Published 20 hours ago

Purple and green Joy-Con 2 options will arrive in February

New Joy-Con colors highlight an unexpected Switch 2 shortcoming

Image: Nintendo

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Seven months after the release of its new portable console, Nintendo is finally unveiling new colors for its Joy-Con 2 controllers. Behold: For a mere $99.99, you can enjoy peripherals that come in light purple and green. The new colorways aren't out until Feb. 12, but fans may want to think twice before pre-ordering.

It's not just the exorbitant price, which might incentivize fans to continue using whatever old Switch Joy-Con they've got lying around wirelessly. Unlike on the Switch, however, Joy-Con 2 only have a splash of color in the interior of the controller. It's a design decision that gives the new Joy-Con a sleek, modern feel. It also elucidates one small, yet unexpected shortcoming for the Switch 2: Controller colors will barely be visible if the Joy-Con 2 is attached to the actual hardware. Rather than loudly adorning the Switch 2 in quirky colors, players will have to settle for merely seeing a sliver of the new colorway when the console is docked or played naturally.

There's still plenty of opportunity to bask in the novelty of the purple/green controllers, of course. If you're playing a multiplayer game and using the Joy-Con separately, for example, you'll get to see the colors. If you're like me, and find that it is more ergonomic to prop up the Switch 2's screen with the Joy-Con detached, you'll also get the most out of the upcoming release. But I'm guessing that the majority of the time, most of us will have the Joy-Con 2 firmly glued to the console. The question then becomes, do you really want to spend over $100, once taxes are taken into account, just for the suggestion of a color?

This minor detail has been technically true since the summer of 2025, as the packaged Red/Blue Joy-Con 2 also hide their vibrant hue during normal play. But the change-up is more at the forefront now that there are more Joy-Con 2 options. It's sad, too. By giving the Switch 2 more of a standardized look, the console likely won't herald a culture around collecting Joy-Con like its predecessor did. For Switch, Joy-Con was basically a fashion statement. I loved getting unusual colors, like yellow, or mixing and matching different combinations from my arsenal of Joy-Con. Now, the subdued expression and price tag make me feel like I could live without more Joy-Con. Bummer!

Still, if you're looking for a suggestion of differentiation (or a logical replacement for a busted Joy-Con 2) on Switch 2, the light green/light purple set is up for pre-order now.