Nintendo has done what it does best when it comes to the newly-announced Nintendo Switch 2; take an excellent piece of hardware and tweak it until it peaks, throwing in a few feature gambits along the way.
Of course, the strategy relies on the hardware being great enough to warrant a new entry (see the Virtual Boy) to begin with, and they don’t always stick the landing (see the Wii U and the Nintendo 64DD).
It always surprises me, however, to see how risk-averse gamers are when it comes to Nintendo’s hardware. Yes, there have been some blunders, but broadly speaking Nintendo has always been among the most creative hardware manufacturers when it comes to creating consoles that inspire new games and new ways to play.
We’ve had our first glimpse at the Nintendo Switch 2, and while many of the new features are shrouded in mystery, and will remain so until the Nintendo Direct: Nintendo Switch 2 event on April 2, I think people have already grossly misunderstood what will make the Nintendo Switch sequel an excellent follow-up to one of my all-time favorite consoles: its rumored new mouse mode.
From a new matte coating to an additional USB-C port, a lot of long-rumored features were confirmed by Nintendo’s Switch 2 announcement trailer. Among the most exciting, however, were the mysterious new system button, larger size, magnetic Joy-Con, and an improved kickstand that could finally make tabletop play more viable for the console.
The standout for me, however, was what appeared to be confirmation that the new Joy-Con will offer mouse-like control, opening new possibilities for PC game ports as well as new ways to play upcoming titles on the Switch 2.
Among the first games I purchased for the original Switch was an all-time favorite of mine; Sid Meier’s Civilization VI. My excitement was short-lived; a game with this many fiddly interfaces on such a small screen just didn’t gel with me, and I found myself crawling back to my gaming PC for the more enjoyable mouse input.
Of course, questions still remain; how comfortable and ergonomic can a Joy-Con be to use in this orientation? How smoothly will it work on different surfaces? Will the new and (hopefully) improved Joy-Con be robust enough for regular mouse mode use, or will we see degradation like the first-generation Nintendo Switch Joy-Con drift?
We won’t know the answers to these questions until we’ve had hands-on time with the console, but one thing that was never a question in my mind was whether or not users would be a fan of the new feature.
Put some respect on mouse mode
Turns out, not everyone is as excited as I am for the new mouse mode, and I can’t really fathom why.
We surveyed our WhatsApp followers to find out which new rumored features they were most excited about, and I was pretty surprised by the results.
The vast majority, understandably, said they were reserving their excitement until pricing has been confirmed. The most we know so far on that comes from Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa, who shared in a recent Q&A that the Switch 2 would be in line with the “affordable prices customers expect”. TechRadar Gaming predicts that the cost of the Switch 2 will be around $399.99 / £349.99 / AU$699.95, or lower, which is excellent news, if true.
The next-most popular answers were a tie, as of writing; unsurprisingly, the larger screen (and Joy-Con) ranks highly among prospective Switch 2 owners, but I was floored to see the mysterious new right Joy-Con system button take the lead over mouse mode.
Pushing imaginary buttons
For one thing, we have no confirmation whatsoever as to what this button does. Nintendo gave us some solid visual cues for many of the new additions, including mouse mode, but we saw nary a click of the new button.
Rumors have been whirling for months since Joy-Con prototype images leaked online about what this button may be for, especially given earlier iterations featured a ‘C’ label which birthed all kinds of rumors. Does the ‘C’ stand for capture, or chat, perhaps? Or was it simply a label for prototype units?
Its placement suggests that it’s more likely a system button than one used in gameplay, and given there’s still a capture button for screenshots and short gameplay snippets, I’d hedge my bets that it’s likely either for in-game text chat or quick control for voice chat.
And sure, that’s fun; I used the Nintendo Switch Online-exclusive voice chat feature a lot during the pandemic when I was in the throes of my Animal Crossing: New Horizons grind, and shared frustrations with many Nintendo fans that online gaming features have been significantly lacking in the current-generation console.
Still, I fail to see how this could possibly inspire excitement more than Joy-Con mouse control.
Keeping it casual
In the weeks since the announcement, I’ve seen countless comments from readers and viewers seething with unfounded rage that the hardware won’t be on par with other handheld gaming devices, comparing the Switch 2 to the likes of the Lenovo Legion Go, the Steam Deck, and the Asus ROG Ally X; which is about as fruitful of a comparison as apples to oranges.
Even when it comes to mouse control, it’s a false equivalency; the Steam Deck trackpads offer a different form factor and experience, as does the Legion Go’s FPS mode. The simple fact of the matter is we won’t know until we’ve tried it, but I for one am incredibly excited to see how Nintendo might use the feature to allow for more whacky, whimsical, and wonderful games on the Switch 2.
Consider the success of the Wii and its motion controls. Were they new to the market? No; at the time, motion control was all the rage in gaming. What Nintendo did was make it more accessible, opening the market out to families and casual gamers with a piece of moderately priced hardware.
That is where Nintendo thrives. Performance and power are never the focus, and it boggles my mind when I so frequently see gamers misunderstand and misrepresent the very clear – and successful – price point strategy Nintendo opts for.
However, they do need to make games cheaper; I’ll give the haters that one.