Nintendo
Reports claim Nintendo is showing “Switch 2” demos to developers in secret
Nintendo is showing off the successor to the Nintendo Switch to developers, which apparently has next-gen tech capable of supporting Unreal Engine 5.
We might be closer to Nintendo’s next-gen console than we think, with reports claiming that the company showed off demos of its “Switch 2″ hardware to developers behind closed doors at Gamescom 2023.
Reported by VGC, it would appear that certain developers where shown presentations for the successor to the Nintendo Switch, including tech demos that reveal how well the system will run in comparison to the company’s current hybrid console. One of these was a special version of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild running at a higher framerate and resolution than the original did. While there were no details revealed about the exact number, it seems like it targeted the new console’s technical specifications, which is impressive considering the second demo.
One of VGC’s sources claimed that the new hardware was capable of running Unreal Engine 5, with them showing off Epic’s The Matrix Awakens Unreal Engine 5 tech demo that was first released to showcase the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X’s capabilities back in 2021. It is said that this demo was using Nvidia’s DLSS upscaling technology, with ray tracing enabled and graphics similar to the current generation of consoles by Sony and Microsoft.
As of this moment, there is no official confirmation about any of these claims. Eurogamer also added that there seemed to be no indication of a planned re-release of Breath of the Wild for Nintendo’s next console and that it was used only as a tech demo.
Nintendo’s next console is an inevitability
As of this moment, rumors about Nintendo’s next hardware launch have been getting stronger and stronger, but no official announcement has been made. The only thing we know is that the company has no plans to release a new console before April of 2024, something that Nintendo themselves confirmed during their latest financial report, and that when they do make the change, they plan to do a “smooth transition” for all of their users through Nintendo accounts.