Anyone else grown to like the Joy-Con d-pad?

[Crayon]

I liked it at first, because it's actually quite nice for something like Sonic. But after more experience, I have to say that it's a major let down.

You could have compromised the left single Joy con baby controller with a cross bad for face buttons, but you chose to compromise the typical mode so heavily. Stupid.

Oh and their $80 "Pro" controller dpad doesn't even work right.

 

[Sheng Long]

No, I hate it.

 

[Kafkaswaffle]

It's ok for 2d plattformers, but I just can't get used to it in shmups.

 

[Calverz]

Its an abomination

 

[Berordn]

I've actually never had an issue with it for platformers, and that's primarily all I use it for.

But I also haven't tried to play much else with it on Switch so I can't comment much beyond that.

 

[smisk]

It's ok and I've pretty much gotten used to it. Would still prefer a traditional dpad though.

 

[cowbanana]

I hate it a lot.

 

[shoyz]

I switched to the Pro controller for the ergonomics and was really sad to give up the Joy-Con button pad. There's a lovely level of precision you get from having the inputs be completely distinct, and Nintendo D-Pads are hugely lacking compared to the Vita's.

 

[FatalT]

I don't even like the D-pad on the Pro controller. I bought Moonlighter on the Switch and I almost wish I had bought it on the PS4 now after putting a few hours into it.

 

[carlosrox]

I never had a huge problem with it really.

 

[Goddo Hando]

no.

#HoriJoycon4Lyfe

 

[Jonneh]

For Tetris absolutely!

 

[Jaded Alyx]

For general use, it's fine.

For traditional fighting games, it's....not.

 

[Linde]

what do people not like about it?
ive been playing my ds and 3ds a lot recently and miss the button style of the joycons. nice and clicky, everythings separate yet close enough to move from one to another and input diagonals without a weird feeling from the dpad lifting up on the other side. though i can see why its not as good for fighting games

 

[lucky300]

I don't have an issue with it.

 

[Apathy]

The fuck? No, they are buttons and garbage at that

 

[FTF]

What d-pad?

 

[brinstar]

I don't mind it too much except for fighting games, where it is awful

 

[Subnats]

As long as a game doesn't use diagonals much it's perfectly fine if a little uncomfortable when rocking left and right. Still bought a Hori Dpad Joy-Con though

 

[demondance]

I like it for most games. Once you get used to it it's easy to get exactly the input you want compared to most d-pads. Think of all the controllers over the decades... not a lot of good d-pads in there. At least this one works as advertised, split buttons that only actuate when you very intentionally press them.

It's perfect for menus, perfect for Tetris/Puyo type puzzle games, decent for platformers once you get past the awkwardness of exaggerating your diagonals, and terrible for traditional fighting games... but then it's perfect for MK11, which only uses cardinal directional taps for specials and doesn't require down/back blocking.

I actually have a Hori controller with a split d-pad that I use to play Tetris 99 on my TV over the pro controller, which sometimes gives me grave misinputs for that game.

I think people forget just how inconsistent most traditional d-pads actually are. The Saturn floating d-pad and the Neo Geo clickstick are the only ones in this form factor I'd bet my life on. Sure, I'd rather have a "real" d-pad for the Switch but I'll take the split Joy Con thing over most "real" d-pads ever made.

 

[MP!]

It's totally fine
And while we're at it... the joycon sticks aren't so bad for platforming ... I beat shovel knight using the sticks... worked great

 

[SmittyWerbenManJensen]

I don't mind it. Yes, a traditional D-pad is preferred, but I can use this one just fine. However, I never really use the Joy cons, but not because of the D-pad.

 

[Deleted member 49438]

I don't really play platformers, so I basically never have to use the D-Pad. As a result, it functions fine for what I need it to do.

 

[Deleted member 71]

it works, but when I'm docked I'm usually using the Wii U Pro Controller with the 8bitdo adapter.

 

[Awakened]

Separate buttons for a d-pad are almost always better than regular d-pads and are more accurate with much less chance for error. You aint accidentally doing diagonals on the Switch d-pad. PlayStation style d-pads are better for a reason. Vita is like the only "whole" d-pad to actually feel good compared to separate button d-pads.

