Earlier today, we shared the news that Nintendo is bringing back the Dr. Kawashima’s Brain Training series (or Brain Age, for our North American chums). The new game will come bundled with a stylus, but it has also been revealed that this stylus will be available as a standalone product.
We've only seen an official stylus for Switch appear once before, with limited quantities being released alongside Super Mario Maker 2. With the new game being only the second on Switch to really benefit from a stylus, this standalone release has us wondering whether or not more stylus-based games will be released in the future, although it would also be suitable for any Japanese players who buy a digital copy of the new Brain Training game.
The stylus is launching in Japan this December for 864 yen before tax (approx. £6.50 / $8). Nintendo's Japanese website says that it should be shipped by 27th December and provides the following images.
Would you like to see this make it over to the west? Do you think a stylus would be useful for your Switch gaming? Let us know in the usual place below.
[source store.nintendo.co.jp, via gonintendo.com]
Comments 46
Cool, will definitely be buying one even if I have to import it.
They should bring this stylus to the west. I don’t want smudge prints on my Switch while i’m playing Mario Maker 2. So I definitely need a stylus. If it doesn’t come to the west, i’ll just buy one of those cheap ones.
A stylus is a stylus. Why pay $8 (or more if you have to import it) rather than just get literally any other stylus for dirt cheap?
@SpicyBurrito16 Very true, playing Mario Maker 2 and then having to wipe fingerprints off the screen is a pain. It was great that nintendo gave away free stylus' with pre-orders of the game.
@Razieluigi That's what I'm saying, I don't see anything special about this one.
Any two dollar stylus will be fine to use on the Switch since it has the same capacitive screen as most smartphones.
(Do not try to use the 3DS's plastic stylus on it, though, since that's only usable on a resistive touch screen.)
I would get one if they made a painting software for the Switch.
@Nego That would be cool.
This could also be useful for TWEWY.
With the Switch Lite, the touch screen is always right there. Hopefully this means that more touch screen games will be on the way
I wouldn't mine having one I suppose. Now that I think about it I wonder if I can use the stylus from my Note on my Switch. I never use it for my phone anyway lol.
It seems a little overpriced given that it's a typical capacitive stylus, but at least not massively so.
I can just use the stylus I already have, but a thinner, smaller tip would be perfect for precision drawing on Splatoon 2!
Why is this even exist? What's special about it? Why charging $8??! At least the Mario Maker 2 themed one had a Mario design.
Its just a 1$ normal and cheap touchscreen pen...
In one article you point how EA is trying to fool its costumers and in the other you rave that Nintendo is trying to scam theirs.
Hope this one does not have drift issues.
How is the battery life? Anything less than 3 hours and it's DOA.
@Razieluigi If I go to Best Buy, the cheapest stylus they offer in-store is a $40 microsoft one. They literally only offer those and higher. Target's cheapest is $20 for some off brand. The cheapest on Amazon is $7 + shipping. Sooo...where can I get this $2 stylus?
@Zequio Uh, for a touch-capacitive stylus, that's the cheapest on the market.
https://www.amazon.com/LIBERRWAY-Stylus-Universal-Capacitive-Samsung/dp/B01IHBVGOM/ref=sr_1_5?keywords=iphone+stylus&qid=1569854405&s=gateway&sr=8-5
About time. That was like releasing a car with no oil filters to fit the vehicle. I question Nintendo more than any other video game company...
@Mr_Muscle I never said anything about a $2 stylus, just that they're cheap and there's no need to spend extra money importing a Nintendo-branded one, nor is there any need to hope that it gets released here.
You can get an Amazon Basics "Executive" Stylus for $5.99 with free Prime shipping.
The switch has nothing special like Wacom or Ntrig tech in it.
