Ah, Joy-Con drift. The bane of every humble Nintendo Switch owner. The problem has been so pervasive that multiple legal entities have become involved in reprimanding Nintendo for releasing a product this way – and the latest is UK Consumer Report group Which?, which has found evidence that the notorious drift is due to specific mechanical flaws in the design.
The report finds that the controllers’ circuit boards showed noticeable wear and tear at joystick contact points after only a few months of usage. Dust was also found in internal components despite attempts at dustproofing. This all contributes to drift, and Which? has called on Nintendo to compensate any UK customer who bought a replacement Joy-Con since the console’s launch, as well as to (without question) repair or replace any Joy-Con sent in for free. In response, Nintendo issued the following statement:
“The percentage of Joy-Con controllers that have been reported as experiencing issues with the analogue stick in the past is small, and we have been making continuous improvements to the Joy-Con analogue stick since its launch in 2017.”
“We expect all our hardware to perform as designed, and, if anything falls short of this goal, we always encourage consumers to contact Nintendo customer support, who will be happy to openly and leniently resolve any consumer issues related to the Joy-Con controllers’ analogue sticks, including in cases where the warranty may no longer apply.”
Remember to contact Nintendo Support first when dealing with Joy-Con drift. They’ll likely repair your controller free of charge, no strings attached. We’ll have to see whether these various reports and proceedings result in anything tangible, but at the moment we can only hope the problem is solved once and for all.
Source: Eurogamer
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Written by Amelia Fruzzetti
A writer and Nintendo fan based in Seattle, Washington. When not working for NinWire, she can be found eating pasta, writing stories, and wondering about when Mother 3 is finally going to get an official localization.
