Nintendo introduces new Joy-Con repair policy in Europe

Following years of reports and lawsuits from players regarding drifting on the Switch’s Joy-Con controllers, Nintendo has announced a new policy entitling customers to free repairs.

The details:

• An update to Nintendo UK's support page regarding the issue of Joy-Con stick drift, as spotted by Nintendo Life, reveals that the company is now offering free repairs to all customers experiencing the problem, even if the controllers are out of warranty. The policy applies to customers in the United Kingdom, Switzerland, and the European Economic Area (EEA), which means that almost the entire region is covered by the new change, and each country's support page has been updated with the new policy. All Switch models are covered too, including the Switch Lite's non-detachable control sticks.
• The policy change follows years of user reports dating back to the Switch's launch model, in which the control sticks of the Joy-Cons registered in-game inputs despite the player not moving the sticks at all. As you might expect, the problem can cause some frustrating moments while playing, with severe cases making games nearly impossible to play and minor drift issues making precise movements difficult. Despite numerous revisions, the latest OLED model still uses the same Joy-Cons as before, and while Nintendo has attempted to address the issue quietly in the past, it has persisted.
• Some players have gone so far as to sue the company, with Nintendo recently winning a case due to the Switch's End User License Agreement (EULA), which includes a waiver on pursuing class-action suits against the gaming giant. Nonetheless, consumer watchdogs such as the UK-based Which? have pressed the company to "fix" the controllers' stick drift as well as set up some sort of refund or replacement scheme for those affected after discovering that all five tested pairs of Joy-Cons had the issue. Now that Nintendo has changed its policy, it's safe to say that there will be fewer lawsuits in the future, but we hope that its next console, which is expected to be revealed soon, will not have the same problems.

Other recent Nintendo news:

• The beloved Nintendo 64 (N64) title Pokémon Stadium is coming to Nintendo Switch Online for Expansion Pass owners. The turn-based fighter will arrive on April 12 for no added cost and join 22 other N64 classics on the service, such as The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Star Fox 64, and Super Mario 64.
• According to a recent job posting, The Pokemon Company is interested in experimenting with new business models and revenue streams using Web3 technology. This follows Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa's February 2022 remark that the company sees "great potential" in the metaverse.
• F-Zero GX, the cult classic GameCube racing game, might be getting a remaster soon. Next Level Games, best known for its work on the Luigi's Mansion franchise beginning with Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon, is reportedly working on the remaster. The F-Zero franchise has been dormant for nearly two decades, though series protagonist Captain Falcon can still be found in Nintendo's Smash Bros. games.