Custom controllers aren't exactly a new idea; whether they're cobbled together by a passionate young player or expertly crafted by someone with serious experience, the allure of custom gaming gubbins has been around for donkey's years.
Colorware apparently knows this, as they offer a wide array of custom controllers for various systems, and as we're appropriately named Nintendo Life, we're going to take a look at the Switch offerings on hand. Check out the video above for a full review, but if you're in a hurry or you're not the video type, here's a concise summary.
We don't need to tell you that these controls look utterly gorgeous. The retro aesthetic is one we have a particular fondness for, and it's glorious to see the spirit of the NES realised in both Joy-Con and Pro Controller form. All the controllers feel exactly as you would want them to, none of the buttons or any of the inputs have been affected by the layers of paint carefully applied, which is what you'd expect given the price tag and professional finish.
The only difference in 'feel' is the fact that the matte coating on the controllers feel different to the stock Joy-Con. They have a slight powdery touch to them that appears to be some sort of final coating that slowly 'settles' into feeling more like a standard Joy-Con. Also the buttons are gloriously glossy, and they feel absolutely wonderful.
The only issue we have with the products is the right Joy-Con for some reason bulges in the middle on both sides (see above). It's not clear why this is, it doesn't affect gameplay and nine times out of ten we didn't notice it was there, but it's a bit of a shame nonetheless.
All in all, we're chuffed to bits with these controllers. The finish is superbly professional, and the controllers function exactly as you'd want them to. The price tag of $189 for the Pro Controller and $199 for the Joy-Con may seem a lot at first, but these are hand-made, custom pieces of artwork. You get what you pay for, and these controllers are absolutely no exception.
If you'd like to pick up one of these for yourself or just learn more, just point your clicking device over here.
Comments 50
If I spent the handsome sum to get my Joy Cons painted like that, the bulging part would drive me crazy.
They look great but at $200 they can GTFO.
That's almost the price of another Nintendo switch here in the UK (seen Nintendo Switch go for around £205 on some clearance).
LOLOLOLOLOLOLOL!! Look at that $200 price tag! This is insane. Who in the world buys that, really?
Not even close to worth it. Silly.
Don’t buy these! Etsy is a much better and affordable option
200! Hahaha, get knotted x
They look amazing but at $200 they better fix that buldge
hahaha ridiculous
Given the Joy-Cons are $80 to start with, I understand the price (but would never pay it myself). What would really stink is getting those beauties and then Nintendo releasing a Left Joy Con with a proper D-pad.....
These look great but at half the cost of a new console I’ll happily imagine my Nintendo made controllers are as pretty as these. I’ve already done the clear purple joy cons from Amazon, those were cheap and easy, and enough for me.
Man...those are awesome! Color ware does such a great job. Too bad there products are out of my price range
Cool as these look, this is never, ever, ever worth the price unless you really have money to spare.
Doesn't matter whether it's customized or not, 200 bucks for a game controller is just plain crooked.
Have you ever seen a cat eat a banana while writing down its thoughts?... More interesting than this lol stupid broke controller and way too much moneys
I own the joycons in the NES style and they are great. However, one of the red buttons has chipped (thanks NL Arcade Challenge!!) after just 9 Months!!! Now it shows white.
I contacted ColorWare and they will fix it for free. As they should for that price. Yes, it’s expensive, it’s clearly aimed at those with a lot of disposable income, but they look great. I’d still recommend them despite the chip...lots of button smashing on that NL Arcade Challenge!!
FYI- I’ve never noticed a bulge on the ones I own.
Hi @AlexOlney, 😊 Please can you straighten your background wall artworks? I'm dying.
P.s. I totally jealous of your custom controllers.
Cfgk24
Those joy-cons are so hot, esp when docked on the Switch. Are the glossy buttons slightly larger than the stock ones, or is that just an illusion?
@BoFiS
They are awesome. The red buttons are in fact slightly larger.
@JHDK that's what she said
Looks great, but the price is insane, especially considering how they didn't even bother with giving it a d-pad conversion.
Well I don't personally like that style.. would personally go with a Kamen Rider W driver & Gaia Memory theme myself, but I can understand the cost. You're not only paying for the paint & controllers, but also the labor.
