Nintendo Switch Technical discussion [SOC = Tegra X1]

This doesn't work, because the game obviously does tax the hardware hard enough that Sumo had to lower the resolution in order to maintain a solid 30fps on PS4. Any optimizations done at the nuts and bolts level would equally benefit the Switch build. If they can further optimize the software for one console, then they can likely do it for another. This is without a doubt a quick port to Switch, if any platform were at a disadvantage, it would be the Switch version.



Yes, there are bigger budgeted titles with larger teams and more money to throw at them that squeeze more out of the hardware, but that is of no value when comparing multi platform titles. Could Naughty Dog deliver a more impressive game on PS4 than Snake Pass? Obviously we know they can, but you know what else, they could do that for Switch as well.

I cant believe I am seeing the "bad port" excuse for the superior version of a game. The PS4 version runs a resolution 1.7x higher than Switch docked with higher settings across the board. The Switch build had three months of time to get the port done, and somehow the PS4 got a shoddy port. LOL

just getting back to you here, the xbox version is 900p and has more grass then ps4. so we know 100% for sure it's not taxing the hardware. seems like it was a budget, time, or lack of developer talent on the port.
 
They're probably just a small team and didn't have the resources to completely fix up every version of the game at one time. I expect stability updates for all platforms in the future (even Switch). I hope they add the feature to save while in a level so I don't have to go back and re-do the whole fucking level if I get pissed off and leave. XD
 
Lego City Undercover on Switch has turned out to run 1080p native on Switch docked, and apparently has an improved framerate compared to Wii U. Portable mode seems to be less stable, resulting in a framerate more similar to the Wii U build. Curious, seeing as how the opposite has been true with Zelda and its only 900p. Lego City must be bottlenecked somewhere in portable mode that isn't memory bandwidth. Combined with the addition of two player co-op, this is pretty encouraging. I think its safe to say that we can chalk up the poor performing ports on Nvidia Shield TV as nothing more than poor ports, and are not in any way an indication of the potential within the Tegra X1. Mobile hardware has come so far over the past decade its crazy.

They're probably just a small team and didn't have the resources to completely fix up every version of the game at one time. I expect stability updates for all platforms in the future (even Switch).

Sumo Digital is a pretty capable developer. Snake Pass is just a smaller budget game with only a year to develop. What is curious is that the game seems to run a rock solid 30fps on PS4/X1, and yet they render well below 1080p. There is a bottleneck somewhere. DF noted that the game becomes very demanding on PC as you increase resolution. Turning down settings like shadows didn't seem to have much impact. Somewhere in the rendering pipeline is a pretty good performance sucking parasite. At lower resolutions, its doesn't seem to be an issue. Its like the shaders handling their work no issue, but then the rasterization process is taking its sweet ass time. All the same, I am encouraged by what Sumo was able to accomplish on Switch with such a short turnaround time. It bodes well for Unreal 4 games on Switch. I can only imagine what they could do with a full development cycle and large budget. Imagine Sonic Racing Transformed using Unreal 4 on Switch. It would be gorgeous.
 
Lego City Undercover on Switch has turned out to run 1080p native on Switch docked, and apparently has an improved framerate compared to Wii U. Portable mode seems to be less stable, resulting in a framerate more similar to the Wii U build. Curious, seeing as how the opposite has been true with Zelda and its only 900p. Lego City must be bottlenecked somewhere in portable mode that isn't memory bandwidth. Combined with the addition of two player co-op, this is pretty encouraging. I think its safe to say that we can chalk up the poor performing ports on Nvidia Shield TV as nothing more than poor ports, and are not in any way an indication of the potential within the Tegra X1. Mobile hardware has come so far over the past decade its crazy.



