Nintendo Switch 2’s first-party launch games, including titles like Mario Kart World and Donkey Kong Bananza, are not using NVIDIA’s DLSS technology. Instead, they rely on AMD’s FSR 1 upscaling solution, which is considered less advanced.
Tech experts at Digital Foundry explained on their weekly podcast that the main reason could be technical limitations in the game engines. Specifically, these engines might lack support for motion vectors—a key feature DLSS requires to work properly. Adding DLSS support without this could mean a lot of extra development work, which Nintendo might have chosen to avoid for now.
Besides technical reasons, Nintendo’s unique art style could also influence this choice. Nintendo games often have simple, cartoony visuals with fewer complex edges or patterns. Because of this, the need for advanced upscaling or anti-aliasing like DLSS is less urgent. For example, Mario Kart World looks good even without DLSS.
Still, there is hope for DLSS in future Nintendo Switch 2 games. The upscaler is mentioned in Nintendo’s Switch 2 Welcome Tour, and the company worked closely with NVIDIA to include the necessary hardware for DLSS support in the system. This suggests Nintendo sees value in DLSS and may implement it in later titles.