@AlexOlney Quick microfiber to the screen before filming eh? Or was the screen clean & your face had fingerprints on it.
not worth it. Dear lord. But they look great
I don't care much for 3rd party controllers (they usually look a bit wonky), but these look great. Still, I had a hard time paying $50 for my Pro Controller when that was on sale a month ago.
I can't imagine paying 3x that for just 1 controller that looks nice. However, if I saw a metal and wood combination for joycons or pro-controller, I'd have to buy.
I don't understand why there are custom shells. I keep expecting someone to make actual controllers, but, all anyone seems to want to do is customize the controllers that Nintendo made.
"The price tag of $189 for the Pro Controller and $199 for the Joy-Con may seem a lot at first,"
No, they still seem a lot at second, and third, and fourth, and... =D
Jesus christ those are beautiful. Not spending my money on it though. I have to waste my money on smaller things like left sided joycon with a Dpad with no rumble or bluetooth off PlayAsia.
@Agent721
Grab yourself the Hori Arcade stick
Its the ......... biz,
works with mario kart, rocket league, disc jam, and others
The shmups and beatups and most 2D retromania games
(my phrase, i quite like it lol),
work obviously better with the stick but just how much is breathtaking
my score difference between joy-cons/pro controller and the stick absolute night and day,
Got it from amazon £114, steal for me
Also story related, someone mentioned etsy, defo go there anyone,
I have joy-con set in jungle green (transparent) coloured buttons ordered, if you take the postage out there just over a £100
Another steal for me,
Forget colorware
Remember
FireflowerElectronic
That's a pretty penny, but understandable. Very little, if anything, matches the quality and it's not easy to reproduce at that level. I'd love to see a SNES version from them.
Something that is hard to review is the durability of them. I would not want to spend all that money on custom controllers that, after 6 months of use, the custom finish is ruined. That is one thing that always worries me with stuff like this.
Cool....but WAAAAAAY not worth the price.
Ah, mine is White Joy Cons, ordered from Ebay.
https://www.etsy.com/sg-en/listing/523921072/nintendo-switch-custom-joy-cons-special?ref=related-5
Etsy has better looking custom Joycon and it cost $50 less.
I still wouldn't spend as much since I don't really care about the design or color on it (Still rocking the default black) either on the go or at home, but y'know.
@Anti-Matter those are purty anti, how much did they cost you? I like me some white on my switch
Sorry... these are not artwork. They are peripherals with a retro design. With either and engineering or manufacturing defect no less. Unless that is part of the art (much sarcasm there)
Why does everyone feel the need to throw around the "form of art" buzz phrase around when it comes to our hobby? Just because something is way overpriced and kind of cool does not mean that the "work of art" moniker needs to be applied. It only serves to diminish works that are truly artful. Yes, art is in the eye of the beholder... but purely objectively speaking, this sure as heck ain't it.
@Robohock
I bought White Joy Cons Shell Replacement from Ebay, it cost US$ 25 (IDR 550,000).
I asked my local Video Game repairman to Swap my Red Joy Cons Shell with White one. It cost approximate US$ 8 (IDR 100,000) for Swapping the Joy Cons Shell.
The NES Controller still looks nice but trying to make other controllers look like the NES Controller makes them look ugly. Sorry.
For that kind of money, they should be PERFECT. The bulge is unacceptable.
@TOMAWOLF Agreed, the bulge is an atrocity. On the issue of price, I don't think they are actually all that overpriced, considering the controllers are expensive to begin with and the amount of labor that goes into one of these. Not that I would ever buy them, but I understand why some would. I just hope that bulge is a one off issue.
@roadrunner343 Agreed.
I WOULD consider buying (not for $200) more sets from Nintendo if they started putting out more options.
I’d hope at that price that they are using brand new controllers and not refurbished secondhand ones. Is there official word on this?
Dear Nintendo,
Make these. Sell them at a reasonable price.
Thanks.
@RunninBlue I wrote to them asking the same question. These are mods of official 1st party, new products.
I used to work as a graphic painter. I charged far less than this for a whole custom fuel tank. This sort of finish does take a lot of time with the various layers but this price is still ridiculous.
@RunninBlue Everythign they use is brand new Nintendo branded.
If only I had a money tree in the backyard. You can spend thousands on your Switch.
@sleepinglion Thanks mate.
@YANDMAN Thank you.
@RAMYERSELL
Thanks for the tip!!
For that price they should be a perfect fit and feel as premium as the official Joy Cons!
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