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Nintendo just made it less expensive to replace a broken Joy-Con

By Giovanni Colantonio October 23, 2020

Nintendo’s Switch Joy-Cons are now a bit more affordable. Nintendo has announced that individual Joy-Cons will retail for $40 moving forward, down from $50.

Starting on 11/9, single #NintendoSwitch Joy-Con controllers will be available for purchase for $39.99. Choose from the left Joy-Con controller in Neon Blue, and the right Joy-Con controller in Neon Red. pic.twitter.com/wXW8BEssS7

— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) October 23, 2020

The permanent price change goes into effect on November 9 and only affects individual Joy-Con packs. The change does not apply to two-packs, which remain $80. The change to single packs makes it so buying two controllers separately is the same price as buying a set.

Earlier this month, Nintendo discounted the controllers in Japan, leading to speculation that the controllers would get a price cut globally. The new price is on par with Japan’s recent change, which dropped individual controllers form 4,480 yen to 3,740 yen.

Nintendo’s tweet about the price drop only mentions the red-and-blue Joy-Cons, but all colors are likely to be discounted if the price cut works the same way it did in Japan.

The pricing change is especially welcome considering Nintendo’s ongoing Joy-Con drift issue, which has plagued controllers since the console’s launch and resulted in a class-action lawsuit against the company. Nintendo recently apologized for the tech malfunction and said it was aiming to improve the controllers.

The price cut isn’t a solution to the issue, but it does make replacing a broken one slightly less painful, as the previous price penalized anyone who only needed to buy one Joy-Con.

Players can also have broken Joy-Cons repaired for free by sending them into Nintendo, which quietly changed its policy last year following a lawsuit. Several Digital Trends editors have sent Joy-Cons to Nintendo for repair, and while the repair took several weeks, it was otherwise a simple process.

Meanwhile, other Switch controllers are on sale at Amazon. Players can grab a two-pack of Joy-Cons for $70, or a Switch Pro controller for $60.

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Giovanni Colantonio

Section Editor, Gaming

Giovanni is a writer and video producer focusing on happenings in the video game industry. He has contributed stories to…

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