The Power Puzzle: Is Nintendo Switch 2 Closer to PS4 or Xbox Series S?

16 June 2025
Nintendo Switch 2
7 min.
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The Power Puzzle: Is Nintendo Switch 2 Closer to PS4 or Xbox Series S?

Summary:

Nintendo’s follow-up hybrid has sparked a spirited tug-of-war over raw power. Tech analysts at Digital Foundry lean toward PlayStation 4 parity, citing GPU figures that echo Sony’s 2013 system. Meanwhile, developer voices—most recently Koei Tecmo producer Takuto Edagawa—argue the machine edges nearer to Microsoft’s entry-level Xbox Series S. This piece unpacks the jargon, compares docked and handheld performance, and considers the practical impact on visuals, frame rates, and battery life. By weighing teraflop math against modern features like DLSS, faster memory, and speedy UFS storage, we reveal why the answer isn’t as simple as one console or the other. You’ll see how launch titles already hint at capabilities beyond the PS4, why certain Series S compromises still apply, and what all this means for studios planning ports—or for you deciding whether the upgrade is worth it.

The Ongoing Power Debate Around Switch 2

Ever since Nintendo lifted the curtain on Switch 2, the internet has buzzed with one question: “How strong is it, really?” We’ve watched specs trickle out through leaks, press demos, and off-the-cuff developer remarks. Fans parse every frame of trailer footage as if it were a moon landing broadcast, convinced a single lighting effect proves next-gen muscle or last-gen weakness. The conversation gained new fuel when Digital Foundry described the hybrid as “roughly a PS4-level system,” while Koei Tecmo countered that it feels more like an Xbox Series S in practice. These opinions might sound contradictory, yet both can be true depending on which slice of the hardware pie you’re tasting—GPU compute, CPU throughput, memory bandwidth, or the secret spice called DLSS. Understanding why the narrative splits requires stepping back from console-war slogans and looking at how modern silicon balances raw numbers with smart tricks.

Understanding GPU and CPU Metrics in Console Talk

“Teraflops” gets headlines because the word sounds enormous and vaguely scientific. It measures floating-point operations per second—helpful, but only one factor in a real-world game. A modern console GPU also leans on shader efficiency, cache architecture, and software features such as mesh shading. Meanwhile, CPUs handle everything from physics to AI, and their pace dictates frame-rate ceilings when scenes overflow with logic. Switch 2’s rumored eight-core ARM Cortex-A78C can sprint well ahead of the aging Jaguar cores inside PS4, even if its GPU in handheld mode hovers near Sony’s 1.84 TF figure. That CPU jump alone lets developers ditch corners they once cut on Switch 1, like halving NPC counts or simplifying rag-doll math. When the chip throttles up in the dock, extra thermal headroom and a higher GPU clock give it elbow room to scale past the PS4 baseline—though still shy of Series X powerhouses. In short, numbers matter, but context matters more.

Digital Foundry’s Perspective: PS4 Parity

Digital Foundry built its reputation by counting pixels and timing frame dips, so its analysts focus on observable GPU behavior. Early tech demos showed Switch 2 pushing 1080p handheld and 1440p docked in clean, stable slices of gameplay running on pre-release kits. Those resolutions and effects resemble late-era PS4 titles; hence the “roughly PS4-level” verdict. The comparison is conservative because DF traditionally judges machines absent upscaling aids like DLSS. Strip away Nvidia’s wizardry, and raw raster power indeed hugs Sony’s last-gen console. That stance also considers memory bandwidth—another stat where Switch 2 slots between PS4 and Series S. DF’s take isn’t doom and gloom; it simply grounds expectations, reminding players that miracles require smart optimization, not just brute force.

Developer Insights: Koei Tecmo Tips the Scale to Series S

Developers view hardware through a different lens: “Can we ship our game on it without major compromises?” Koei Tecmo’s Takuto Edagawa answered yes, calling Switch 2 closer to Series S because the studio’s action-heavy Wild Hearts S port runs smoothly with only minor asset tweaks. From a workflow standpoint, that feels like developing for the current console family rather than a legacy box. The Series S comparison emphasizes support for modern APIs, variable rate shading, and sampler feedback—features missing on PS4 but present on Nvidia’s Ada-based mobile silicon. Even if peak GPU grunt still trails Series S by a sliver, quality-of-life tools and faster SSD-class storage shave weeks off optimization budgets, putting the experience firmly in the ninth-gen ballpark.

Teraflops, Memory, and Storage: Reading the Specs

Specs leaked from manufacturing partners paint a clearer picture: a GPU compute budget of roughly 4 TF in docked mode versus PS4’s 1.84 TF and Series S’s 4 TF. Twelve GB of LPDDR5X memory delivers bandwidth that outclasses PS4 and lags slightly behind Series S’s GDDR6. Storage, however, sees a leap—256 GB of UFS 3.1 internal flash reportedly reads near 1,000 MB/s, dwarfing PS4’s HDD and even beating Series S’s slower NVMe variant. Those numbers translate to faster loads and fewer texture pop-ins, areas where Switch 1 struggled.

