Nintendo's decision to add mouse controls is one of few new features to really distinguish the Switch 2 from its predecessor. It's hardly ground-breaking in the same way as motion controls on the Wii – we all know how to use a mouse, after all.
Interestingly, new console Nex Playground has taken the Wii motion control idea to the next level, and removed controllers altogether. I'm not saying Nintendo needs to worry, but is it innovating in the same way as it used to? It's something former PlayStation exec Shuhei Yoshida touched on when he said, ‘Nintendo is losing their identity’ by chasing power.
This is nonetheless the first time a games console has come with mouse functionality right out of the box (two in fact, since there's an optical laser in each Joy-Con 2), and having had a chance to try it at the Nintendo Switch 2 Experience in London, it may actually change the way I think about playing games.
Even though the event set-up included tables with a large mouse mat, for mouse-supported games like Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour and Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, I remembered optical mice can be used on any surfaces, including my trousers, or, if I'm at home, my couch's armrest.
Not only has that rewired my assumptions of where and how a mouse can be used but I can still control movement with the left Joy-Con rather than having my fingers stretched out awkwardly on a keyboard, the reason why I stick to a pad even when playing on PC.
What really blew my mind is just how seamless it is to switch to mouse mode simply by turning the Joy-Con 2 on its side. It means that whilst playing Metroid Prime 4 on Switch 2, I could quickly compare how it felt to aim using the stick, gyros, and mouse. That both Joy-Con buttons and gyro-aiming can still be used in mouse mode is also why you wouldn't just simply plug in any old USB mouse either.
Nintendo is already putting its dual mice to innovative use with wheelchair basketball game Drag x Drive, where you drag the dual mice to control your wheelchair (read our guide to the best Switch 2 launch day games). But this doesn't mean other developers have to try and shoehorn in mouse functions.
Compared to the Wii's motion controls or the Wii U's second screen, this isn't actually very gimmicky at all, as I can see a lot of PC devs being able to easily port over their first-person shooters, strategy sims, or management games to Switch 2 with the original PC version's mouse controls intact.
My concern is that the thin and unergonomic design of the Joy-Con 2 means I'll likely not be able to use this functionality without wrist-ache in the long run (it's already been a few years since I changed to using an ergonomic mouse on my PC for that reason).
I'm also now dreading the inevitable Splatoon 4, because if I'm already lagging behind the squid kids in Splatoon 3, I'm going to be hopeless when they're using mouse controls.
Nintendo Switch 2 releases 5 June in the UK, the US is tbc. Read our Switch 2 pre-orders live blog for up-to-date news, and our Switch 2 accessories guide for what you'll need.
