There have been some suggestions about the rumor that Switch “Pro” needs to have slightly improved specifications to make sure it can run certain games and improve existing ones, but is it so necessary? Maybe not, according to an industry veteran.
In a recent interview with Nintendo Everything, co-founder and vice president of Engine Software, Ruud van de Moosdijk (who worked on a handful of Switch games, including recent They are no longer heroes 1 and 2) said how “nice” it would be, a slightly improved model, with some extra power, could be lost.
As long as it’s part of the Switch ecosystem, this means that games need to run (or at least should) run on every system already available, and for compatibility reasons, performance is compared to the lowest specifications. As a result, upgraded systems with extra power are never fully “used”.
True, our opinion on this could be counter-intuitive for a lot of people, but we are not big subscribers of the “Pro” model. Sure, it would be nice to have more RAM or GPU / CPU faster than before, but if it’s still considered the same platform, you need to make sure the game runs on each model. So for compatibility reasons, your performance refers to the lowest specifications. I have seen with previous “upgraded systems” that the extra power has really been well used for this reason. “
On the Nintendo front, a previously “updated” system that was probably underused was the New 3DS. One of the few games he took advantage of was Xenoblade Chronicles 3D, but beyond that, the developers did not show interest in fear of abandoning the rest of the market. Similar situations were played on rival platforms.
At best, it looks like a Switch Pro would have a standard revision of slightly improved resolutions and frame rate (as rumored), but “extra power” or added sound is much less likely – more chosen when the current models (Switch and Switch Lite) now sold a combined total of over 68 million worldwide. This would be a considerable installation base to rule out after all.
You can learn more about Switch Pro rumors in our comprehensive guide. If this device actually exists, what are your own expectations? Do you think it should offer much more than an improved frame rate and resolutions? Tell us below.