS — A second, ‘light’ version for upscaling beyond 1080p, along with the standard, PC-like CNN model Nintendo Switch 2 Supports Two DLSS Modes: 1080p and Higher Resolution Nintendo Switch 2 DLSS Image Quality Analysis: “Tiny " DLSS/Full-Fat DLSS Confirmed Further reading: Switch 2 USB-C has poor compatibility, YouTuber found clues in actual testing Jen-Hsun Huang appears in Nintendo video, decrypting Switch 2 custom chip
