This week’s Nintendo Switch 2 preorder madness, both in the U.S. and abroad, offered more perspective on just how popular Nintendo’s new handheld console will be at launch on June 5. Already, it seems consumers are willing to bite their tongue and drop upwards of $450 on the successor to the original Switch.
If you’re lucky enough to buy a device, you’re staring down the barrel of $70 or $80 games, plus near-$100 for additional controllers if you stick with Nintendo’s first-party accessories. Third-party accessories tend to be cheaper, but the licensed and more-niche peripherals set to sell alongside the Switch 2 seem to be inferior in some ways compared to Nintendo’s official gear.
For instance, if you’re looking for the most authentic retro experience on the Switch 2, you’ll have to trade practicality for price. The return of the GameCube controller—again—seemed like a major win for gamers at first. But then Nintendo offered the confusing caveat that it’d only work with GameCube titles available via a Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack subscription.
Confirming to Nintendo Life, Nintendo clarified that you can indeed use the GameCube controller to play other Switch 2 games so long as they account for the lack of a left bumper button and a right analog stick that’s shaped like a nipple. Even still, the new GameCube controller won’t work with any other console but the Switch 2.
When asked for clarification, Nintendo sent Gizmodo the following statement:
The Nintendo GameCube controller is designed for use with the Nintendo GameCube — Nintendo Classics collection of games and is an optional way to play those games. Since it doesn’t have all the buttons and features found in other controllers that can be used with the Nintendo Switch 2 system, there may be some issues when playing other games. The Nintendo GameCube controller can only be used on Nintendo Switch 2 and is not compatible with Nintendo Switch.
Nintendo recently updated the listing for its GameCube controller on its website. Initial reports suggested the controller would cost $65, but the product page now just says it’ll launch alongside the Switch 2 on June 5. Only those who go through Nintendo’s priority sale on the My Nintendo Store may have the option to buy it first on May 8 through May 12. Gizmodo reached out to Nintendo to confirm a final retail price, and we’ll update this post if we hear more.
Still, even if the controller ends up retailing for $65, it’s much cheaper than the new $85 Pro controller and $95 Joy-Con 2 (Nintendo recently bumped up each peripheral’s price by $5, citing U.S. tariffs). Both of those first-party controllers feel very good in-hand, but the premium prices only add the to cost of what’s already a pricey Switch 2.
The Switch 2 GameCube controller isn’t the only accessory that may not function as you’d think. If you paid close attention, the April 2 Switch 2 Direct suggested gamers could face other issues with latency and jagged images when streaming to friends using Nintendo’s $55 1080p-resolution Switch 2 camera.
Hori, which makes licensed Nintendo products, is selling a Piranha Plant camera that retails for $60. You’d think because it costs more than the official Switch 2 camera that the resolution might be better, but nope, it’s actually worse! While adorable, the Piranha camera is only 480p resolution, which isn’t even standard HD.
Hori has another less-cute camera that’s compatible with Switch 2. You can find on Amazon’s Japan webpage, but it too is limited to 480p resolution. It costs 3,981 yen, or about $28 in the U.S., though we can only assume prices will be higher at home due to tariffs. On the upside, both of Hori’s cameras can plug directly into the Switch 2’s USB-C port while handheld, which is something Nintendo’s official camera can’t do.
Until we’ve tried out the cameras we won’t know how they compare to Nintendo’s. It’s possible the lower resolution on Hori’s cameras could mean less lag and the image quality is negligible on the Switch 2’s screen.
Nintendo’s store page mentions you can use “any compatible USB-C camera you’d like,” on Switch 2, which does insinuate you should be able to use most third-party webcams, but the company has yet to confirm that. If that’s the case, you could have way more camera choices.
Why didn’t Nintendo just update the GameCube controller to function more like a modern gamepad? Why is Hori cheaping out on the resolution of its cameras? I wish I had real answers. So before you run out and buy any Switch 2 accessories, just make sure you know exactly what they can do.
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