Click to shrink...

I guess you don't care about comfort/ergonomics at all. I remember tearing my thumb up as a kid playing Crash 1 on that damned PS1 dpad. Was such a downgrade from my 6-button Genesis pad.

I assume everyone who likes segmented dpads have giant calluses on their thumbs. Or I guess they actually pick up their thumb and place it down on each direction. Which seems insanely inefficient compared to sliding or rocking between directions.

 

[UnsungVagrant]

People saying yes would probably love the Vita dpad.

 

[HardRojo]

I have found it just as good as a D-Pad when playing fighting games

Click to shrink...

Now this is straight up false, objectively. The way they work as buttons rather than a smooth D-pad make it a lot harder to pull off commands such as QCF, QCB and don't even get me started on HCB, HCF or some weirder commands like the stuff you'd see in KoF.

I assume everyone who likes segmented dpads have giant calluses on their thumbs. Or I guess they actually pick up their thumb and place it down on each direction. Which seems insanely inefficient compared to sliding or rocking between directions.

Click to shrink...

It's not really an issue on the Dualshock because of the way the Dpad is made as one single piece that moves smoothly should you need to go from one direction to another, instead of using buttons that work completely separate from one another.

Edit: Now to add something from my own experience, they completely suck for fighting games that require basic commands like those I mentioned above, there's no denying it, so playing Street Fighter or KoF on the Joycons is a terrible experience if you actually know how to play these games. Regarding 2D platformers and similar games that don't really require Dpad combination, they're pretty much serviceable, not perfect, but they do a decent job. Tetris 99 I believe is a great example of them working perfectly, but that's because of them being separate buttons rather than an actual Dpad. I guess your mileage may vary depending on what kind of games you're playing. For Mario Maker for example, they're working fine for me, but what's giving me trouble is a whole different issue that has nothing to do with the "Dpad": The terrible signal on the Joycons. This thread isn't about that though so I won't elaborate.

 

[Eddman]

It is usable. In my opinion not as horrible as some people say but far from the traditional cross d pad Nintendo used in previous controllers.

I can live with it but I wish Nintendo could release a version with a normal d pad for people who don't use it as a second controller.

 

[demondance]

People saying yes would probably love the Vita dpad.

Click to shrink...

Oh yeah, that was a great one. Wish Sony's actual controllers matched up with that level of precision and feel.

I have found it just as good as a D-Pad when playing fighting games and 2D platformers alike.

Click to shrink...

Depends on the fighting game. I find doing DPs pretty difficult on there.

I wish some 3D fighters would get ported to Switch. I think most of those types of inputs would be a good fit for the Joy Con. Tekken 5 and 6 were on PSP, even, so why not take advantage of the much larger popularity of the Switch?

Doing a clean KBD in Tekken is probably easier on a split d-pad than on a PS4 d-pad, as an example.

 

[Sumio Mondo]

Still better than GC's D-Pad.

 

[Deleted member 8861]

People saying yes would probably love the Vita dpad.

Click to shrink...

I don't have a Switch but I absolutely ADORE the Vita dpad (like it's only second to GBA SP if that) so this is nice to hear

 

[Deleted member 37233]

It never hampered my experience playing a game, so sure, it's perfectly fine.

Click to shrink...

Pretty much this.

 

[hydro94530]

Love it and hope it never changes.

 

[Pokémon]

It might not be the most comfortable one to use but it sure is the most precise d-pad ever produced. I wish the separate buttons were not that far off from each other because then it would be the perfect d-pad for me.

 

[ghostcrew]

Honestly, I'm totally fine with it. For any games that need a d-pad I'll 100% use it over the Pro controller (although that's more down to how bad the dpad is on the Pro).

I'll happily play fighters with it. I think it's fine and a good compromise so that each player can use either joycon.

 

[Hoa]

It's cool. Don't have to worry about diagonals coming out if I press left or right too hard. Would be even better if the buttons were bigger though.

 

[JakeNoseIt]

Now this is straight up false, objectively. The way they work as buttons rather than a smooth D-pad make it a lot harder to pull off commands such as QCF, QCB and don't even get me started on HCB, HCF or some weirder commands like the stuff you'd see in KoF.

