“DLSS does seem quite widespread on Switch 2” says reviewer, but it’s not the same as PC
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With the release of the Nintendo Switch 2, Nvidia discussed the major breakthroughs it made to create the new processor for the console. Bringing about its RTX technology into the handheld world took some skill and innovation, given its limitations. So it’s no real surprise that it relies on some of its other technologies to improve performance on the Switch 2.
In its latest podcast episode, the crew of Digital Foundry discusses this rendition of upscaling in the console. Answering multiple questions from its supporters on how widespread the use of the feature is, they talk about the details and its implementation in a variety of games.
They comment on the fact that it is rather widespread and basically utilized across the board. Considering that the low-level hardware promises 4K resolutions while docked, it obviously needs some help to get there. You would expect it to directly implement DLSS, but taking a closer look, it looks to be something a little bit different.
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Image quality comparison between Hogwarts legacy on Switch 2 and PC using DLSS 4, Source Digital Foundry, YouTube
Image quality comparison between Hogwarts legacy on Switch 2 and PC using FSR, Source Digital Foundry, YouTube
Nintendo Switch 2’s DLSS upscaling
Answering the question, DF comments on the fact that DLSS on Switch seems to be a Temporal Anti-Aliasing upscaling solution more than anything. Comparing Hogwarts Legacy side by side, there is a difference between the Switch 2 implementation and the PC one, using FSR or various versions of DLSS. Particularly, the fact that it’s not effective at tracking objects in motion.
It also doesn’t produce the same kind of artifacts and occlusions as the PC version in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. It seems to be a cheap solution and a more lightweight implementation than the full-fledged implementation. Motion seems to be a real struggle, as they comment on Fast Fusion’s implementation not being very effective.
But right now, it looks to be this lightweight DLSS at the moment, and the Digital Foundry is investigating what it is. As they will look to chat with developers on it, we can expect to hear more about it down the line.
DF Directly weekly #218
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