Switch’s successor faces backwards compatibility challenges, developer suggests
Nintendo‘s Switch successor could face backwards compatibility issues, according to a new analysis by respected content creator and NightDive Studios developer ModernVintageGamer.
In a newly-published video, MVG digs into the possible components for Nintendo’s next console, and explains why incompatibility between new hardware and how current Nintendo Switch software is compiled means that backwards compatibility support for the next console isn’t necessarily a given.
The Nintendo Switch currently uses the Tegra X1, a chip developed by NVIDIA that also powers Nvidia Shield Android TVs from 2015-2018, highlighting the age of the hardware.
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“If Nintendo is to move away from the Tegra X1, which we all feel strongly that they will probably do, current Switch games won’t work on new hardware, that is without recompiling the games to target that hardware,” MVG explains.
The developer then posits several solutions for how Nintendo could get around this issue, such as software emulation, similar to that found within the Xbox Series consoles.
Those machines use the Xbox Series X power to emulate virtual Xbox and Xbox 360 consoles in order to play older games, similarly to how third-party emulators function on PC.
While a Switch 2 could theoretically do this, it would require significant processing power. Even the Steam Deck, which is a significantly more powerful device than the Nintendo Switch, struggles to emulate some Switch titles.
MVG then suggests a solution that NVIDIA and Nintendo provide chip compatibility for Tegra X1 on their next chip. However, as MVG points out, this is not currently supported and would seemingly require a lot of
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