Developing for platforms like the Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, and Steam Deck can be a challenge, especially for developers who have to work around the hardware restraints these systems have, compared to consoles like the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X (but reportedly, also for Nintendo, who may have to slow down the relentless release schedule they held for the Switch generation.) However, some developers like No Man's Sky developer Hello Games are more than willing to put in the extra work to keep their games updated and work around “impossible memory constraints.”
“The mobile platforms like Switch 1 and 2, along with Steam Deck take a disproportionate amount of engineering time with every update we release,” said No Man's Sky Engine Programmer Martin Griffiths on X. “A bunch of us at Hello Games probably spend 2-3x more time to make these updates seamlessly work, exactly like the other consoles do along with PC/Mac etc.”
The biggest hardware constraint developers have to work around to continue supporting growing games on these platforms is, as mentioned above, memory constraints. “It’s really a delight to constantly beat impossible memory constraints with a growing game to allow people to continue to experience and enjoy No Man's Sky,” the developer concluded.
Memory constraints in gaming systems have long been known as the first hurdle most developers face. Even after the launch of the Nintendo Switch 2, the Xbox Series S, with its 10 GB of RAM, remains the current-generation gaming system with the least available RAM, which continues to create challenges for developers. For example, the system's low available RAM, alongside the parity clause, was among the reasons Baldur's Gate 3 took so long to launch on Xbox systems, as the system couldn't run the game's split-screen multiplayer mode properly.
About the author: Francesco De Meo has been covering video games and technology since 2012, starting his career at small outlets like Gamersyndrome and GeekSnack. After joining Wccftech gaming section in 2015, he quickly expanded his video gaming coverage with in-depth reporting, interviews with iconic industry figures such as Grasshopper Manufacture founder and No More Heroes creator Goichi "Suda51" Suda, Resident Evil series creator Shinji Mikami, Team NINJA's president and Nioh series director Fumihiko Yasuda, and Silent Hill creator Keiichiro Toyama, reviews and on-the-ground coverage of major industry events such as Gamescom and E3. When he's not reporting or reviewing, Francesco can be found playing the genres he loves most, spending time with his six cats, reading, writing music, playing guitar and drumming for his progressive rock band.
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