Nintendo Continually Working to Improve Joy-Con Drift - News
by William D'Angelo , posted on 02 November 2021 / 2,592 Views
Nintendo Technology Development Division General Manager Toru Yamashita during the latest Ask the Developer was asked about improvements made to Nintendo Switch Joy-Con controller's analogue sticks to try to combat drift.
"Joy-Con controllers have lots of different features, so we've been continuing to make improvements that may not always be visible," Yamashita said. "Among others, the analogue stick parts have continuously been improved since launch, and we are still working on improvements.
"The analogue stick at first release cleared the Nintendo reliability test using the method of rotating the stick while continually applying a load to it, with the same criteria as the Wii U GamePad's analogue stick. As we have always been trying to improve it as well, we have investigated the Joy-Con controllers used by the customers and repeatedly improved the wear resistance and durability."
Yamashita added that the parks in the Joy-Con analogue sticks can't be purchased off the shelf and have to be specially designed. Nintendo has spent time to improve the reliability test itself and make changes to improve the durability.
"The parts of the Joy-Con analogue sticks are not something that can be bought off the shelf but are specially designed, so we have undergone a lot of considerations to improve them," said Yamashita. "In addition, we improved the reliability test itself, and we have continued to make changes to improve durability and clear this new test.
"When the effects of our improvements were confirmed, we promptly incorporated them into the Joy-Con controllers that are included with the console, Nintendo Switch Lite, and the ones sold individually, that were manufactured at that time.
"This involves the internal components of the Joy-Con, so you can't tell the improvements from the outside, but we use the new versions of the parts when we repair them. Also, similar continual improvements have been made for the Nintendo Switch Pro Controller as well."
General Manager Ko Shiota said the wear is something unavoidable and Nintendo is working to improve the durabilty.
"Yes, for example car tires wear out as the car moves, as they are in constant friction with the ground to rotate," said Shiota. "So with that same premise, we asked ourselves how we can improve durability, and not only that, but how can both operability and durability coexist? It’s something we are continuously tackling."
Yamashita added, "The degree of wear depends on factors like the combination of the materials and forms, so we continue to make improvements by researching which combinations are less likely to wear. We mentioned that the Joy-Con controller specifications hadn’t changed in the sense that we didn’t add new features such as new buttons, but the analog sticks in the Joy-Con controllers included with Nintendo Switch – OLED Model are the latest version with all the improvements.
"Needless to say, so are the analog sticks included in Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch Lite, separately sold Joy-Con controllers, and the Nintendo Switch Pro Controller that are currently being shipped."
A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel dedicated to gaming Let's Plays and tutorials. You can contact the author at wdangelo@vgchartz.com or on Twitter @TrunksWD.
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By the time this resolved the next system will be released.
I am amazed at how they've managed to get through the joycon drift situation without much outcry. People are aware of the issue, but I feel like Nintendo is kinda getting a pass.
Yeah, outcry might not be the best word. But, I feel like XB or PS would take a much more substantial hit to their reputation than Ninty has if it was one of them having the problem.
It has been getting better in my experience. I think that's part of the reason they have gotten off easy. But who knows what will happen with the lawsuits.
I had fixed mine by cleaning a couple times, sent them in once, and finally bought a new set earlier this year. Knock on wood, no issues with the new set. My brother bought a couple sets over the years. Seems like he had less and less issues with each set. I think they were improving them prior to the lawsuit.
I didn't have any major issues with my launch set for about a year and I didn't have a pro controller yet. Had probably 1000 hours on those joycons. My guess is that most of them last long enough that it will be considered normal wear and tear.
Because people have continued to buy the switch and buy new Joy-Cons, this thing has actually worked out in Nintendo's favor. They don't seem to have lost sales of the switch because of it, and they're actually selling more controllers (both joycons and pro controllers) than they would if the original joy cons worked properly.
It's pretty f-ed up when you look at it that way.
In a perfect world the switch should be taken off sale until the issue is fixed
I love how this news comes out like a day or two after Valve's Deck teardown (where they stated they would source for spare parts, which included the thumbsticks).
They really should have fixed and sorted this up to 1-2 years ago, and it still feels like it's on their least to do list.
£70 a pop for much needed controllers isn't acceptable in my eyes, not anymore, not after a godamn second pair.
So they need to work harder. Got a new pair 3 days ago and it's already drifting
Edit: Why is this getting downvoted? People are really butthurt when it comes to favorite publishers
I stopped at my second pair. Not forking out another £70 again, so my Switch is forever staying in docked mode now.
At this point I'm just looking for 3rd party joycons. My joycons are unusable due to this problem, and I've already sent them to repair once before. This is unacceptable.
got my switch day 1 play it regularly. it started drifting 6 months ago so its had a good run costs me £65 for new ones
And that's why I bought the Pro controller and my Switch stays docked 24/7. It's been almost three years and not a single issue with it just yet, where both my two pairs of joycons are pretty unusable at this point. So technically I have 5 switch controllers, where only one of them works. That's also why I'm not planning to get the OLED model, as this drift problem has changed how I use my Switch and I simply don't believe that Nintendo has fixed the issue with this model.
Riiiiight...
It's not fixed yet!?
Essay Pro