Pikmin 1 + 2 tech analysis

Nintendo recently brought Pikmin 1 + 2 to Switch, and thanks to Digital Foundry, we have a closer look at the technical side of things with some of the regular points like frame rate and resolution examined.

Overall, the games appear to be mostly straightforward ports. Resolution gets a bump and there are small improvements here and there, but otherwise, they’re as you remembered them on the GameCube.

Here’s the full rundown:

– Seems to use similar hybrid emulation system to Mario Sunshine in Super Mario 3D All-Stars
– Games run on an emulator which emulate the GPU functions of the GameCube; CPU side is compiled to run natively on Switch
– True to the GameCube originals with some embellishments
– Pikmin 1 + 2 has native 1080p resolution when docked with widescreen, compared to 480p on GameCube
– 720p in portable mode
– No anti-aliasing applied to the image, so there can be some rough edges and pixel shimmer
– Font, UI in menus/gameplay upgraded
– Low texture quality; many texture assets exactly the same as on GameCube
– Olimar’s spaceship sees some improvements
– Pre-rendered cutscenes reworked to 1080p
– Locked 30 frames per second
– No frame pacing issues, which is a plus

Check out the full video from Digital Foundry below covering the the frame rate, resolution, and more in Pikmin 1 + 2.

Technical Analysis

[embedded content]

Pikmin 1 + 2 is available on Switch now.

Related

Leave a Reply