Joysticks: Probably Still Drifty

Joy-Con joysticks use a potentiometer to read the voltage at a wiper that slides across a strip of resistive material. That material wears down over time, or plastic and dust can dirty the sensors.

Stick drift is a huge problem with other Switch models. One survey found that 40% of Switch owners had problems with their Joy-Cons drifting, and things didn’t get any better with the Lite or OLED editions. After a bunch of lawsuits, Nintendo’s president even admitted it and apologized, setting up a free repair program for customers in some parts of the world.

      • Blooper@lemmynsfw.com
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        8
        ·
        23 hours ago

        Exactly this. Lots of companies have figured out that filling our landfills with cheap plastic crap is a lucrative business model. In this case, it’s cheaply made and expensive to replace - making it hugely profitable. Shareholders would be furious if they were to fix this issue.

    • inclementimmigrant@lemmy.worldOP
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      24
      arrow-down
      2
      ·
      1 day ago

      I like how they raised the price on the controllers and only used magnets for a non-issue and not for the thing that is the problem.

      • NuXCOM_90Percent@lemmy.zip
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        16
        arrow-down
        2
        ·
        1 day ago

        Eh, those rails were a huge issue over time for people who primarily used their switches in handheld but did swap/remove joycons semi-regularly. My launch model (that I ended up giving to a friend’s kid when I got my Steam Deck) would often need me to attach and detach the right joycon a few times to make it fully register that it was connected.

        But yeah. Tinfoil hat and all but a LOT of speculation is that the magnetic based connection is to prevent hall effect aftermarket sticks from working since those are also magnetic. TMR isn’t impacted by that but the vast majority of folk would have never considered TMR for a gamepad until the past year or two.

    • Lyra_Lycan@lemmy.blahaj.zone
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      14
      arrow-down
      11
      ·
      edit-2
      1 day ago

      And the deluded fucks still charge more than US$250 for their half-a-console. It’s got good processing power and stellar shell construction, but charging the same price Xbox and PlayStation do for their full entertainment consoles, for a handheld main with the same defect-prone joysticks, tiny battery, stickers for the Joy-Con socket decal, plastic screen and 1080p display? In 2025?

      • nivenkos@lemmy.ml
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        8
        arrow-down
        2
        ·
        1 day ago

        Tears of the Kingdom is one of the best games ever made, shame they keep it exclusive though.

        • Nosavingthrow@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          5
          arrow-down
          3
          ·
          1 day ago

          I disagree, and I think open world games are basically the cheapest way to pump a game out. Game development has stagnated, and basically, everything Nintendo releases is a testament to that. Indie games are basically the only realm in which real game design is happening.

          • caseofthematts@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            5
            ·
            23 hours ago

            While I’m not a huge fan of BotW and TotK, I think it’s a disservice to say they were a cheap way to pump out games. You can see the design intent in both exploration and gameplay mechanics. There’s a lot that works well in those games that allows for the player to continue playing for a while and still have fun.

            And this is probably the only time I’d be seen defending those games.

            • Nosavingthrow@lemmy.world
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              1
              ·
              7 hours ago

              I don"t know if it’s in question that open world isn’t the cheapest way to make a game. It really is. You can make a series of discrete challenges without really needing to take time to consider context or even put any set pieces together. You create mechanics, and you let players create their own fun. I will concede that I am MOSTLY disparaging BOTW.