Massive Nvidia leak reignites Nintendo Switch Pro speculation

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A massive Nvidia leak has once again reignited speculation around a potential Nintendo Switch Pro, which Nintendo has yet to confirm.

The folks at Tech Power Up (opens in new tab) shared the details of what they describe as “the mother of all cyber attacks,” and Nintendo sleuth @NWPlayer123 dissected what appears to be references to a Nintendo Switch successor in the leaked code.

NVIDIA leaks have “nvn2”, which seems to be the graphics api for the Switch Pro, based on Ampere with ray tracing support and DLSS 2.2 pic.twitter.com/k6nEr31CcYMarch 1, 2022

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Per NWPlayer123’s translation of the files, the leaked code suggests that Nintendo is still running with the NX codename (and NVN API) from way back before the original Switch was announced. That, combined with the fact that Nintendo has repeatedly said the Switch is still in the “middle of its life cycle,” seems to be evidence that the hardware referenced in the leak isn’t a full-blown successor, i.e. a Switch 2, but rather an upgraded console like a Nintendo Switch Pro or perhaps Super Nintendo Switch (for the cool kids out there).

That said, if the leaked code is indicative of a new console in the works at Nintendo, it would seem to support DLSS, Nvidia’s latest supersampling tech. There are also references to ray tracing, which would be a huge step up in the visuals department from the OG Switch, which is nearing its fifth birthday. Basically, if this really is the Switch Pro we’re looking at here, it sounds like it could be a much more powerful console.

Back in May 2021, a detailed report from Bloomberg (opens in new tab) claimed a 4K-enabled Switch with an OLED screen was on the way for last year’s holiday season. Of course, what we got instead was a new Switch with an OLED screen but the same ol’ guts inside. There’s a fair chance that Bloomberg’s reporting was sound and that Nintendo simply changed its plans or delayed the console while releasing the Switch OLED as a stopgap, but that’s pure speculation. 

We’ve reached out to Nintendo for clarification and we’ll update this article if we hear back.

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