This Officially-Licensed Switch Controller Comes With Motion Controls And Mappable Buttons

No headphone jack is a missed opportunity!

Design looks nice but i am not a fan of gray color like that.
Can i have some White color, please ?

Looks nicer than the Pro Controller. I wonder if the D-pad is better than the Pro??

If there's no turbo then a no for me.

Looks nice but no rumble is a deal breaker.

Tempting but I still have a Pro Controller that works with no drift issues

Doesn't look like it's much improved from their previous wireless controller tbh - the switch to a rechargeable battery is a plus, but it doesn't beat the horipad tbh - there are cheaper "utility" controllers that do the same job

And this is coming from a powera user...

Is this the first 3rd party (well licensed) controller with motion controls? Does it have rumble though?

Does it come with shonky analog sticks though?

@LillianC14 as far as licensed goes yes but there are third party controllers out there with gyro controllers I picked up a gioteck one that is fairly good overall and has rumble too where this one doesn't

There's a lot that this controller has going for it. Having no rumble is a bummer, but I could overlook it. My 2 immediate questions are:
1) Does it feel like cheap hollow plastic when held?
B) How dat D-Pad doin', tho?

If they release Zelda designs of this, I might buy one. Really loved the look of the botw Link and Zelda ones they previously made, but those weren't rechargeable, which was a deal breaker.

Deal Breaker:
1. No NFC
2. No Rumble
3. No Gyro
4. Buy Cheap Get Cheap

Need say more...

Why hasn’t Nintendo made any new Pro controllers lately? It seems after Smash, there hasn’t been a new one

No 4K rumble no buy

No thanks, I quite like my official pro-controllers. I'm not buying a similar knock off. I have my 8BitDo controllers because they are different.

This is the deal breaker. No nfc. I use the nfc.

@Anti-Matter

Gray Controllers Matter

Pfff no rumble?
Why can't anyone challenge the pro controller?? After going through pro controllers (left stick drift), I'd LOVE another premium controller option. If it matches pro controller quality, I don't care if it costs more than a pro controller. But third party controllers ALWAYS have a deal breaking caveat, with omitted features. There MUST be a secret agreement with third parties not to challenge the pro controller. There's gotta be. I would think Power A would be a good company to make premium pro controller alternative.

I travel with my Switch. I would LOVE an OFF button for my pro controller when traveling.

aren't remappable controls just part of the switch now? are they not available for third party controllers such as this?
EDIT: ah, they're referring to macro buttons it seems, nevermind

assume still no analog triggers?

@WoomyNNYes 8bitdo offers great controllers packed with features and great quality overall. They have several retro models, like NES, SNES, Genesis and even an arcade stick.

I own the SN30 Pro, which is the SNES version with dual analog sticks, bumpers and triggers, rumble, gyro and full compatibility with Switch / PC / Android / MacOS. It works great.

@Dimey assuming not. No game will be developed with analogue triggers in mind and no game will be in the future as you'd only be catering for those with said controller in mind. Massive shame.

@LillianC14 Nope. PowerA have done a version of this for a couple of years now that takes AA batteries. That had motion control. As does the PDP afterglow controller that came out last year.

All of the Switch controllers made by PowerA, PDP and also Hori are officially licensed.

This looks neat though and is slightly smaller so I am interested in if it is better suited to the younger gamer. The official pro controller fills my hands well so I'd imagine it would be a bit big for a child. So of course I went and preordered one over here in the UK from the only dedicated videogame chain we have. Looks good for £40 to be fair and I had £8 credit to spend anyway.

Roll on next week.

@SwitchForce Why do you assume no gyro when it says it has motion controls?

@Kiz3000 It does look like a rechargeable version of their previous controller. That one seemed to have issues with longevity, so it makes me skeptical of this one.

@71nk0 Ohhh, I didn't realize 8bitdo made that one(eronomic boomerage style like playstaion/pro controller).... and it has motion. Very interesting. I had only seen the flat, old school SNES style 8bitdo's with alalog sticks. Thanks for the info

@WoomyNNYes @71nk0 Yep. The 8bitdo controllers are great. The dpad is much better than the pro. My preference is for asymmetrical analog sticks though so I mostly use the Nintendo pro controller. Had to use an 8bitdo controller to get through Mario Maker 2's story mode though.

Well, here are some thoughts:

If it's not a first-party controller (and if it's any good) maybe we'll see it go on sale some day on Amazon for instance. I won't be buying the Pro Controller at its price, which never changes.

And... bluetooth? Really? But we still can't hook up wireless headphones to the Switch without a dongle, right? I can't understand it.

@NotoriousWhiz Yeah, I have a Pro Controller and an SN30Pro. I mostly use the Pro Controller for 3D games, and the 8bitdo when playing 2D games and games which require more precise DPad inputs.

Still no HD rumble right? I am gonna skip it. Why don't they at least includes vibration if HD rumble is not possible?

But does it drift 😂

Get a brook adaptor and an Xbox one controller or Xbox one elite 2 controller it's simply amazing and handles so well.

The D pad placement is unfortunate. I would have swapped its position with the left analog stick, same as a Dualshock. Inputs would be much more precise.

I for one don't like the HD rumble all that much. It's too strong for me, it sounds steely, as if there was something wrong with the controller.

@SwitchForce ... It has motion controls. It clearly says that in the article.

@Morph Rumble? You mean that annoying feature we turn off of every game?

How hard is it to make a controller with the same features as a Pro but cheaper?

