A new Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch Lite Joy-Cons update could prove to be huge for gamers. Since the Switch’s release in 2017, it has been almost universally praised. However, it has also had one major issue since launch which is the Joy-Con drift. Stick drift issues aren’t exclusive to the Nintendo Switch. PS4 and Xbox One controllers have also been plagued by this mechanical failure, and the PS5 and Xbox Series X controllers are also unlikely to escape the largely unavoidable problem. However, while stick drift has been an issue for every gaming hardware maker, it’s far worse on Switch than on other platforms. Not only do the problems appear much faster, they are also much more serious.
Nintendo has had to pay for this issue so far with several lawsuits, many of which are still pending. And in Europe, these lawsuits are heating up. A coalition of nine European consumer rights groups has been formed and is launching an investigation into the issue.
As VGC Note, this week the Dutch Consumers Association announced that it was meeting with other consumer rights groups in Italy, France and more to monitor the situation. And according to these various groups, Switch owners have been relaying issues with the Joy-Con controllers en masse.
“We are making this call because we are receiving signals that the Switch will not last as long as consumers might expect,” said Sandra Molenaar, director of the aforementioned association. Additionally, console repair options are limited, forcing consumers to make costly replacements. We use the responses to determine what action to take. “
The Dutch Consumers Association noted that if a solution does not present itself, it is ready to take the case to court with other consumer rights groups on its side.
In the United States, Nintendo has been on the wrong side of several class actions, but so far none of that has resulted in improvements. The company started issuing refunds for faulty controllers rather than repairing them, but that was the extent of its response to all lawsuits. However, the situation is now getting worse in Europe, and soon it will be difficult for him to largely ignore the issue as it has been.
Nintendo has noted in the past that it couldn’t comment much on the topic because of all the lawsuits involved, but suggested that wasn’t a problem. which naturally angered many owners of the otherwise trouble-free hardware.
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