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| Assassin's Creed Shadows playing on Switch 2 |
Nintendo’s Switch 2 has been praised for its power jump, but players and tech experts have spotted a hiccup in its modern feature set: inconsistent Variable Refresh Rate (VRR) support. While some third-party games, like Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed Shadows, run surprisingly smoothly even at lower frame rates, others struggle with stutter and jerkiness. The difference, it turns out, comes down to clever software engineering—and Ubisoft is now sharing its solutions directly with Nintendo.
The VRR Dilemma: A Tale of Two Performances
VRR is a coveted feature on modern consoles and PCs, allowing a display’s refresh rate to sync dynamically with a game’s frame rate. This eliminates screen tearing and minimizes stutter. On the Switch 2, however, VRR has notable limitations: it’s not supported when the console is docked to a TV, and its performance in handheld mode has been called into question.
The issue gained attention after Digital Foundry’s analysis of Hitman World of Assassination on the platform. The game launched with unlocked frame rates, but it often hovered in a “no man’s land” of 30-40fps, where the handheld’s VRR reportedly failed to engage effectively. The resulting experience was choppy. A later patch capped the frame rate at 30fps—a functional fix, but not the smooth, adaptive experience players hoped for.
So why does Assassin’s Creed Shadows feel fluid at similar frame rates while other titles falter?
Ubisoft’s Software Workaround: “Doubling Up” Frames at 30fps
The core challenge is that the Switch 2’s VRR implementation, like many systems, struggles to maintain smoothness when frame rates dip below a certain threshold, often around 40fps. Ubisoft’s developers engineered a software-based solution for this.
As detailed in a recent talk at the FRVR conference, the team employed a specific algorithm for Shadows and the upcoming Star Wars Outlaws. “The same frame is effectively presented twice, once in the middle of the frame and again at the end,” the developers explained. “This allows the hardware to output at a steady 60Hz interval while maintaining smooth visuals, even when the game is rendering at 30fps.”
This clever trick effectively bridges the gap where the hardware’s native VRR support wanes. You can watch a deeper technical breakdown of this technique in action here.
A System-Wide Fix on the Horizon?
Ubisoft’s innovation isn’t staying in-house. In a significant move for the platform, the publisher confirmed it is actively collaborating with Nintendo. “We are continuing to work with Nintendo to improve VRR support going forward,” a spokesperson stated. This partnership raises the possibility of a system-level update or improved tools that could benefit all developers on the platform, not just Ubisoft.
For more details on this collaborative effort, a full report is available on FRVR’s blog: Ubisoft is Working with Nintendo to Improve VRR Support on Nintendo Switch 2.
The ideal solution would be more robust support for Low Frame-rate Compensation (LFC), a feature that multiplies frame rates to keep them within a display’s VRR window. Consistent LFC implementation across the system could solve the “30-40fps valley” problem for many games without requiring per-title patches.
DLSS: The Other Piece of the Puzzle
Alongside VRR discussions, Ubisoft also commented on the use of Nvidia’s DLSS on the Switch 2. The AI-powered upscaling technology is a cornerstone of the console’s ability to run demanding games. Ubisoft acknowledges DLSS is superior to its own Temporal Anti-Aliasing (TAA), but believes many developers are still only scratching the surface of its potential.
“It’s a rescue technology when the hardware specs still come up short,” one developer noted, suggesting that more aggressive and creative use of DLSS could further elevate visual fidelity and performance. For a comparative look at how DLSS transforms performance on similar hardware, check out this analysis here.
What This Means for Switch 2 Gamers
The collaboration between a major third-party publisher and Nintendo is a positive signal. It indicates that performance hurdles on the new console are being taken seriously and that software ingenuity can often overcome hardware limitations.
For now, the experience may vary from game to game. But thanks to pioneering work from teams like Ubisoft’s, and an open channel with Nintendo, the path toward a consistently smoother Switch 2 experience is looking clearer. The hope is that future SDK updates and shared best practices will ensure that VRR and DLSS become reliable, system-wide pillars of the Switch 2’s performance profile.