@Scottwood101 except games like GRID Autosport have been ported across already. As somebody used to playing racing games on xbox with proper triggers, this game was utterly unplayable on my switch, such a wasted opportunity (and wasted money for me!!)

I dont like PowerA very much, their controllers always were built poorly and have low lifespans.

@TG16_IS_BAE I don't turn it off. I actually like having rumble.

@LillianC14 No, the PowerA "Enhanced Wireless Controller" includes motion controls. And mappable buttons. The only difference I see with this new one is a rechargeable battery.

@Luna-Harmony I'm sure that works, but you're paying more than a Pro Controller and missing out on motion controls, NFC, and HD rumble.

I think the 8bitdo SN30 pro plus is a better deal.

"Paddle" buttons on the back are a big selling point for me. The smaller size of this has me worried it won't be comfortable though. Anyone have a good recommend for Switch controllers with back buttons/paddles?

@Dang69 I haven’t even seen one on the market, has anyone else? Did a quick search but I was unable to find anything like that.

SN30 Pro is the one anyone should buy!

@KBuckley27 any time I had a drift issue it seemed to fix itself with normal play but it's rarely happened for me.

@TG16_IS_BAE I have a PDP Afterglow Switch pro style controller with back paddles but they feel super cheap and awful. The texture of the controller is awful feeling smooth plastic and the shape is just off enough, with the odd ZL and ZR triggers that it feels awkward to grip the whole thing. I got the wired one so I could use the headphone jack in it, but the jack only outputs super low audio to your headphones making it unusable. Can't remember a time I've had such problems as I've had with Switch licensed and 1st party controllers. Need a paddle or macro button controller for Fortnite, the game plays at such a disadvantage if you have to take your thumbs off the sticks when building.

@TG16_IS_BAE Sorry, who's "we"?

@Bret Literally everyone. There are zero people who enjoy rumble.

I think I would have been sold on this if it were even more compact and travel-friendly, but as is I prefer the 8BitDo SN30 Pro and Pro + which are the gold standard and have rumble.

No rumble, no buy for me. A constant problem for 3rd party Switch controllers . I don’t HAVE to have HD rumble. Just rumble is good.

Does the d-pad have a central pivot? I won't buy another controller without it. I use my 8bitdo SN30 Pro + instead of a Switch pro for this very reason.

Wow! Nice! I already love the wireless PowerA Controllers more than the Original, but this one looks fantastic.

@Bret @TG16_IS_BAE I always knew I am not part of the „people“ - That‘s good, so I can enjoy rumble as I do since my N64...

I'd like to know why it is that only Nintendo seems capable of making controllers with HD rumble.

Every licensed controller seems to be missing at least one feature that makes it complete. I guess it's probably because they don't want to make a clone of the Pro Controller.

@Nintendo_Thumb probably down to cost! If they can include HD rumble which I not sure they can then they would have to price hardware the same as Nintendo which would be a huge risk.

Third parties haven't got the funds to risk spending more money on R&D and then see the product flop.

No thanks I will stick with my pro controller. Pro controller gets 40 hours of play between charges this only gets 20.

@MonsterMatt Agreed. 20 hours is really nothing these days. 30 hours is min

No rumble, no deal. Byeeeeee

Are the triggers analogue though?

@Morph Truth. HD Rumble has been a subtle immersion maker for me. I don't want another handheld without rumble, and I certainly don't want a controller without rumble.

@71nk0 I have the Pro Controller, but if I were to do it again, I would try 8BITDO first.

Missing that sweet sweet HD rumble

@Abes3 no rumble at all.

Lack of HD Rumble is why I haven't bought a third party Switch controller. It's a serious deal breaker for me. There must be some sort of licensing issue like when Microsoft wouldn't allow anyone to make a third party wireless controller for the Xbox 360. I hate when a company locks out a certain part of a piece of tech. We don't want incomplete third party hardware.

@Dimey that is one of the features I thought I would see on this but doesn’t mention , would be nice for racing games

IS HD rumble dead? It was a huge feature when the Switch was announced. It now seems as if Nintendo doesn't talk about it or want it in licensed products.

Love the colours, but it looks too much like an Xbox controller for my liking

@TG16_IS_BAE Well, that's... stupid and false

@Bret Woosh.

Did they fix the sticks so they can't drift?

The 8bitdo SN30 Pro+ is still the very best controller on the console (and for PC too). It has a turbo feature, which pretty much no controllers seem to have any more these days. You can turn any button into a turbo button and you wouldn't believe how useful that is in basically every game, like Breath of the Wild I make Y, X and A all turbo which makes things like picking up dozens of stuff quickly and climbing stuff quickly and swimming and attacking quickly a breeze. It's amazing for Animal Crossing too.

It also has a macro feature, which would be very useful for those who play fighting games I imagine. Just program the special moves onto it and have them at the press of the button

And the d-pad for this controller is the old Nintendo one that was on the NES and SNES and Gameboy. The best d-pad. Better than even the modern Nintendo d-pad

It also has really great rumble, and gyro controls. I'm doing my second play through of BotW now and it's so much better using thks 8bitdo controller to do the motion controls for stuff like shooting arrows and especially the shrines that have gyro puzzles, compared to the nightmare those puzzles could be playing in handheld mode and having to turn the whole console upside down

The only thing I'd change about this controller would be to move the left analogue stick to the xbox/Nintendo position instead of where it is now, the PlayStation position. But it's not a big deal. I grew up playing PlayStation so I'm used to that layout too.