Nintendo of America has announced that the eagerly awaited Nintendo Switch 2 will not incorporate Hall effect sensors in its Joy-Con sticks or Pro Controllers. In a chat with Nintendo Life, Nate Bihldorff, who is the Senior Vice President of Product Development & Publishing, explained that while these new analog sticks won’t use Hall effect technology, they have been crafted with a focus on durability.
“The Joy-Con 2 controllers are completely redesigned,” said Bihldorff. “They might not feature Hall Effect technology, but they offer a really satisfying feel. Every time we launch new hardware, Nintendo is committed to developing it from scratch to ensure the best user experience. This includes how the Joy-Cons interact with games and their lasting reliability.”
The original Nintendo Switch faced a persistent issue of stick drift, where the analog sticks would move on their own without input, leading to numerous class-action lawsuits. In response, Nintendo’s leadership issued apologies and introduced a free replacement program for affected sticks.
Hall effect sticks are known for a more advanced method of detecting joystick movements compared to traditional potentiometers. Instead of relying on physical contact like wipers moving over contact pads, they use magnets for motion detection. Potentiometer sticks can wear out over time, leading to the infamous stick drift. Despite the widespread adoption of Hall effect technology in third-party and PC gaming peripherals, Nintendo’s decision to forgo this approach remains puzzling.
Bihldorff emphasized that ensuring lasting durability was a priority in designing the new controllers. This was echoed by Kouichi Kawamoto, the producer of Switch 2, who noted that even though the Switch 2 Pro Controller might look similar to its predecessor, it’s been built anew from the ground up.
Tetsuya Sasaki, Nintendo’s hardware lead, shed some light on the larger vision for their controller innovations. He mentioned an ongoing initiative at Nintendo aiming to create the “ultimate controller.” Although he didn’t confirm if this has been achieved with the Switch 2, the introduction of “smooth-gliding switches” is a point of pride for Nintendo’s engineers.
Whether Nintendo has effectively addressed the stick drift issue in the Switch 2 is a question that time will answer. Given that the Joy-Cons on the original Switch experienced stick drift within the first six months, it will be interesting to see if the problem resurfaces in the coming years without the use of Hall effect technology. For those interested in more details about the Switch 2, including its DLSS and ray tracing capabilities, check out our other detailed coverage.
