Why That Brief Look at Mario Kart 9 Suggests Nintendo Switch 2 Is 'Significantly More Powerful' Than the Original — According to a Developer

An indie game developer with extensive experience creating games for the original Nintendo Switch has offered compelling evidence suggesting the Switch 2 boasts significantly enhanced processing power. This conclusion is drawn primarily from analyzing the brief, but revealing, glimpse of Mario Kart 9 showcased in the Switch 2's recent unveiling.

Nintendo's official specifications remain scarce, although upgrades like revised Joy-Cons, an improved kickstand, and a larger console are confirmed. However, the true extent of the Switch 2's power has remained elusive—until now.

Jerrel Dulay of Sungrand Studios, a developer with a notable history working on Wii U and 3DS titles, presented his analysis in a YouTube video. He highlights several key graphical elements in the Mario Kart 9 footage as indicators of a substantial performance leap.

Mario Kart 9 – A Graphical Deep Dive

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Dulay points to the utilization of physically-based shaders, impacting textures and responding to lighting and reflections. This was a computationally intensive task on the original Switch, often impacting frame rates. The Mario Kart 9 footage also showcases detailed ground textures and realistic material reflections, demanding significant processing power and RAM.

Reports suggest the Switch 2 employs an Nvidia T239 ARM mobile chip with approximately 1536 CUDA cores, a significant increase from the original Switch's Tegra X1 chip with only 256. Furthermore, leaks indicate the Switch 2 may feature 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM, a substantial upgrade from the original's 4GB. This increased RAM, potentially operating at higher speeds, facilitates faster texture loading and allows for higher-resolution textures and a greater number of unique textures simultaneously.

The Mario Kart 9 trailer also demonstrates the use of volumetric lighting and far-distance shadows, both computationally expensive effects. The ability to render these effects smoothly at 60 frames per second strongly suggests a significant power increase. High polygon count characters and real-time cloth physics further support this conclusion.

What do you think of the Nintendo Switch 2 reveal?

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In conclusion, Dulay's analysis, based on the Mario Kart 9 footage, strongly suggests a significant performance boost in the Switch 2, promising enhanced visuals and gameplay experiences for developers and gamers alike. Further details are anticipated in Nintendo's April Direct presentation.