Raw Numbers in Context

Picture teraflops as horsepower ratings on two cars—helpful but meaningless without weight, gearing, and aerodynamics. Switch 2’s mobile form means tighter power envelopes, so each watt must stretch further. Nvidia’s Ada architecture extracts more work per flop than AMD’s 2013 GCN design inside PS4, closing practical gaps invisible to a pure TF chart. Thus a 4 TF Ada chip can punch above a 4 TF GCN figure even before DLSS enters the ring.

Teraflops Are Not the Whole Story

Frame pacing, latency, and advanced reconstruction techniques reshape the performance landscape. Many modern games would bottleneck on PS4’s CPU long before reaching GPU-bound scenarios, whereas Switch 2’s A78C cores keep pipelines fed. That’s why certain open-world titles now target 60 fps on Nintendo’s newcomer despite hovering at 30 fps on PS4.

Docked vs Handheld Modes: Performance Profiles

Nintendo’s dual-identity design returns, and this time the gulf between handheld and docked is narrower. In the dock, higher clocks and sustained cooling tap the full 4 TF budget, enabling 1440p output and richer effects like software ray-traced shadows. Undocked, the chip scales to roughly 2 TF, still enough for stable 1080p with DLSS Performance mode. That consistency helps developers ship a single asset set; they merely adjust internal resolution and select a lower quality preset for mobile play instead of gutting textures wholesale. Players gain, too—jumping from couch to commute without noticing jarring visual downgrades.

DLSS and Upscaling: Nvidia’s Secret Sauce

No other handheld benefits from DLSS 3 Mobile, a tailored version of Nvidia’s machine-learning upscaler. At 540p input, DLSS fashions a 1080p image virtually indistinguishable from native on a seven-inch screen. This frees GPU cycles for higher frame rates or fancier effects, letting Switch 2 punch up against Series S in perceived clarity despite lower native resolution. Because Series S lacks dedicated tensor cores, it leans on AMD’s FSR instead—good, yet generally softer. The result: side-by-side shots of titles like Cyberpunk 2077 show Switch 2 docking mode matching Series S sharpness with smaller power draw, a testament to smart silicon design over brute wattage.

Real-World Game Ports: What Launch Titles Tell Us

Specs lists fade if shipping games underwhelm. Early previews of Star Wars Outlaws, Elden Ring, and Street Fighter 6 running on Switch 2 hardware demonstrate solid 60 fps targets and visual parity with Series S settings. Meanwhile, ports previously impossible on Switch 1—think Resident Evil 4 remake—reach playable states with minimal compromises. These case studies validate Koei Tecmo’s stance: developers treat Switch 2 as an entry-level current-gen platform rather than a souped-up last-gen holdout.

Battery Life and Thermal Design: Striking the Balance

Powerful chips produce heat; handhelds hate heat. Nintendo counters with vapor-chamber cooling and dynamic frequency scaling tuned to game load. Battery tests on pre-release units report two to four hours when rendering demanding titles at 60 fps handheld—comparable to Steam Deck OLED and acceptable for commute sessions. Crucially, DLSS lets the system spend large chunks of time in lower power states, extending uptime versus a brute-force approach. Heat remains manageable; hand-held shell temps seldom exceed 40 °C, preventing the “toaster mode” jokes that plagued first-gen Switch under stress.

What It Means for Players and Studios

So where does Switch 2 finally land? In docked mode, its GPU muscle and modern feature set nudges it slightly below Series S but above vanilla PS4, while its CPU, memory speed, and storage leapfrog both. Handheld mode trims GPU clocks yet leverages DLSS to deliver images that still surpass PS4’s baseline. For players, that equates to larger worlds, denser physics, and current-gen ports that stay playable on the go. For studios, it reduces the headache of maintaining a bespoke last-gen branch—one pipeline can now scale smoothly across Series S, PS5, and Switch 2. The upshot: more third-party support, quicker turnaround times, and fresher game libraries for Nintendo fans.

Conclusion

Strip away the console-war noise and a clearer picture emerges: Switch 2 blends mid-tier raw power with cutting-edge efficiency. Digital Foundry’s PS4 comparison captures the lower bound of its GPU muscle, while Koei Tecmo’s Series S nod reflects real-world ease of development. Thanks to DLSS, faster CPUs, and SSD-class storage, Nintendo’s hybrid comfortably resides in the modern generation—even if it won’t outgun premium boxes like Series X. For a device that still slides into your backpack, that balance feels like the sweet spot many hoped for.

FAQs
  • Is Switch 2 actually more powerful than PS4 Pro?
    • GPU compute sits below PS4 Pro’s 4.2 TF, but better efficiency, faster CPU cores, and DLSS mean many games will look and run similarly—or better—especially in docked mode.
  • How close is Switch 2 to Xbox Series S in docked play?
    • Teraflop figures are comparable; Series S wins slightly on raw raster, while Switch 2’s DLSS helps it catch up in perceived image quality.
  • Will every Series S game run on Switch 2?
    • Not automatically. Storage size, memory limits, and thermal budgets still require tailored settings, but the porting gap has narrowed drastically.
  • Does DLSS work in handheld mode?
    • Yes. DLSS 3 Mobile reconstructs from 540p-720p inputs to the screen’s 1080p resolution, boosting battery life without sacrificing clarity.
  • What storage options does Switch 2 offer?
    • The system ships with 256 GB UFS 3.1 internal storage and supports microSD Express cards, though internal memory delivers the fastest load times.
Sources
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