Nintendo Switch 2's Joy-Con Controllers Officially Have Mouse Functionality — Here's What They Can Do

Ever since the Nintendo Switch 2 reveal, fans have been wildly speculating on a tiny detail from the trailer: the Joy-Cons. Specifically, their seeming use as mouse controllers, like on a PC, and the way they moved in the trailer. Now, we finally have official confirmation as to what they do: The Joy-Cons can operate in "mouse mode," which will allow players to slide the Joy-Cons across flat surfaces and use the analog sticks to simulate a left-click and right-click similar to a standard mouse. Additionally, two Joy-Cons can even be used in mouse mode simultaneously with one in each hand, or one in standard mode with the other in mouse mode. In other words, the game is your oyster.

Fans have been theorizing about the Joy-Con mouse since we saw the reveal trailer, which had the Joy-Cons sliding around just like PC mice. In an effort to get more information, we tried to ask Firaxis, developer of Civilization 7, about it, and got a very cryptic answer in response. Features like this and the new C button fueled conversation about the console over the last month, especially as a rebuttal to criticisms that the Nintendo Switch 2 was playing things "safe" compared to Nintendo's usual adventurous spirit.

You can catch up on everything announced at today's Nintendo Switch 2 Direct right here.

Lex Briscuso is a film and television critic and a freelance entertainment writer for IGN. You can follow her on Twitter at @nikonamerica.