You’ve probably read a bunch of thoughts and previews about the Nintendo Switch 2 at this point, many of them from us.
I was already a little sceptical of Mouse Mode before it was officially announced in the Nintendo Direct. I don’t like playing games on my PC, and if I have to, I avoid keyboard and mouse like the plague. Except for things like The Sims or perhaps Stardew Valley. But controller is always my preference. I essentially grew up with them in my hands, and I just can’t wrap my little brain around using the mouse for anything other than pointing and clicking on links and pictures.
So I’m not surprised that, after trying Mouse Mode with numerous games on the Nintendo Switch 2, I don’t really like it. I might even hate it. But it’s one of those, “It’s not you, it’s me” situations, for the most part.
I acknowledge that I’m not the target audience for this, and while I love Nintendo’s creativity and ability to play with the weird and wonderful, I never got a Labo, my amiibo collection is relatively slim, and 3D mode on 3DS is always turned off. I’m a lot of fun at parties, honest!
Honestly, Mouse Mode is a great idea. As soon as Metroid Prime 4: Beyond was re-announced last year, I figured it would be a cross-gen title for Switch 2. And then when Mouse Mode was rumoured and then leaked, Metroid was the first Nintendo title I thought of that I knew would be a perfect fit. It’s a flippin’ FPS, after all. Shooters are tailor-made for the precision of mouse controls, and they work extremely well in Prime 4.
In fact, Mouse Mode works great with pretty much everything I played. Super Mario Party Jamboree‘s enhanced release gave us six ridiculously fun minigames that all worked so well with the mouse. The controls were responsive and smooth and simple. The fun came from the simplicity mixed with the silliness that is sorting through mail or playing hockey with a tiny, thin little mouse.
Drag x Drive is the ‘showcase’ game for the mouse beyond more conventional use cases, a real win for wheelchair representation and also innovative gameplay. And god, am I terrible at it. I eventually got the gist after a tutorial and plenty of embarrassment, but it never felt natural. But what other games can you play using two mice? It’s still impressive, though.
But my problems don’t really lie with the tech itself. Being able to seamlessly transition between Mouse and Joy-Con mode is actually brilliant, and the new Joy-Con Straps are easy to attach and feel great, allowing for smooth movement on tabletop or legs. It’s also very responsive and, besides a few sudden stops in Drag x Drive which resulted in some awkward crashes and flips, it seems extremely competent.
My biggest issue is the size of the Joy-Con. As a Joy-Con or a ‘normal’ controller, I actually like the Switch 2’s upgraded grips. I’ll probably still swap them out for something a bit larger once Hori and other third parties get involved with their own versions, but I found them much more comfortable to hold than the current Joy-Con on Switch 1.
Put them into Mouse Mode, however, and they just felt awkward. The Joy-Con aren’t contoured to the shape of your hand, and they’re much too thin to feel robust like a standard PC mouse. That means I have to find a way to rest my fingers and my palm on something that’s a bit thicker than an iPhone.
Of course, it widens out as it gets closers to the ‘base’, but my fingers aren’t really supposed to be touching the table while I’m using the mouse, and instead of resting over the top of a rounded surface, I’m trying to wrap them around in a comfortable manner.
That thinness caused issues a number of times, particularly while playing Drag x Drive. A few times, I could feel the controller slipping out from under my palm, which would cause me to crash or just completely stop moving. Even with the strap on (I don’t dare live dangerously under the watch of the Big N), I never felt like I fully had the controller in my grip.
The button placement on the Joy-Con also isn’t super intuitive for a mouse — that’s not really a problem you can solve without completely changing the design. There are gaming mice out there with button layouts that make sense, and plenty of ergonomic mice that also put left and right clicks in sensible places. Essentially, there’s no easy solution, but I almost definitely pressed the wrong button while fighting the final boss of the Metroid Prime 4 demo. No, Samus, put the Scan Visor down and charge your beam up so you can finally get rid of the Metroid pustules clinging to it.
A lot of this probably comes from my lack of experience with gaming mice in general, but I know Nintendo can make really good controllers with multiple functions. The GamePad might be clunky, but that’s not my issue with the Wii U. And while I don’t like motion controls, I don’t find the Wii Remote and Nunchuck uncomfortable to hold, and I could deal with the limited uses for motion.
Mouse Mode is optional in most cases, of course. I can’t see myself playing Metroid Prime 4 any other way than with a Pro Controller. I need to give Mouse Mode another shot, or find something that really clicks with me. A build mode in a new Animal Crossing that lets me move houses and objects tile by tile on a map, perhaps. Pikmin 5 with some special Pikmin or stages you can command and progress through with the mouse. or just something more creative than aiming and shooting and driving. More dual mouse games, Nintendo! Even if I’m bad at them.
Anyway, there is one thing Nintendo could do to stop my hands cramping; make a case. I use the Wii Remote as an example of something that I found relatively comfortable despite the gimmick. But there’s an exception: Mario Kart Wii. If you like holding the Wii Remote on the side, at the top and bottom, then fair play to you. I hated it. Thank goodness the Wii Wheel was a pack-in with that game, because it was a complete game changer for Wii.
So, why not pack in a mouse ‘shell’ for the Joy-Con with Drag x Drive? Something to make the Joy-Con in Mouse Mode fit a human palm a bit more naturally. I know that’d make the seamless transitioning of Metroid Prime 4 a little harder, and with Drag x Drive, you’d probably find shooting a little harder, but there has to be a compromise?
As it stands, right now, I’ll be avoiding Mouse Mode. Unless there’s some kind of accessory or moulded plastic peripheral, or some even more interesting use for it, it currently just feels like it’s there. We’ll know a bit more by the time the console releases. In the meantime, I’ll keep the cheese away from this particular squeaker and my fingers crossed.
