When the Nintendo Switch 2 was officially announced, it was hard to feel like it wasn’t just more of the same. With no weird 3D gimmicks and no absurd naming scheme, did it even really feel like a new Nintendo device? But eagle-eyed viewers picked up on something else—Nintendo, it turns out, might be the first console maker to build a mouse right into its default controller.
At about 1:01 into the announcement trailer, you can see what looks like an optical sensor pop up on the side of one of the Switch 2’s Joy-Con controllers (or whatever they end up being called), and just a few seconds later, those same two controllers glide along a desk on their side, as if they’re being used like mice.
The moment followed weeks of rumors and supposed leaks, but nothing concrete had surfaced…until now.
In a patent filed on August 1 of last year and published on Feb. 6, Nintendo describes an “input device” that looks and sounds a lot like a Switch 2 Joy-Con (that’s what I’m going to call it for now) being held on its side and includes a “sensor for mouse operation.” Finally, it seems like Nintendo’s Switch 2 might not be so boring after all.
Credit: Nintendo via World Intellectual Property Organization
In a diagram included with the patent, a hand seems to be using the Joy-Con’s shoulder and trigger buttons as mouse buttons, and perhaps using the thumbstick as a scroll wheel. A button does seem to be missing from the Joy-Con in the diagram, the mysterious new C button seen in the Switch 2 trailer from the end of last month, but aside from that, everything seems to be depicted exactly as expected.
Technically, Nintendo isn’t the first to have this idea. A similar feature, albeit with slightly clunkier implementation, is already available on the Lenovo Legion Go, with that device’s “FPS mode.” But with Nintendo giving mouse control to its entire user base, developers will likely feel much more comfortable supporting the control scheme.
So, what could a mouse on the Switch 2 mean? Well, more natural PC ports and easier aiming in shooting games, for sure. But I’ve got a slightly more out-there theory.
I think Nintendo wants to bring DS games to the TV for the first time since the Wii U’s virtual console. The company recently added Game Boy Advance games to an upgraded tier of the Switch Online library, but with a mouse, Nintendo could easily bring over DS games to the Switch 2 as well. Yes, technically, the Joy-Con’s motion controls could mimic a touchscreen stylus to a degree, but a mouse will much more easily provide the speed and precision needed for DS classics like The World Ends With You, which has never really translated well to any other systems (despite multiple attempts from Square Enix). Finally, there will be a good official method for playing these games that doesn’t involve actually breaking out the old DS Lite (or, yes, a 3DS).
But even if I’m wrong and the mouse just becomes an optional control feature for certain games, it is funny to imagine a future where the Nintendo Switch has better support for shooters than the Xbox.