A consumer advocacy organization is calling on Nintendo to launch an independent investigation into the causes of drift on its Switch Joy-Con controllers.
U.K. organization Which? released an article saying that 40 percent of British Switch consoles are affected by Joy-Con drift. (Note that their statement does not appear to include the OLED Switch’s Joy-Cons.) The company, according to Sky News, surveyed 919 U.K. Switch owners and found that two out of five were experiencing Joy-Con drift, but only 73 percent of those consumers had contacted Nintendo about the issue. After explaining the causes of drift and how Switch owners have had trouble contacting Nintendo and getting their consoles fixed, Which? made three requests to Nintendo.
The first request was to launch an independent investigation to find out what causes Joy-Con drift and notify consumers of the results. Which? also asked Nintendo to promise all owners of drift-affected Joy-Cons that they will repair them at no cost and with “no quibbles.” The final request was for Nintendo to promote Joy-Con repair and Switch warranties so consumers know they are able to get their consoles repaired.
“Our research shows that drift problems continue to plague Nintendo Switch owners yet too often they can be left footing the bill themselves to replace faulty controllers or face a lottery when they contact Nintendo for support,” said Which? director of policy and advocacy Rocio Concha in the article.
Nintendo has been dogged by Joy-Con drift issues and complaints for multiple years. The company has faced multiple lawsuits and investigations over the issue, including a class-action suit in Quebec and a call for additional information in Europe by the European Consumer Organization. While the company has offered to repair affected Joy-Cons for free in some countries, it’s often a hassle to get them fixed, as Which? points out.
