Gab Hernandez 
Recent reports suggest Switch 2 will natively support 4K resolution, exciting modern TV owners and surprising those who doubted Nintendo’s ability to deliver on graphical fidelity.
Though Nintendo confirmed the Switch 2 earlier in 2024, the reveal remains out of sight. During its latest earnings report, Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa reiterated the plans to formally announce the Switch 2 before the end of March 2025. Many fans believe the OG Switch’s strong holiday sales are Nintendo’s reason for holding back on an announcement.
Regardless, multiple reports and leaks have painted a picture of what to expect from the Switch 2. One of the most reliable sources of information for fans is data mines of recent Nintendo releases. The latest comes data miners diving into the Nintendo Switch Online playtest held in October 2024. Notably, it included a new feature for the upcoming Nintendo console.
Will the Switch 2 support 4K native resolution?
The Switch 2 will reportedly have 4K native resolution support, based on data-mined information from official Nintendo releases.
BlueSky user Watertoon claims to have found code that confirms the Switch 2 will have native 4K resolution support. Additionally, the Switch 2 will also use mesh shaders, a new type of shader popularly used by Unreal Engine 5 games.
Reports claim these features are for the Switch 2 because the OG Switch does not have native 4K support. The existing Nintendo Switch runs at 720p in handheld mode, and can scale to 1080p in docked mode. Native support hints at Nintendo future-proofing its Switch games for the next generation.
Multiple Switch games from Nintendo quietly have 4K resolution compatibility already
Several games on the Nintendo Switch have native 4K resolution built-in despite the Switch’s lack of support for the resolution. Building 4K directly into the games already strongly suggested that the next-gen console would support ultra-high-definition resolutions.
In 2024, multiple people pointed at data-mined information from Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door as evidence of the Switch 2’s upcoming features. However, others pointed out these could be for PC dev kits, used primarily for screenshots and not regular gameplay.
However, the data mine of the Nintendo Switch Online playtest, plus the use of mesh shaders, point to the Switch 2 having native 4K support. Fans hope they don’t wait too long for Nintendo to confirm their suspicions.
