The Nintendo Swap 2 may need an AI characteristic you did not see coming

A brand new AI-based upscaling system has been patented by Nintendo, as spotted by trade insider Laura Kate Dale on BlueSky (via Kotaku). Reportedly, this patent was first filed again on July 13, 2023, however has solely simply been revealed in a public method as of December 31, 2024.

Filed within the US below the doc titled ‘Systems and Methods for Machine Learned Image Conversion,’ the patent particulars using neural networks to robotically improve software program visuals utilizing AI algorithms.

AI online game upscalers have grown widespread lately, as they’re in a position to generate additional frames of element and determination with out the necessity to closely tax the system’s graphics processing unit (GPU). Sony’s PS5 Pro comes with its personal proprietary PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution (PSSR) tech, and Microsoft’s Auto Super Resolution offers the same resolution for the Xbox.

It is attention-grabbing to see Nintendo flirting with the prospect of using AI on this trend. The flexibility to upscale visuals with out the necessity for brute drive processing is definitely compelling, as is the potential to make use of the tech to maintain sport file sizes compact and straightforward to suit on (expensive) flash sport playing cards.

“Maybe probably the most attention-grabbing piece of this, after a prolonged learn, is that one instance use case given is explicitly to cut back general sport sizes, to suit a contemporary sport onto ‘smaller capability bodily media,’ e.g. Swap carts, which get exponentially dearer for bigger cart capacities,” says Dale in a latest BlueSky thread.

Elsewhere, Nintendo has been extra conservative in its method to machine studying than a few of its friends, significantly in regard to generative AI. Actually, the corporate has explicitly come out in opposition to the tech getting used for sure sport improvement functions.

Your adjustments have been saved

Nintendo Swap

Nintendo’s flagship two-in-one hybrid sport console, the Swap encompasses a large catalog of first-party, third-party, and indie sport titles, all in a handy and novel kind issue.

With the Swap successor console nearing launch, Nintendo has its work minimize out for it

The Nintendo Swap has confirmed a convincing success, but it surely’s unclear whether or not the corporate can catch lightning in a bottle but once more

In hindsight, Nintendo’s choice to consolidate each its handheld and its dwelling console gaming divisions below one roof was a stroke of genius. The corporate has been in a position to double down on crafting a single, unified leisure platform, and lifetime sales metrics converse for themselves.

With the successor to the Nintendo Swap, the Japanese gaming large definitely has its work minimize out for it. In contrast to with the unique Swap, the corporate now not has a big again catalog of underappreciated Wii U titles to make use of as padding throughout content material droughts. What Nintendo does have this time round, nonetheless, is a pre-established on-line storefront within the type of the digital eShop.

To be able to hold costs at a palatable stage, in addition to to keep up a considerably cheap battery life metric, I anticipate the Swap 2 to ship with comparatively modest technical specs. Reportedly, the NvidiaTegra 239 system on a chip (SoC) will function the brains of the operation, which might put the console’s energy output someplace within the ballpark of Sony’s PlayStation 4 Pro.

As a compromise, it makes all of the sense on the planet for Nintendo to show to AI-based upscaling tech to boost its next-gen gaming expertise. The corporate has been working carefully with Nvidia for a few years now, and so it would not be stunning to see a Swap 2 with, say, Deep Learning Super Sampling (DLSS) assist out of the field.

It is unclear whether or not this specific AI upscaling patent is a completely in-house Nintendo know-how, or whether or not it’s going to ever come to fruition in a delivery product. In any case, new particulars will possible be revealed when the Nintendo Swap successor console is formally introduced before the end of March 2025.

Associated

Nintendo just confirmed one of the first features for the Switch 2

Nintendo has introduced that Swap video games will work on its new console coming subsequent yr.