New Nintendo patent appears ahead of expected Switch 2 reveal

A new Nintendo patent appears to support claims that its Nintendo Switch successor will utilize DLSS-style upscaling technology.

A patent filed in July 2023, but published on Tuesday, describes a system of machine learning that can convert images of one resolution into a higher one.

DLSS (deep learning super sampling) or similar technologies work by using AI to upscale the resolution of games, effectively allowing developers to achieve higher graphical settings and better frame rates on weaker hardware.

Sony’s recently launched PlayStation 5 Pro utilises its own upscaling technology, PSSR, at a platform level, while AMD’s FSR is a popular solution on other consoles which is utilised on a game-by-game basis.

It’s been reported previously by VGC and other outlets that Nintendo is planning to utilize a DLSS-style technology on its next system, which could provide a significant advantage considering the technical constraints faced by portable devices.

As noted by journalist Laura Kate Dale, the new patent mentions using upscaling technology to reduce overall game sizes to fit a modern game onto “smaller capacity physical media,” for example, game cards.

“The example given is that a game with native 4K textures might need a 60GB download, but a 1080 native version might only need 20GB (which would allow it to fit on a 32GB Switch Cart, the current max size Nintendo produces for Switch 1). The idea being to do a 4X upscale on the device in realtime.”

Nintendo previously published an AI upscaling patent in 2020, which described the process’s potential use in cloud gaming, in which cloud-based systems could send a compressed, low-res image to the player’s device, which would then be upscaled using AI to reduce latency.

The latest patent was published on the same day that alleged images of Switch 2’s internal hardware components appeared on Reddit. If accurate, the images appear to confirm previous hardware spec rumors suggesting that the new console will again be powered by Nvidia hardware.

Nintendo has yet to officially reveal its Switch successor, but the company has confirmed plans to do so during its current fiscal year, which ends in March 2025.

Alleged images of Nintendo’s Switch successor appeared online in September, showing a design that’s not too dissimilar from the company’s current-gen console.