Newly-published Nintendo patents show that the company has been exploring a version of its Joy-Con controllers that can work like a computer mouse, a feature Nintendo has hinted will be coming to the Switch 2.

When Nintendo first unveiled the Switch 2 last month, we (and everyone else) noticed something peculiar about the new Joy-Con controllers. Now, some recently unearthed patent filings more or less confirm all the theories.

Furthermore, Nintendo refers to the new Switch 2 Joy-Con as the "first embodiment" of the input device, the mysterious new controller as the "second embodiment", and the original rail-system Joy-Con as the "third embodiment", suggesting that, yes, these are indeed separate devices.

Nintendo’s recent innovation hints at upgraded controllers for Switch 1. If that happens, the old console could stick around for another eight years.

A patent filed by Nintendo has strengthened rumors that Nintendo Switch 2 ’s Joy-Con controllers will include mouse functionality. The patent was filed Aug. 1, 2023, but was published Thursday, Feb. 6,

A machine translation of the full text of the patent describes the controller as "a novel input device that can be used as a mouse and other than a mouse." In mouse mode, as described in the patent, the user cradles the outer edge of the controller with their palm and places the inner edge "on, for example, a desk or the like."

Who better to ask about that supposed Switch 2 mouse functionality than the producer of a popular RTS franchise with deep PC roots?

It’s all adding up

If you watched the Nintendo Switch 2 reveal video, you’ll have spotted what looked like a ‘mouse’ mode for the Joy-Cons. During the reveal trailer, there's a moment where a pair of detached Joy-Cons are lowered onto a surface,