The Nintendo Change Professional Controller is an ideal possibility if you happen to want a beefier gamepad quite than counting on the normal Pleasure-Con. Though the Nintendo Change’s removable Pleasure-Con controllers have been a major attraction through the console’s launch, the tiny controllers can get fairly uncomfortable when enjoying for lengthy intervals, making a bulkier controller much more essential.
The Nintendo Change Pleasure-Cons are an ingenious design for on-the-go, transformable play, however they’re nothing to write down residence about on the subject of long-term use. Gamers with larger arms can also really feel uncomfortable as a result of small measurement of the controllers, so a change of tempo is a necessary accent so as to add to the combination.
Enter the Professional Controller, an ideal match to Sony’s DualSense Edge, alongside the Xbox Wi-fi Controller. In reality, it is one of many greatest Nintendo Change Equipment, particularly because it’s suitable with the Nintendo Change OLED too.
Nintendo Change Professional Controller
Nintendo Change Professional Controller: design
The Nintendo Change Professional Controller doesn’t break the mould in design. The place the break up nun-chuck look of the Pleasure-Cons takes some getting used to, the Nintendo Change Professional Controller is as an alternative your customary two-analogue stick, handle-gripped pad. It looks like an Xbox 360 controller if slightly curvier in hand.
It’s properly weighted for balanced play and has a barely translucent end to its plastic casing, with a circuit board-style sample delicately etched into its floor. Suppose you discovered the Pleasure-Con buttons slightly fiddly. In that case, the Professional Controller is way beefier, with bigger A, B, X and Y buttons sat within the conventional diamond formation on the right-hand aspect, backed by two triggers and offset analogue sticks.
The Nintendo Change Professional Controller feels slightly chunkier than its PS4 and Xbox One counterparts, however that might be right down to its class-leading battery life. The place you’ll get round six or seven hours from a DualShock 4, you’ll get a whopping common of 40 from the Nintendo Change Professional Controller. That’s a hell of a variety of playtime, so slightly top-up every now and then means you’ll in all probability by no means see it completely worn out.
It’s a forward-thinking pad too. It encompasses a USB-C reversible charging port, that means you will not must fiddle round to get it to plug in, whereas there’s additionally NFC built-in for connecting up your Amiibo collectible collectible figurines. If the black aesthetic is not to your liking, Nintendo’s launched a number of themed choices through the years, together with tie-ins for Splatoon 2 and Tremendous Smash Bros. Final.
Nintendo Change Professional Controller: performance
As progressive as they’re, the Pleasure-Con pads will be an act in perfecting hand contortion when used singularly, and the optionally available Grip pads nonetheless don’t fairly make up the distinction with the competitors.
The Change Professional Controller is significantly better, nonetheless. Its sticks have an amazing degree of resistance and are comfortably offset, and the face buttons even have an ideal quantity of depth. Relating to the D-Pad, Nintendo has had one of the best for the reason that days of the NES, permitting for pinpoint accuracy in 2D sidescrollers.
It’s nonetheless current and proper with the Professional Controller right here and actually exhibits up simply how missing the split-button D-Pad try on the right-hand aspect of the Pleasure-Con (when utilized in a singular set-up) is.
If there’s one level of rivalry, it’d be with the rear triggers, which don’t have fairly the depth we’ve come to anticipate from triggers on different pads. They’re far nearer to extra shoulder buttons than deep triggers. That’s not a problem with many video games, however it may be a bit jarring with shooters or racing titles.
Nintendo Change Professional Controller: verdict
The Nintendo Change Professional Controller is a superb pad. It’s essential if you happen to primarily use your Nintendo Change at residence, however it’s nice for tabletop mode too. Nonetheless, it’s also one of many costlier pads available on the market in comparison with these paired with rival consoles at $69.99 / £59.99 – however none provides its NFC capabilities or capacious built-in battery capabilities. It’s a premium addition to your Change set-up, however we’d say it’s additionally important.