-
Ever wanted an RSS feed of all your favorite gaming news sites? Go check out our new Gaming Headlines feed! Read more about it here.
Nintendo has finally commented on the Joy-Con Drift Issue
- Thread starter IDontBeatGames
- Start date
This is an interesting idea.
Drift can definitely be measured as a static operation (which is what the stick calibration does), but it's pretty much impossible to figure out the drift from a series of inputs.
They could do something where every time a Joycon was connected they asked you to keep the stick centred and press a button and use that position as 0, but that would have three problems:
1. It'd only work if the drift was constant. Any kind of variable drift and this method is just a different way of breaking the controls.
2. It might limit the range of motions possible. Like if the stick, when centred, was constantly reading as -50 on the Y-axis, you could correct that by adding 50 to the Y-axis value. However that means you're never getting the lowest possible Y-axis value, you're only getting [lowest possible +50].
3. It'd be an inconvenience every time you connected a controller (and for a Joycon pair you'd need to do the process twice each time).
There is a simpler solution that we might see if developer awareness of this issue grows: big (software-defined) dead zones in the centre of the stick. It may even be happening already in some cases.
This is mostly just a case of statements not being fully qualified.
The issue as understood at the moment will eventually affect every Joycon that is continuously used. The amount of time it will take to affect each Joycon will vary significantly by length of use, type of use, environmental factors, care taken, Joycon storage and random luck. The random luck factor is big enough that Joycons can start drifting within hours of careful use, or might last, as you say, for thousands of hours.
It is entirely possible that you will stop using a Joycon before it develops the issue, and it is also entirely possible that the issue will only happen after so much time that you subjectively feel that you have gotten sufficient value from that Joycon. So in that sense the issue will not affect everyone. However, every Joycon has the design flaw that is causing this issue, and using it pushes it towards the indeterminate moment when it will develop a drifting stick.
Nobody knows. We probably will not know until we open it up.
I called months ago and they quoted me $40. I'd love to see that that's no longer the case tho.
Oh I had that! Didn't know that was a common thing.Not the first time.
I noticed last night my right yellow Joycon "clicks" into the Joycon grip but can be pushed out from the bottom without hitting the release button, while the left one is solid. Might have to see if it does the same on the Switch itself to narrow down whether it's the Joycon wearing out or the grip itself being faulty.
Do we know what the defect is that causes it to drift? Seems crazy Nintendo wouldn't make the necessary changes in the pipeline to address these problems.
I'm guessing they want to play it safe due to the looming lawsuit. If they came out with a statement that acknowledged a widespread problem, they could legally implicate themselves.
But it doesn't matter: They're just being time, just like Microsoft were with the X360 RROD. They'll have to issue free replacements sooner or later.
I'm no expert, but here's my understanding. The joystick mechanism uses graphite pads internally. Graphite is useful as a semiconductor in certain applications, but as anyone who's used a pencil can tell you, it's soft and flaky as hell. So, when the metal contacts of the joystick scrape the pads, graphite flakes or dust are created, which can interfere with conductivity by essentially short-circuiting contacts and falsely sending a positive directional signal (hence the "drifting"). This is why compressed air and contact solution have worked as temporary fixes; while they clean up the dust that's there, it inevitably returns as the pads are scraped further. A permanent solution may not be feasible.
The reason Nintendo hasn't fixed it is because the internal mechanism is basically a common, off the rack part developed for the slim chasses of tablets. The design flaw likely went unnoticed because until now these parts weren't used for heavy gaming. Evidently a comparable part without this flaw doesn't exist from another supplier, and to fix it Nintendo would have to either contract a custom part that fits the Joy-Con but isn't faulty, or make the Joy-Con a lot (and I mean a lot) thicker.
It's all pretty fascinating from an industry standpoint, but also uniquely terrible.
Edit: a few clarity and spelling fixes
Hmmm, I will have to email Nintendo about mine.
I know its not a good answer for everyone but I use my pro or 8bitdo 99% of the time my Switch is docked. So I picked up the Hori left Joy con and never looked back.
Actual D-pad and no drift issues for me with hours and hours of use. The only downside is it only works while attached to the switch in handheld mode.
They have been on sale recently too. I paid $14 at Target for another one recently.
I know its not a good answer for everyone but I use my pro or 8bitdo 99% of the time my Switch is docked. So I picked up the Hori left Joy con and never looked back.
Actual D-pad and no drift issues for me with hours and hours of use. The only downside is it only works while attached to the switch in handheld mode.
They have been on sale recently too. I paid $14 at Target for another one recently.
That sounds like a fantastic solution.
AFAIK in some cases the drift can get so bad you couldn't contain it within a reasonable deadzone, but this would be a good generalized solution. My question is can they implement it universally or would it have to be up to devs? Because that could be a nice option to add to a controls options in a new system update...
Is this why replacement sticks are readily available? Do you know if it matters which ones I were to buy from Amazon?
Hmm. I'm not an expert by any means, but as far as I'm aware there's no replacement stick available that doesn't have the flawed mechanism. If there were, everybody would just do that (although that certainly wouldn't get Nintendo out of any legal trouble).
Edit: Although, the commonness of the part certainly has contributed to the variety of replacement sources.
It wasn't, it couldn't have been, because it didn't happen to me.
Ron Howard: "It did happen to him. He's just not all that discerning."
Last edited:
I've had it on every single one of my joy-con at one point or another and nearly everyone I know with a Switch has to.
I've owned 360s that didn't red-ring. I've not owned a Joy-Con that didn't drift.
Last edited:
Well, yeah. More people own a Switch now. More people have had time to experience this issue. Of course it'll get reported more.
I bought a new Hori D-pad joycon, and it practically drifted out of the box. They were heavilty discounted on Amazon, and now I know why.
