If we asked 100 people what one problem with the Nintendo Switch should be solved in the next console, the majority would mention the drift stick.
The Joy-con controllers in particular had a lot to do with this. Stick drift occurs when the controller registers input due to switch damage while the user does not make any input, this is also called ghost input. What you get is a character walking in a direction out of nowhere or moving the camera in a direction out of nowhere. Stick drift is very annoying, especially in games where you have to be precise. This isn’t just a Nintendo problem. PlayStation and Xbox controllers also experience stick drift.
It seems that Nintendo is aware of this problem, because the Japanese giant now has a problem Patent pending In the US for the “Hall Effect joystick”. When the regular analog sticks on a controller have to deal with wear and tear due to extended use, the hall effect works differently. Hall effect sticks contain a type of magnetic field that registers the input. This means there is no corrosion and in theory the sticks can last longer.
Nintendo may have applied for a patent for the successor to the Nintendo Switch. According to VideoGameChronicle and Eurogamer sources, the yet-to-be-announced console is scheduled to be released in the second half of 2024. Nintendo could also produce hall-effect Joy-con controllers for the current Nintendo Switch. Many Joy-con controllers are still being sent to Nintendo for repairs.
