Stick drift is a particularly annoying problem to deal with and it was pretty bad with the Nintendo Switch Joy-Con controllers, and that issue has now led to a massive fine of €35 Million being issued to the company by the French government. The lawsuit was initially started after complaints were filed about Nintendo and the drift issue all the way back in 2020.
It’s taken some time, but consumers who experienced the problem will now be getting some sort of resolution. Nintendo did eventually begin offering free repairs to impacted Switch owners. However, it was slow to do so. It also reportedly didn’t inform customers early enough about the problem. With no free repairs, this led to many customers buying new Joy-Con controllers. Nintendo is said to have known about the problem since 2018.
The main issue lies with the potentiometers. Which is why many brands have swapped to Hall Effect or TMR thumbsticks. Because the last thing you want is for stick drift to kick in while you’re right in the middle of gaming.
Nintendo did not face the same fine for Switch Joy-Con drift in the US
While the Joy-Con drift issue impacted customers globally, including in the US, Nintendo has not been slapped with the same fine elsewhere. That being said, the French government’s decision can be seen as a beacon for other regulatory groups. Nintendo has since taken measures to remedy the problem in places like the US. Which is part of the reason why it never ended up being issued a fine by the US government.
Unlike in Europe, Nintendo was able to escape legal fines in most cases due to customers signing the End User License Agreement. That being said, customers experiencing drift problems can possibly get repairs by registering at the Nintendo support site.
If you have the issue with stick drift, this is worth doing. Joy-Con controllers aren’t exactly cheap. Not to mention that new Joy-Cons haven’t been improved to prevent stick drift from happening. So, before spending a bunch of money, see if Nintendo might set you up with repairs first.
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