I'm going to try some Specialist Electrical Contact Cleaner Spray, but this has gotten ridiculous.
I'm going to try some Specialist Electrical Contact Cleaner Spray, but this has gotten ridiculous.
Here's your answer:
Again, it cannot be stressed how bad this situation is. Any solution is temporary; the design is fundamentally flawed.
The real question is will they repair joy-cons that are out of the one year warranty period for free?
You know, as I was unpacking that joy con, I had a bad premonition that I should unbox it carefully, just in case I need to return it. I tore the box unfortunately, and now I have a busted joy con that won't even let me change equipment in Tales of Vesperia as it just drifts to the bottom. It really is the worst.
That might be what they end up doing to settle the suit, but it cannot be stressed enough that there is no repairing it as far as we've seen, only replacing it. Every single Joy-Con is affected by the universal design flaw of the off the shelf sticks. It is only a matter of usage, which is why the problem is amplified on enthusiast forums: the more you use the Joy-Con, the more the sticks wear.
No. You have to pay, se posts above, they are charging $40.00 for repairs.
That sucks, I'm sorry. I haven't experienced any drift to my knowledge, but my best friend who plays a lot more than I do has suffered greatly from it, as have some of his friends. It pisses me off so much, because I love the Switch conceptually so much, and the execution is almost perfect except for a few baffling hardware oversights.
Well, it was recent that it became a big controversy. I honestly hadn't heard much about the drift issue for a very long time until the past few months. They're certainly trying to word it as best they can, as PR does.
And, I mean, it is "some." It isn't an issue for everyone. I've never had this happen on any of my JoyCons. (That doesn't mean it isn't a very real thing. But it is in fact "some" and not "all.")
Nintendo should've addressed this a lot sooner, whatever money they thought they were saving by weaseling out of it will cost them much more now.
I too was a victim of joycon drift, in fact my left joycon will not connect to the system at all. Called Nintendo, and they of course did not give a fuck and said they could fix it for $40. Good thing I already had another set which I've been using for 2 years without issue *knock on wood*.
Though I think people are jumping the gun a bit by thinking the lite will have the same problems. The controls are integrated into the system, like a 3DS, Gameboy etc. I'd imagine the technology is much different and way less sophisticated.
I too was a victim of joycon drift, in fact my left joycon will not connect to the system at all. Called Nintendo, and they of course did not give a fuck and said they could fix it for $40. Good thing I already had another set which I've been using for 2 years without issue *knock on wood*.
Though I think people are jumping the gun a bit by thinking the lite will have the same problems. The controls are integrated into the system, like a 3DS, Gameboy etc. I'd imagine the technology is much different and way less sophisticated.
That could easily be added to Switch system software. Steam has a similar option able to be used by any controller, for any game.
However at the rate Nintendo updates the OS I doubt it's something we will ever see.
I'm sure they technically could implement it as a system-level option, but genuinely in two minds about whether that'd be a good thing. On one hand, games have quite diverse stick precision/sensitivity needs and a one-size-fits-all "solution" would badly mess with some games. On the other hand, a drifting stick messes with games anyway, and at least a player-enforceable deadzone would be a known quantity, with (generally) predictable results. On the other other hand, adding it in as an player-side option that developers just have to somehow handle seems like it'd have the potential to shift the responsibility for a solution (and the blame for noticeable stick drift) on to developers.
I don't see Nintendo doing this on a system level though. I think any effort to going to have to come from the developer side (like the way Tetris 99 added an option to make the Pro controller d-pad less prone to hard drop misfires). I kind of wonder if there'll be developers who go out of their way to to obtain drifting Joycons to test their games with to try to minimise the effects.
When you buy a Switch or a pair of joy-cons...
Hehe.
It's a lame response, but like others have mentioned, they are being cautious with their wording due to the lawsuit.
I hope they lose that lawsuit spectacularly. My left joycon is F-ed, and I'm not paying $80 to replace it.
I had them fix my left joycon right before it went out of warranty, and then like about a year later, the issue had popped up again. So I called them again, and even though it wasnt under warranty anymore, because I had had the issue before, they fixed it again free of charge. Still far from an ideal situation. But yeah I'm really surprised they haven't fixed this issue by now.
This is also what I suspect is the issue. Nintendo didn't develop the part, and they are also suffering from the same issue as everyone else by being recipients of a faulty product that they had expected to suit their needs.
They are cautious to give answers on it because without a replacement part they can't give an answer for a permanent solution.
It adds more time to your warranty and it does fix it
Theory: the class action investigation sues Nintendo, then Nintendo is going to sue the supplier
Edit:
It doesn't fix it permanently though. It just resets with a new flawed stick
There is no solution. Nintendo has to either find a comparable unflawed part or contract the creation of one
Fixes it temporarily is what I meant. I wasn't able to fix one of mine myself so I had to send it in
3/4 of mine have had the issue and have been repaired. One twice. I hope they continue to fix it even when out of warranty or I'll rage at them hard
Ah okay, absolutely. In the person-to-person conversation sending it in is definitely a good call, I'm just getting swept up in the broader industrial conversation rn
Thanks man, hoping it helps even a few people. There's a lot of misinformation going around
Does anybody have an example of a tablet or any other device that uses the same joystick part that the Switch uses? I wonder if he can find out any info about them from their manufacturer.
Ooh, that's a really good question. Now, I'm quite uncertain about this, but if I recall correctly the parts are believed to have been developed for a trend of products (tablets with physical controls) that didn't really meaningfully happen, and the Switch was the first major contract.
Again, huge IIRC on that
Edit: somebody should definitely do some digging though
That would be kinda funny because one reason to use off the shelf parts is because they are tried and tested. We were kinda like the guinea pigs for this joystick.