The Nintendo Switch 2 has arrived, bringing new hardware from Nintendo for the first time since the Switch was released in 2017. Like many of Nintendo's consoles in the past two decades, the Switch 2 is coming in underpowered, even with an Nvidia chip powering the console. While some people are opting to buy a more powerful handheld, Nintendo proved with the Switch generation that being underpowered compared to the current Xbox and PlayStation consoles isn't an issue for first-party games.

Third-party games have been a different conversation with the Switch, but something is different about the console landscape this time around. That difference is the presence of the Xbox Series S, a less powerful console compared to the Series X, but a cheaper alternative for consumers. The Series S has received every game the Xbox Series X has, with a handful of games missing some features, like Baldur's Gate 3 missing split-screen co-op (via Fextralife). With the existence of the Series S, non-Nintendo developers should be better prepared to optimize games for different levels of consoles.

Xbox Series S asked developers to make scalable games

Two different Xboxes

Before we talk about the Switch 2, we should talk about the differences between the Series X and Series S, to emphasize why developers had to optimize appropriately. In terms of power, while the Series X has a disc drive and the Series S doesn't, that doesn't impact performance; the Series S is weaker in a few ways. The differences in specs (via Reddit) highlight a couple of key differences. The main one is the gap in RAM, with the Series X at 16 GB, while the Series S has 10GB. The GPU is weaker, resulting in 12.15 teraflops of GPU power on the Series X, and only four teraflops on the Series S. Lastly, the CPU is slightly weaker, but it's a small difference.

Notably, the Series S does not support native 4K, something the Series X can do with certain games. Since both are Xboxes, developers have had to optimize games for both power levels, similar to how they have to account for a wide range of PC configurations.

The Switch 2 will require optimization efforts from developers

DOOM Eternal ran on the last one

In terms of teraflops, the Switch 2 is around three teraflops, coming in under even the Series S (via Manchester Evening News), although there isn't an expectation that it can run every game the Series X can. That said, the Switch 2 will likely be around for a few years longer than the Series S, meaning that the next generation of PlayStation and Xbox consoles will release during its lifetime, making the gap even bigger. The Switch lasted eight years, which is about how long the console generations are for Xbox and PlayStation, but we are over four years into those consoles' lifetimes.

While there were some terrible ports on the Nintendo Switch, like the Mortal Kombat 1 port that barely functioned (via Reddit), there were also some examples of well-done games, like The Witcher 3 and Doom Eternal. Those are the worst versions of those games, but they run well enough that it wasn't an issue.

The Switch 2 will be around for several years

Sure, it runs Cyberpunk 2077, but will it run the sequel?

To further expand on the idea that the Switch 2 will be around for a long time, it does slightly concern me that the Switch 2 runs Cyberpunk 2077 in such a down-scaled way. Not because that isn't good optimization, it needs to run that way, so the frame rate is stable, but if a game that is released in 2020 requires that level of down-scaling to run optimized on the Switch 2, what will the future look like? While the next CD Projekt Red game is way off and likely won't be on Switch 2 on the same day as everywhere else, will it even be able to be ported after the fact? Doom Eternal works on a Switch, but will Doom: The Dark Ages work on a Switch 2? With many years ahead of the Switch 2, developers will need to continue developing with optimization for the Switch 2 in mind, or the third-party support will dry up late in the Switch 2's life, like it did for the Switch.

The Xbox Series S may have held developers back

Could the Switch 2 do the same

It's important to acknowledge that the Series S has been a bit controversial, as there has been debate if a lesser console holds back games, by forcing developers to scale them down. A Rocksteady developer accused Microsoft of holding back the industry with the Series S due to its weak power (via GameRant). However, other developers have downplayed this. A Control developer from Remedy said that the issue of optimizing for weaker hardware is significantly easier if the game is developed with that hardware in mind (via GameRant). Techradar also spoke with developers, who also agreed that it's significantly easier if those consoles are planned for in the first place, but trying to scale them down after the fact is incredibly difficult. While some people have claimed that planning for lower-end hardware holds games back, that hasn't been directly stated by a developer.

But the Switch 2 and the increase in PC handhelds means developers need better optimization

Time to plan ahead

Based on that reporting, developers will need to keep weaker platforms, like the Switch 2, in mind for development, if they want those games to run well-optimized on the Switch 2. If the Switch 2 sells at a similar pace as the original, there will be tons of consoles out there, too many to ignore the potential customers. On top of that, PC handhelds are only gaining steam, with more and more coming out. These are more powerful than a Switch 2 in some cases, but these are still weaker compared to most people's desktop setup, making the range of devices that have to be considered during development even larger. Developers will need to plan ahead, but getting games optimized for the Switch 2 should be easier, since developers have had to deal with the Series S for over four years.