Click to shrink...

I'll allow this as I'm primarily a Mortal Kombat/Injustice player and, when I do play a game like Street Fighter, I actually just use the stick. I'm sure you can see why the joy con buttons wouldn't be an issue with MK inputs

 

[Richietto]

I like it, but not for platformers. Not having the rocking feeling of a dpad kills it.

 

[maximumzero]

I wouldn't say I'm a fan, but I don't hate it either. It is what it is.

The real selling point for me with the joycons are how comfortable split controllers are.

 

[Datajoy]

Nope. I really really don't like using it. I modified my Joy-Con L to use a dpad. It was actually really easy to do!

 

[HardRojo]

It might not be the most comfortable one to use but it sure is the most precise d-pad ever produced. I wish the separate buttons were not that far off from each other because then it would be the perfect d-pad for me.

Click to shrink...

I think they'd be a lot better if they gave them some kind of inner curvature so that they'd let your thumb more easily move from one direction to the other, that'd definitely help with some fighting game commands.

I'm sure you can see why the joy con buttons wouldn't be an issue with MK inputs

Click to shrink...

I do, and I don't think there's a Tekken, Virtua Fighter or Soul Calibur on Switch, all of which would do just fine with that console's Dpad, that is why I mentioned that, as of now, the current Joycons are not better or just fine for fighting games on Switch in general.

 

[Deleted member 18379]

It's fine but overtime I started using the analog stick instead and if feels more comfortable. Outside of platformers it feels great.

 

[Elven_Star]

I almost exclusively play JRPGs, and the dpad is only there to navigate menus. In other words, I don't care either way/joycons are perfectly fine.

 

[Storminormin]

I have to use third party controllers on my switch for anything that mainly uses a D-Pad.
The pro-controller d-pad has an awful feel to it, and frequently registers left and right as down on my controller.
The positioning of the "d-pad" on the joy-cons suck for me. hard to use for more than 5 minutes. It wouldn't matter even if it was a good d-pad. The stick on the right-joycon is fine since it sticks out a bit.

 

[alr1ght]

It is dreadful for anything other than menu navigation.

 

[Deleted member 42472]

For the games Nintendo is making, it is perfectly fine

For the games I am actually playing (indie 2d platformers), it is trash. But even after doing a d-pad mod it isn't great


And I think a lot of that is just the ergonomics of the switch being... horrible

On a DS4 or XBONE controller you have the wings that make your hands flare. This more or less lets you extend your thumbs straight out (depending on how big your hands are) and maximizes range of motion. NES and SNES didn't have the wings but were light and tiny enough that you effectively held them the same way.

On the switch, and the Vita before it (I don't remember my 3ds enough to bitch about that) you need to support the console and keep your hands crunched up. That reduces how far you can extend your thumb which reduces range of motion and makes input error more likely.
But even worse: The switch follows the xbox layout instead of the sony. So y our thumb is good on the analog stick but horrible on the cross. Because now you need to pivot your thumb down toward your pinky fingers. So your thumb is always folded in a bit and your range of motion is even worse.


If you are playing a d-pad heavy game you can offset your g rip a bit at the cost of hand cramping and all the bad stuff. But the d-pad is still so far to the left of the joycon that you're going to be scrunched up.


The cross is bad and probably the worst d-pad of the modern big three. The ergonomics may be the worst we have seen since the n64.

 

[JJAwiiu]

It's not nearly as bad as it looks. A little too small for my thumb though. In the MARIO Maker stages with the ground pound, I can hit down by accident. On the other hand games that use a lot of back/forward inputs like MK11 seem better than a pad.

 

[Flandy]

Separate buttons for a d-pad are almost always better than regular d-pads and are more accurate with much less chance for error. You aint accidentally doing diagonals on the Switch d-pad. PlayStation style d-pads are better for a reason. Vita is like the only "whole" d-pad to actually feel good compared to separate button d-pads.

Click to shrink...

This is a very on brand post

 

[Braaier]

Yes. To me it's perfect

 

[Zero83]

I never once missed a D-pad on the joy-cons. The buttons do a great job. What I miss is a good d-pad on the pro controller.