I don't think we know what the Switch 1 can fully do, it's becoming fairly obvious Nintendo probably stopped the system from going to max performance to save 4K/higher frame rates as a selling point for Switch 2. The Switch 1 can even run Tears of the Kingdom at 60 fps, but Nintendo won't allow this even though modders/hackers can run it. And this is the OG Switch which runs hotter, the Mariko/OLED models should be able to run this much more easily because they consume less power, Nintendo could have offered this mode at least for Mariko/OLED users docked, I believe they are not because they want people to pay for a Switch 2 for 60 fps and/or higher res and for people to have to buy the game over again on Switch 2.
I think Switch OLED was originally indeed supposed to be the fabled Switch 4K/Switch Pro ... but when they saw they really didn't need it because Switch 1 sales were so high, they cut the 4K output and higher performance features out and just pivoted to use the OLED display as the sales feature so as to allow the Switch 2 to have 4K to itself. The Switch OLED dock oddly still having added 4K output certainly supports that theory, they added the 4K output to the dock because it was supposed to have 4K games but they then backtracked and cut the feature out but didn't want to throw away the dock design they paid to have made.
We have proof now too that the Switch can even run games at 4K, in the previous video I posted. Nintendo IMO is not allowing these features in order to save them for Switch 2. If the current Switch allowed for 4K games, well that hurts the Switch 2 to some extent, I think they decided they don't want to do that because they didn't need sales boosts for the current Switch.
It's the same thing with no GCN/Wii games on Switch Online ... the Tegra X1 can actually easily emulate those games, not only run them but run them at 1440p resolution (as shown in the Switch 4K video). Nintendo just isn't offering this now, likely because it's being saved for Switch 2.
The Tegra X1 is closer to the PS4 and especially XB1 specifically the Mariko/OLED version of it than it's given credit for, Nintendo is not IMO allowing it for sales reasons. They realized Switch 1 sales were so high that they didn't need a Pro/4K model, they want people to have to buy a new system (Switch 2) to get 4K and they want people to buy games like Tears of the Kingdom again on Switch 2 as the only way to get 1440p-4K, 60 fps, etc.
Last edited by Soundwave - on 19 May 2024
