Expect to see accessory companies offer different coloured strips for your Switch 2 controllers, even though there are no official ones from Nintendo.
Although accessory manufacturers no longer need to worry about accidentally leaking information about the Nintendo Switch 2 (something Genki is now in trouble for), one new detail about the console’s controllers has recently been discovered thanks to new accessories.
While Nintendo showed off the Switch 2’s Joy-Con 2 controllers during last month’s Nintendo Direct, one thing the company didn’t mention is that the side panels can be removed.
This was confirmed by retailer AliExpress, which is already selling coloured panels for you to stick onto your Joy-Con 2s, once your console arrives.
Unlike the Joy-Cons for the original Switch, the Joy-Con 2s are pure black, though they have light blue and orange highlights on the left and right , respectively, and where the controllers attach to the console.
A listing for decorative strips on AliExpress shows that while you can’t detach the whole cover, the side panels can be swapped out to give the controllers a bit more colour.
In this case, AliExpress is simply offering light blue and orange strips to match the Switch 2’s colour scheme, but demonstrations of how they look when attached can be easily mistaken for official Nintendo images.
The strips are also incredibly cheap, costing only £1.72, but at the time of writing they’re discounted to £1.33. This will no doubt open the door for other accessory manufacturers to offer more alternative colours for the controllers.
It wouldn’t be surprising if Nintendo released different coloured versions of the controllers later into the Switch 2’s lifetime, but why would anyone pay full price for new controllers when these strips are much cheaper?
That said, there’s no way to change the colouring around the controllers’ joysticks, or the inside of the Switch 2 itself, so anything other than light blue and orange risks looking incredibly jarring.
Plus, you probably shouldn’t expect Nintendo to offer its own official coloured or patterned strips since AliExpress’ strips come with a special tool for taking the Joy-Con 2 panels off.
This suggests Nintendo didn’t design the panels to be removable in the first place, as opposed to the PlayStation 5 faceplates which can be taken off and exchanged for different ones.
If this is the case, it’s possible tampering with the panels could void your warranty on the controllers and give Nintendo justification for not offering repairs should they break.
Hopefully, the Joy-Con 2s won’t be as susceptible to drifting issues as the original Joy-Cons are. It became such a problem that Nintendo was forced to offer free repairs, but it’s probably not worth risking any trouble for the sake of a £2 side panel.
It was believed the Joy-Con 2s would avoid drift entirely with Hall Effect joysticks, but Nintendo admitted that technology won’t be used. While the company insists the controllers are greatly improved, drift is still theoretically possible – as it is with most controllers for other consoles too.
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