You can get any smartphone stylus off Amazon right now 🙄
@Mr_Muscle a dollar store
@Mr_Muscle so TEN stylus for 7 bucks! $0.70 each... Thats kind of cheaper, but not the cheapest:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07P2XK5CP/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_z5HKDb826R1XQ
considering that you can use ANY phone / ipad stylus for switch this is pointless. i can a bunch of them dirt cheap at $5 Below or Walmart
It looks virtually identical in shape and size to the Super Mario Maker 2 stylus, but without the nice design/branding.
Plus, if Brain Training were to be released in the west, they would undoubtedly issue a bundle that includes the stylus (though I would much rather that they include a Brain Training-themed stylus for funzies).
DS/3DS virtual console is coming. Nintendo wouldn't make a stylus just for one game.
The secret is hidden in plain sight: the way Switch was displayed in the Brain training commercial, in a vertical orientation.
The vertical screen can be divided in 2 to emulate DS/3DS games.
In Nintendo's defense: this appears to us a mesh-fiber tip, which is more durable than the rubber tips on cheapo styli but does make a stylus cost more.
@nintendolie its just a capacitive stylus... Works like a tiny finger more than the stylus from DS. Not nearly as precise, by a lot.
And they already made a Super Marioaker 2 themed stylus before
@Zequio Nintendo sold this pen as a standalone product, that means it's going to be more widely use. There's a stylus sensitivity added to 9.0 firmware, have you tried it?
@ryancraddock 'We've only seen a stylus for Switch appear once before'
You kidding me? Any capacitive stylus works on Switch, so technically we've seen styluses for the Switch appear for about a decade already.
@nintendolie its still a capacitive stylus. Its still works as a pinky finger. Works exactly as those cheap stylus for smartphones.
The technology of the DS screen is a different one. Its not about software, its about hardware.
@shani Official styluses. As in, Nintendo has only ever released or even talked about the need for one that once. 🙂
@Razieluigi Nice edit
It's really interesting that people who spent $300 on Nintendo hardware think that an $8 stylus is expensive.
The Mario Maker 2 stylus still hasn't been released in the Americas, so I doubt I'll ever be able to see one of these in stores.
I'd like to clarify that the The World Ends With You special edition (Japan only) also came with a stylus.
I've just been using the one that comes with my phone...
One would hope that DS/3DS games are inbound.
Get it cheaper off Amazon or the same price with different point sizes. Just make it is a capacitive stylus.
@Mr_Muscle Big Lots, Five below, Amazon, Aliexpress.
Amazon has a 10 pack for $7.
@Kalmaro But it has a Nintendo band logo on it!!! ...
totally worth it now....
@Mr_Muscle There was no edit. You were just wrong.
And it's not a matter of an $8 stylus being "expensive." It's just silly that people are all "I hope it comes here!" as if it's some rare piece of equipment that has no equivalent readily available for purchase today.
It's as if Nintendo Japan announced a pencil, and everybody started going on about importing one so they could finally take notes while playing Switch games.
This appears to have a better tip than the cheap stylus's that have a rubber like end that deteriorates quickly. What the pin is for near the top is anybody guess.
I just got me a stylus pen to use on my Switch for certain games. I tested it and the precision is very good.
@sremick @Zidentia I was waiting for people to realize this is a mesh fiber tip. These tips are significantly smoother than cheap rubber tips, so they don't grab the screen while you're dragging it across. If you haven't tried one, you don't know what you're missing. The tiny bulge on the other end is probably to stop it from rolling around on a surface unhindered.
Stick Nintendo on the side, then you can charge an extra £20.
You can get these things for free from loads of places as promo stuff, just go to a business/university fair and they are just chucking them at you (normally attached to a pen)
I was telling someone on Reddit that I have one I got as free company schwag 4 years ago. I've used it on my Switch for Splatoon 2 banner painting, my smartphones, and tablet. It's still alive and kickin'. Unless there's a capacitive stylus with ultra-precision, I won't be buying it.
Tap here to load 46 comments
Leave A Comment
Hold on there, you need to login to post a comment...