You've probably read a bunch of thoughts and previews about the Nintendo Switch 2 at this point, many of them from us.
I was already a little sceptical of Mouse Mode before it was officially announced in the Nintendo Direct. I don't like playing games on my PC, and if I have to, I avoid keyboard and mouse like the plague. Except for things like The Sims or perhaps Stardew Valley. But controller is always my preference. I essentially grew up with them in my hands, and I just can't wrap my little brain around using the mouse for anything other than pointing and clicking on links and pictures.
So I'm not surprised that, after trying Mouse Mode with numerous games on the Nintendo Switch 2, I don't really like it. I might even hate it. But it's one of those, "It's not you, it's me" situations, for the most part.
I acknowledge that I'm not the target audience for this, and while I love Nintendo's creativity and ability to play with the weird and wonderful, I never got a Labo, my amiibo collection is relatively slim, and 3D mode on 3DS is always turned off. I'm a lot of fun at parties, honest!
Honestly, Mouse Mode is a great idea. As soon as Metroid Prime 4: Beyond was re-announced last year, I figured it would be a cross-gen title for Switch 2. And then when Mouse Mode was rumoured and then leaked, Metroid was the first Nintendo title I thought of that I knew would be a perfect fit. It's a flippin' FPS, after all. Shooters are tailor-made for the precision of mouse controls, and they work extremely well in Prime 4.
In fact, Mouse Mode works great with pretty much everything I played. Super Mario Party Jamboree's enhanced release gave us six ridiculously fun minigames that all worked so well with the mouse. The controls were responsive and smooth and simple. The fun came from the simplicity mixed with the silliness that is sorting through mail or playing hockey with a tiny, thin little mouse.
Drag x Drive is the 'showcase' game for the mouse beyond more conventional use cases, a real win for wheelchair representation and also innovative gameplay. And god, am I terrible at it. I eventually got the gist after a tutorial and plenty of embarrassment, but it never felt natural. But what other games can you play using two mice? It's still impressive, though.
But my problems don't really lie with the tech itself. Being able to seamlessly transition between Mouse and Joy-Con mode is actually brilliant, and the new Joy-Con Straps are easy to attach and feel great, allowing for smooth movement on tabletop or legs. It's also very responsive and, besides a few sudden stops in Drag x Drive which resulted in some awkward crashes and flips, it seems extremely competent.
My biggest issue is the size of the Joy-Con. As a Joy-Con or a 'normal' controller, I actually like the Switch 2's upgraded grips. I'll probably still swap them out for something a bit larger once Hori and other third parties get involved with their own versions, but I found them much more comfortable to hold than the current Joy-Con on Switch 1.
Put them into Mouse Mode, however, and they just felt awkward. The Joy-Con aren't contoured to the shape of your hand, and they're much too thin to feel robust like a standard PC mouse. That means I have to find a way to rest my fingers and my palm on something that's a bit thicker than an iPhone.
Of course, it widens out as it gets closers to the 'base', but my fingers aren't really supposed to be touching the table while I'm using the mouse, and instead of resting over the top of a rounded surface, I'm trying to wrap them around in a comfortable manner.
That thinness caused issues a number of times, particularly while playing Drag x Drive. A few times, I could feel the controller slipping out from under my palm, which would cause me to crash or just completely stop moving. Even with the strap on (I don't dare live dangerously under the watch of the Big N), I never felt like I fully had the controller in my grip.
The button placement on the Joy-Con also isn't super intuitive for a mouse — that's not really a problem you can solve without completely changing the design. There are gaming mice out there with button layouts that make sense, and plenty of ergonomic mice that also put left and right clicks in sensible places. Essentially, there's no easy solution, but I almost definitely pressed the wrong button while fighting the final boss of the Metroid Prime 4 demo. No, Samus, put the Scan Visor down and charge your beam up so you can finally get rid of the Metroid pustules clinging to it.
A lot of this probably comes from my lack of experience with gaming mice in general, but I know Nintendo can make really good controllers with multiple functions. The GamePad might be clunky, but that's not my issue with the Wii U. And while I don't like motion controls, I don't find the Wii Remote and Nunchuck uncomfortable to hold, and I could deal with the limited uses for motion.
Mouse Mode is optional in most cases, of course. I can't see myself playing Metroid Prime 4 any other way than with a Pro Controller. I need to give Mouse Mode another shot, or find something that really clicks with me. A build mode in a new Animal Crossing that lets me move houses and objects tile by tile on a map, perhaps. Pikmin 5 with some special Pikmin or stages you can command and progress through with the mouse. or just something more creative than aiming and shooting and driving. More dual mouse games, Nintendo! Even if I'm bad at them.
Anyway, there is one thing Nintendo could do to stop my hands cramping; make a case. I use the Wii Remote as an example of something that I found relatively comfortable despite the gimmick. But there's an exception: Mario Kart Wii. If you like holding the Wii Remote on the side, at the top and bottom, then fair play to you. I hated it. Thank goodness the Wii Wheel was a pack-in with that game, because it was a complete game changer for Wii.
So, why not pack in a mouse 'shell' for the Joy-Con with Drag x Drive? Something to make the Joy-Con in Mouse Mode fit a human palm a bit more naturally. I know that'd make the seamless transitioning of Metroid Prime 4 a little harder, and with Drag x Drive, you'd probably find shooting a little harder, but there has to be a compromise?
As it stands, right now, I'll be avoiding Mouse Mode. Unless there's some kind of accessory or moulded plastic peripheral, or some even more interesting use for it, it currently just feels like it's there. We'll know a bit more by the time the console releases. In the meantime, I'll keep the cheese away from this particular squeaker and my fingers crossed.