Sumo Digital is a pretty capable developer. Snake Pass is just a smaller budget game with only a year to develop. What is curious is that the game seems to run a rock solid 30fps on PS4/X1, and yet they render well below 1080p. There is a bottleneck somewhere. DF noted that the game becomes very demanding on PC as you increase resolution. Turning down settings like shadows didn't seem to have much impact. Somewhere in the rendering pipeline is a pretty good performance sucking parasite. At lower resolutions, its doesn't seem to be an issue. Its like the shaders handling their work no issue, but then the rasterization process is taking its sweet ass time. All the same, I am encouraged by what Sumo was able to accomplish on Switch with such a short turnaround time. It bodes well for Unreal 4 games on Switch. I can only imagine what they could do with a full development cycle and large budget. Imagine Sonic Racing Transformed using Unreal 4 on Switch. It would be gorgeous.

ps4/xb1 and essentially the same hardware except the ps4 having a more powerful gpu and faster ram. With almost of the all of technically demanding games running in higher resolution on ps4. yet the port is better on xbone, it has more grass and same resolution. i think the main problem was from what i read is they were trying to get the game running 60fps on ps4, but couldn't maybe do due lack of time or budget, and i guess decided that they would just release it this resolution, wasting most of there optimization time trying to run at 60fps on ps4.
 
L
Sumo Digital is a pretty capable developer. Snake Pass is just a smaller budget game with only a year to develop. What is curious is that the game seems to run a rock solid 30fps on PS4/X1, and yet they render well below 1080p. There is a bottleneck somewhere. DF noted that the game becomes very demanding on PC as you increase resolution. Turning down settings like shadows didn't seem to have much impact. Somewhere in the rendering pipeline is a pretty good performance sucking parasite. At lower resolutions, its doesn't seem to be an issue. Its like the shaders handling their work no issue, but then the rasterization process is taking its sweet ass time. All the same, I am encouraged by what Sumo was able to accomplish on Switch with such a short turnaround time. It bodes well for Unreal 4 games on Switch. I can only imagine what they could do with a full development cycle and large budget. Imagine Sonic Racing Transformed using Unreal 4 on Switch. It would be gorgeous.

I hope they go back and get it to be a solid 30 on the Switch. Its generally 30 but I notice small drops every once in a while, which is a bit jarring. I imagine they could do it, but the question will be if it's worth the time for them.

According to DF, the game is a bit more demanding than people think. Noodle himself has a lot going on it seems.
 
I hope they go back and get it to be a solid 30 on the Switch. Its generally 30 but I notice small drops every once in a while, which is a bit jarring. I imagine they could do it, but the question will be if it's worth the time for them.

According to DF, the game is a bit more demanding than people think. Noodle himself has a lot going on it seems.

it's more like according to the developer sumo
I hope they go back and get it to be a solid 30 on the Switch. Its generally 30 but I notice small drops every once in a while, which is a bit jarring. I imagine they could do it, but the question will be if it's worth the time for them.

According to DF, the game is a bit more demanding than people think. Noodle himself has a lot going on it seems.

i'm sure almost any modern 3d would look more demanding then people think if you had the developers tell you every single technically demanding thing its doing. DF should stick to just giving there impressions of games, more neutral that way. none of the stuff explains why the gap between switch and xbox1/ps4 is so small or why the xb1 seems be on par with ps4, infact slightly better.
 
Lego City Undercover on Switch has turned out to run 1080p native on Switch docked, and apparently has an improved framerate compared to Wii U. Portable mode seems to be less stable, resulting in a framerate more similar to the Wii U build. Curious, seeing as how the opposite has been true with Zelda and its only 900p. Lego City must be bottlenecked somewhere in portable mode that isn't memory bandwidth. Combined with the addition of two player co-op, this is pretty encouraging. I think its safe to say that we can chalk up the poor performing ports on Nvidia Shield TV as nothing more than poor ports, and are not in any way an indication of the potential within the Tegra X1. Mobile hardware has come so far over the past decade its crazy.



