As revolutionary as Nintendo’s original Switch was, it came with a big — or, rather, very, very small — problem: Its tiny Joy-Con controllers were pretty terrible. Sure, they were novel, rumbled in neat ways, and lent themselves, in theory, to multiple playstyles, but they were also far too little, uncomfortable to hold, and not the most reliable when it came to motion controls. After spending a few weeks with the Switch 2, it’s clear the new Joy-Con 2 controllers fix all of those issues, though the viability of mouse controls will depend more on how developers implement them than what the hardware is capable of.
Accusations that the original Switch was too toy-like largely stemmed from its bright, Fisher Price-style color scheme, but there’s no denying the Joy-Con’s glossy, hard-plastic finish made them feel, if not cheap, then not quite like a serious piece of hardware. Nintendo seems to have kept both criticisms in mind when designing the Joy-Con 2. Glimpses of the original console’s colors peek out from the control stick well and magnet rails, but the majority of the surface area is a dark charcoal grey. It immediately distinguishes the Switch 2 from its predecessor and conveys more effectively the idea that this is Proper Hardware instead of a toy.
However, the design also loses a bit of personality as a result, not to mention customization potential. I bought three sets of Joy-Con throughout the original Switch’s lifespan, one on account of drift and two just for the different color combinations. If confining color to a small part of the Joy-Con 2 is Nintendo’s plan moving forward, I can’t say I’ll have much interest in spending $90 for a tiny speck of purple or orange in an area often covered by the thumb to begin with.
The Joy-Con 2 are roughly an inch longer than the original Joy-Con, and while that might not sound like a substantial change, it’s hard to overstate just how much more comfortable that extra inch makes the new controllers (though mileage may vary). The ridge under the shoulder buttons, where the magnet detach button is, forms a natural resting point for your fingers and helps mitigate some of the hand strain that often comes from extended sessions with handheld consoles, like the Steam Deck and original Switch.
The Joy-Con 2’s improved ergonomics also mean it’s more viable to use them detached from the console, even without the grip Nintendo includes with each Switch 2. The Pro Controller is still the ideal choice for more demanding games like Street Fighter 6, but I played the first act of Cyberpunk 2077 using motion controls (more on that shortly) and detached Joy-Con 2 initially for testing, but then just because it felt so natural and comfortable. Holding the controller horizontally for something like Mario Kart World still feels a little cramped and unnatural, but the elongated SL and SR buttons on the magnet rails make it easier to find a usable position without having to contort your hands.
They feel good to hold, they’re easier to use, and they even sound good. Joy-Con 2’s button presses make less of a hard tacky sound and have a softer plunk when pressed, a difference that’s most noticeable with the shoulder buttons. With the original Joy-Con, you could often hear springs compressing and decompressing when pushing the L and R buttons, and the ZL and ZR buttons made an obnoxiously loud click. That might not matter if you’re playing alone, but the noise often stood out if you’re in a room with other people who aren’t also clicking away on their own Switches.
The Joy-Con 2’s other highlight is the new mode that lets you use the right controller as a mouse. It’s surprisingly comfortable – if you don’t hold the Joy-Con like a regular mouse, that is. It’s too narrow from back to front to make using it like a standard mouse viable for more than a few minutes at a time, as there’s just not enough room for your hand to rest. It is, thankfully, more versatile than a typical mouse and works in a variety of situations. I played Civilization 7‘s Switch 2 version with the right Joy-Con 2 horizontally in my lap with no straining or tension problems, and although the Joy-Con was pointing away from the console itself, there were no interface problems or challenges getting the system to acknowledge what I wanted it to do. Slouching in a chair and using my torso as a mousepad worked just fine in Fortnite, and as awkward as it looked seeing folks use mouse controls on their thighs, it felt entirely natural in games like Cyberpunk 2077.
There are a few caveats to how effective mouse controls are, though, the most important being that there is a small amount of input lag depending on the strength of your internet connection. Responsiveness was worse when I tested mouse controls in a room further away from my wireless router. It wasn’t enough to make playing a game impossible. However, the slowness was noticeable and not ideal for games that require faster responses, such as Fortnite or Cyberpunk 2077, and the Switch 2 didn’t recognize Mouse-Con movements if I was roughly two feet or further away from the tablet. Granted, there probably aren’t many situations where you’d be at that distance from the Switch 2 in tabletop mode, but the point is that the efficiency of mouse controls will vary depending on your internet strength unless the console is docked.
It seems that whether mouse controls are worth using will depend on the game and whether you can customize control schemes. Button mapping felt fine in Civilization 7, but took a lot of getting used to with the more involved and oddly mapped Cyberpunk 2077. The R and ZR buttons normally act like left and right mouse buttons, but Cyberpunk doesn’t treat them that way.
After accidentally throwing grenades into crowds more than once, I just switched to motion controls. Motion controls are much more responsive using the Joy-Con 2 than they were on the original Switch. I haven’t willingly used them since playing on the Wii, and didn’t like them even then, but it’s quickly becoming my preferred control style with the Switch 2. Maybe the Cyberpunk 2077 problem was a skill issue, but the more important point is that the Joy-Con 2 give you multiple, viable playstyle options and really help the Switch 2 live up to the original console’s promise of letting you play anywhere, however you like.
The Joy-Con 2 are, like the Switch 2 itself, a marked upgrade over the original, even if they are just better versions of their predecessors. It’s a more tactile pair of controllers that feel and sound good to use, even over extended sessions. Mouse mode’s full potential probably won’t be realized for months or even years, but the fact that it works seamlessly and so well is a promising sign that points to the possibility of new ways to interact with games and a broader selection of titles that might be playable on the Switch 2. Let’s just hope the color schemes get some variety.