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FEATURE GAMING

One mouse, two, mouse… With all the fun of getting hands-on Nintendo’s new beastie, easily the biggest surprise was how well the new Joy-Con 2 mouse functionality works. Our first experience was with the futuristic new wheelchair basketball game Drag X Drive . Naturally you need a flat surface to mouse on, and with the special included mouse attachments in place, the left Joy-Con 2 controls your left wheel, while the right Joy-Con 2 lets you steer your right wheel. Once you get the hang of steering it’s a surprisingly energetic experience, as you lunge forward, lift, and lunge back with mice in-hands, trying to grab the ball from an opponent and shoot it through the hoop. The other mouse revelation came via a demo of the forthcoming Metroid Prime 4 Beyond . Its use of the right Joy Con 2 as a controller that converts to mouse by simply tipping it side-on and popping it onto a surface is seamless, in this case allowing you to look around, then get back to business. The mouse mode will function more traditionally in games that support it, and it can also be used to potter around the Switch 2 menu screens.

Mic check The Switch 2 comes with a built-in microphone, which we got to test out by shouting loudly during one of the minigames in the updated Super Mario Party Jamboree - Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Jamboree TV . That’s probably not the most ideal way to test the functionality, but we’re happy to report that it certainly did work! Naturally, the main purpose of this microphone is for less rowdy pursuits, such as in-game chat with others. Smile for the camera! We were able to quickly sample the new camera support via Super Mario Party Jamboree - Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Jamboree TV . If you ever played with Kinect on the Xbox, you may find this bringing back memories, as we had our image sucked into the game for various

minigame pursuits – and for Bowser to mess with! The official camera itself is quite a neat, unobtrusive device that will happily sit next to peoples’ TVs without looking out of place.

SPECS AT A GLANCE

Going Pro We were keen to get our mitts on the new Pro Controller, and we’re happy to report that it’s as solid as ever, despite feeling a tad lighter in-hand than its predecessor. As well as featuring a new ‘C’ button for launching GameChat, and a 3.5mm audio jack, there are two extra, custom mappable buttons – ‘GL’ and ‘GR’ - on the rear, quite well placed for stabbing at with a ring or middle finger. If a more classically shaped controller is your preferred way to play, rather than attaching the two Joy-Con 2s to the puppy dog-like grip adaptor, then this will be a day one must-have accessory.

Processor: Custom NVIDIA Tegra T239 Resolution (touchscreen): 1920 x 1080p (Full HD), HDR10, VRR up to 120Hz Resolution (docked): Up to 3840 x 2160p (4K), HDR10, VRR up to 120Hz Memory: 12GB Inbuilt storage: 256GB Removable storage: microSD Express up to 2TB (not compatible with original Switch microSD) downloadable titles Speakers: Stereo Connectivity: Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.2, 3.5mm audio jack, 2x USB-C Battery: 5,220mAh (2-6.5 hours) Dimensions: 272 x 116 x 13.9mm (with Joy-Con 2s attached) Weight: 534g Backwards compatibility? Yes, with most Switch game cards and

Let’s go! We’d been super hyped to get to play with the Switch 2, and our expectations were met, and even exceeded in many ways. It’s a substantial update over the original Switch not only in terms of capability, but also in how solid it feels, from the console itself to the control sticks and buttons – it just feels premium. Between that, and a raft of new and updated games, things are looking rosy for Nintendo's latest hardware.

Nintendo Switch 2 is out Jun 5

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