Note that this does not forgive Game Freak for making such a poorly optimized game. This is simply a possible explanation.
This is also a theory. Feel free to debunk it.
More Powerful Hardware?
It’s a theory at this point the OLED Switch was planned to be the Switch Pro. The evidence? The system is much more power efficient and capable of higher clocks compared to other models. And although the v2 and Lite have the same chip, the hardware isn’t capable of handling the higher clocks, since the former was rushed to patch the v1's chip exploit and the latter is designed solely for handheld, not docked. One need only look at Switch OC Suite's numbers to see the higher clocks.
Work on Pokemon SV started in 2018. If they had been told that sometime in 2020-21 a Switch Pro was coming out, optimization might've dropped to a back-burner; after all, if the next system can handle it, why optimize for current systems?
Covid Happened
Then, disaster struck. Covid. Chip shortages everywhere delayed the launch of the Switch Pro and forced Nintendo's hand. The Switch had been out for nearly 4 years, halfway through the system's lifespan. If they didn't put out a Switch Pro now, they'd miss their window.
And yet, chip shortages continued until 2021. Nintendo simply didn't have the chips needed to mass-produce their Switch Pro. So, they settled for what they had: the Tegra X1+ chip, OLED screen, kickstand, etc. and forgoed any stronger chips or hardware necessary for the Switch Pro.
Game Freak's Dilemma
Likely, Legends: Arcues was planned to be optimized for the original Switch, and BDSP was outsourced to focus on this task. This left Pokemon SV in a difficult scenario: no Switch Pro to compensate for their poor performance and a half-finished game. They were out of options. So, development likely shifted to pushing out every drop of performance. The game would run at 720p if it was the last thing they did.
At... they did it. At the cost of literally everything else. Draw distance was heavily cut, the game can't hold 30fps, textures look terrible, the bug list is longer than the Pokedex, and the list goes on. Had the Switch Pro come out to save them, the game may have ran decently. And yet, without the Switch Pro, they barely made it out the door in time.
Thanks for coming to my TED talk. This is just a theory.
This is also a theory. Feel free to debunk it.
More Powerful Hardware?
It’s a theory at this point the OLED Switch was planned to be the Switch Pro. The evidence? The system is much more power efficient and capable of higher clocks compared to other models. And although the v2 and Lite have the same chip, the hardware isn’t capable of handling the higher clocks, since the former was rushed to patch the v1's chip exploit and the latter is designed solely for handheld, not docked. One need only look at Switch OC Suite's numbers to see the higher clocks.
Work on Pokemon SV started in 2018. If they had been told that sometime in 2020-21 a Switch Pro was coming out, optimization might've dropped to a back-burner; after all, if the next system can handle it, why optimize for current systems?
Covid Happened
Then, disaster struck. Covid. Chip shortages everywhere delayed the launch of the Switch Pro and forced Nintendo's hand. The Switch had been out for nearly 4 years, halfway through the system's lifespan. If they didn't put out a Switch Pro now, they'd miss their window.
And yet, chip shortages continued until 2021. Nintendo simply didn't have the chips needed to mass-produce their Switch Pro. So, they settled for what they had: the Tegra X1+ chip, OLED screen, kickstand, etc. and forgoed any stronger chips or hardware necessary for the Switch Pro.
Game Freak's Dilemma
Likely, Legends: Arcues was planned to be optimized for the original Switch, and BDSP was outsourced to focus on this task. This left Pokemon SV in a difficult scenario: no Switch Pro to compensate for their poor performance and a half-finished game. They were out of options. So, development likely shifted to pushing out every drop of performance. The game would run at 720p if it was the last thing they did.
At... they did it. At the cost of literally everything else. Draw distance was heavily cut, the game can't hold 30fps, textures look terrible, the bug list is longer than the Pokedex, and the list goes on. Had the Switch Pro come out to save them, the game may have ran decently. And yet, without the Switch Pro, they barely made it out the door in time.
Thanks for coming to my TED talk. This is just a theory.