With the newest console on the horizon, there’s no doubt that the production of accessories for the original Nintendo Switch will be ramped down at some point. Even though most Nintendo Switch games will be backwards compatible with the Nintendo Switch 2, many accessories won’t. Like most Wii accessories, many of these fun little bits of plastic will be condemned to the garbage bin of time. That is why I thought listing the uniquely weird Nintendo Switch accessories of all time would be fun. Think of this as a sendoff to a pretty epic games console.
When they first released, Joy-Cons were an exciting bit of tech. They were stuffed full of Nintendo-related gimmicks: motion controls, NFC readers, and high-definition rumble. Not to mention some serious cases of stick drift.
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All-in-all, they were pretty compact and versatile controllers, which is why they were integrated into the design of many accessories.
Ring Fit Adventure
Following in Wii Fit’s footsteps, Ring Fit Adventure got players moving. It combined many fitness-related moves that translated well into a surprisingly deep single-player mode. More importantly, it came with some pretty goofy accessories: the leg strap and the aptly named “Ring-Con.” Although the leg strap is just a length of fabric that lets players strap a Joy-Con to their leg, the Ring-Con I mentioned earlier is a little more exciting. Sure, a Joy-Con could slide into this thing. That was fun to begin with. The combination of its flexibility, comfort and overall use really made it stand out. As a tool to promote healthy movement, it excelled.
CRKD Nitro Deck
The CRKD (pronounced “cracked”) Nitro Deck was initially billed as “the professional Handheld Deck|”. This meant that the Switch screen slid snuggly into the plastic housing, using the embedded rails to lock in place. It allowed the user to do away with both Joy-Cons and have an almost Steam Deck-like gaming experience. With the comfortable grips and combined weight, this thing completely revolutionised my gaming sessions with my aging Nintendo Switch
Nintendo Labo
Most of the things on this list were made from plastic. Not Nintendo Labo. A somewhat inspired project directly from Nintendo, this line of toys were made mostly from cardboard. That users had to construct themselves. As someone who enjoys hands-on toys, these were extremely fun things to build and play with. Even if the resulting products were kinda flimsy and janky to use.
Flip Grip
This was basically a fancy piece of moulded plastic that allowed players to play games in the fabled TATE mode. It housed the tablet section of the Nintendo Switch in a vertical position. Each Joy-Con could then slide in next to the screen. It was slightly unwieldy but very fun to play with. As one of the original Kickstarter backers, I thought it was an interesting and innovative piece of kit. Especially because it had such a simple design. Check out my full review here.
Starlink: Battle for Atlas
Although Starlink: Battle for Atlas was a multiplatform game, the Nintendo Switch version had a few gimmicks that made it stand out. The inclusion of Fox McCloud was exciting for fans of Starfox, even if it did make people ache for a proper game in that legendary series. The dedicated Joy-Con controller grip was somewhat less exciting but still kinda cool. This plastic grip with a bit of electronics running through it was the perfect place to attach each Joy-Con, Arwing, weapons and Fox McCloud himself.
At one point or another, I have used every one of these accessories, and they were all extremely fun to use. More importantly, they are things that can only be used with the Nintendo Switch. Versions might become available for the Nintendo Switch 2, but until then, they remain pretty unique.
