The mouse functions teased for the Switch 2's Joy-Cons are an exciting upgrade that could signal a new era for Nintendo games.

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.

A recently discovered patent shows Nintendo Switch 2's Joy-Con being used like the mouse on a PC, seemingly confirming system rumors.

A recently published patent gives audiences a deeper insight into the teased mouse functionality of the Nintendo Switch 2 Joy-Cons.

This confirms what many fans suspected upon seeing the Joy-Con controllers sliding around a surface on their sides during the announcement trailer last month. Presumably, the “mouse operation” feature will allow some games on Switch 2 to be played with either traditional controller inputs or mouse inputs.

When Nintendo teased the Switch 2 in January the company partially revealed the larger, re-designed Joy-Con controllers that connect to the console with a new mechanism, possibly electromagnetically. Now, the controllers slot into the console via an indentation on each said, eschewing the rail connectors of the original Switch.

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 President Shuntaro Furukawa responds to growing concerns over how the Switch 2's starting price will be affected by tariffs.