Sumo Digital is a pretty capable developer. Snake Pass is just a smaller budget game with only a year to develop. What is curious is that the game seems to run a rock solid 30fps on PS4/X1, and yet they render well below 1080p. There is a bottleneck somewhere. DF noted that the game becomes very demanding on PC as you increase resolution. Turning down settings like shadows didn't seem to have much impact. Somewhere in the rendering pipeline is a pretty good performance sucking parasite. At lower resolutions, its doesn't seem to be an issue. Its like the shaders handling their work no issue, but then the rasterization process is taking its sweet ass time. All the same, I am encouraged by what Sumo was able to accomplish on Switch with such a short turnaround time. It bodes well for Unreal 4 games on Switch. I can only imagine what they could do with a full development cycle and large budget. Imagine Sonic Racing Transformed using Unreal 4 on Switch. It would be gorgeous.

Yeah man, I love the sonic racing games. The last game sold well over a million copies between all the platforms, so one can hope.
 
ps4/xb1 and essentially the same hardware except the ps4 having a more powerful gpu and faster ram. With almost of the all of technically demanding games running in higher resolution on ps4. yet the port is better on xbone, it has more grass and same resolution. i think the main problem was from what i read is they were trying to get the game running 60fps on ps4, but couldn't maybe do due lack of time or budget, and i guess decided that they would just release it this resolution, wasting most of there optimization time trying to run at 60fps on ps4.

You mean on PS4 Pro? I don't know why they'd waste their time getting 60 out of the pro when most people own the base units.

Anyway, SE said they want to bring some stuff to the Switch. I'm curious as to what they might be able to bring.
 
Yeah man, I love the sonic racing games. The last game sold well over a million copies between all the platforms, so one can hope.
I never understood that game.
Sonic is known for....well.....being able to run at super sonic speeds?
Hence why he doesn't need a kart, like the slow ass Super Mario? Why not let him use his feet? Like in Sonic R?
It is like Mr Fantastic using a selfie stick, or Superman taking a plane, or Wolverine using a knife to cut steak, or Spiderman using a ladder, or Schumacher driving a Reliant Robin in a F1 race.
 
I never understood that game.
Sonic is known for....well.....being able to run at super sonic speeds?
Hence why he doesn't need a kart, like the slow ass Super Mario? Why not let him use his feet? Like in Sonic R?
It is like Mr Fantastic using a selfie stick, or Superman taking a plane, or Wolverine using a knife to cut steak, or Spiderman using a ladder, or Schumacher driving a Reliant Robin in a F1 race.

This never occurred to me and I'm now deeply disturbed.

My only guess is so he can race with his friends in a fair way? I'm pretty sure he can outrun a kart I guess?
 
This never occurred to me and I'm now deeply disturbed.

My only guess is so he can race with his friends in a fair way? I'm pretty sure he can outrun a kart I guess?
Well that wasnt an issue in Sonic R.
I am pretty sure the devs could have figured out a scenario where Sonic, Knuckles and Tailes used their feet and the others used vehicles that could run at super fast speeds
 
I never understood that game.
Sonic is known for....well.....being able to run at super sonic speeds?
Hence why he doesn't need a kart, like the slow ass Super Mario? Why not let him use his feet? Like in Sonic R?
It is like Mr Fantastic using a selfie stick, or Superman taking a plane, or Wolverine using a knife to cut steak, or Spiderman using a ladder, or Schumacher driving a Reliant Robin in a F1 race.

It would be kind of awesome if they put Sonic in Mario Kart, and he just ran in the race instead of driving.
 
So, in an attempt to steer this back into tech discussion. Blizzard said they'd like to bring Overwatch to Switch, but it would prove really challenging. Weather that's because of specs, or because handling 4 platforms would be kind of a nightmare, they didn't really specify. I still think that getting the game running on it is very possible, but I can see why they wouldn't want to (having to deal with so many different systems and specs). Honestly thinking more about it, Diablo III and Hearthstone would be better fits for the Switch. Overwatch has no single player, so shit would be boring on the go unless you could find some good wifi. Diablo and HS on the other hand have offline stuff you can do.

Dragon Quest XI's release was announced for PS4 and 3DS, but still no real word on the Switch version. We know it exists, but I have a feeling we weren't supposed to know it exists. I feel like SE wanted to pull a Rockstar and release it on PS4 and 3DS, then get people to double dip on the Switch version at a later date. I kind of wish companies would stop doing that shit. I'm probably going to end up with all three versions anyway. -_-

Tomorrow is a new Nintendo direct. It's supposed to be focused on ARMs and Splatoon 2, as well as some 3DS stuff. Hopefully they'll tell us a bit more about how online is going to work. Maybe they'll talk more about other upcoming stuff, too.
 
Blizzard said they'd like to bring Overwatch to Switch, but it would prove really challenging.

Notice how they didn't say impossible. I'm sure it would be challenging, the Switch is significantly less powerful than the target hardware Overwatch was developed around, but taking on the challenge comes down to dollars and cents. Is it worth the investment for the expected return? Every publisher will have to determine that for themselves.

Sumo Digital recently stated that the current build of Unreal 4 has an "export to Switch" button. So any Unreal 4 developed game will port to the Switch with the click of a button. This should make porting to Switch much easier. With so many upcoming games using Unreal 4, this makes the chances of a Switch port far more likely. Final Fantasy VII and Kingdom Hearts 3 are using Unreal 4, and very likely to arrive on Switch in my opinion. The great thing about Unreal 4 is that is scales all the way down to mobile hardware. So it is unlikely for their to be too many games that are so demanding that the engine doesn't have presets low enough to scale down from PS4/X1 to Switch. Unreal 4 supports FP16, so I am curious if the engine maximizes the FP16 capabilities of the Tegra X1.
 
I don't know, Kingdom Hearts 3 and Final Fantasy VII will probably be pushing the systems pretty hard. Snake Pass is kind of a simpler game so it was probably easier to bring over. It'd be cool to see them try to bring those over, just to see if they could. But right now I'd have to say I'm on the doubtful side of that. Would love to be proven wrong, though.
 
I don't know, Kingdom Hearts 3 and Final Fantasy VII will probably be pushing the systems pretty hard. Snake Pass is kind of a simpler game so it was probably easier to bring over. It'd be cool to see them try to bring those over, just to see if they could. But right now I'd have to say I'm on the doubtful side of that. Would love to be proven wrong, though.

Its very hard to determine how demanding gameplay will actually be because the footage so far has been mostly cinematic garbage. From the snippets that I can dissect as actual gameplay, I am not seeing anything that couldn't scale down rather easily. Environments didn't look all that large, and obviously you can drop from 1080p to 720p docked, and perhaps something like 600p undocked. We wont have a clear picture of what Unreal 4 can really do until we have multiple examples, but after playing a few hours of Snake Pass on Switch, I am rather optimistic. Mainly because of the fact that they can go so low on the resolution and still end up with pretty decent image quality. A quick math equation tells me that a 480p rendering resolution portable gives Switch about the same flops per pixel performance as the Xbox One when rendering at 1080p, and this ignores the ability to use half precision shaders. If Switch continues to sell really well, Square Enix "will" port FF VII to Switch, and Kingdom Hearts will surely make the leap as well. Not suggesting visual parity, the games will look better on other consoles, but a competent build of the game will release on Switch.

How good was the Tegra X1? I mean seriously, its so good that a fantastic mobile chip didn't die an early death. Nvidia wasn't scoring any wins. The Shield products are low volume and were never going to justify the R&D. Its like Nvidia was already working for Nintendo years ago and didn't know it. Its like the Tegra X1 was designed for the Switch. It was always to hot to be a phone chip, and it throttled big time in the Pixel C. Its cool that a partnership worked out for both companies, everybody wins.
 
Back
Top