My Nintendo Switch remained largely unplayable for the duration of the pandemic. I bought it in Before Times because I thought it would make a great subway companion. But between the short battery life and the uncomfortable long hold, I just never wanted to play it much. But there might finally be some light on the horizon of my Switch. Over the past few weeks I’ve been testing Hori’s new Split Pad Compact Controller. While it has some cool, unique features of its own, perhaps the best part is the way it has encouraged me to spend more time with my Switch.
Hori’s Split Pad Compact is the successor to the previous Split Pad Pro. Instead of the traditional Nintendo Joy-Cons, its two halves fit into the usual spaces for portable gaming on a standard Switch. I was won over by the Compact’s colors, shape, and overall playability, but there are some major caveats: no rumble, no wireless, and no motion-detection capabilities.
This is an unfortunate trend for many third-party Switch controllers given the variety of proprietary technology Nintendo uses on the console. That could completely rule out the Split Pad Compact for some games, or for gamers who (rightly) consider these features essential to the Switch. But if you wanted to look at an alternative to the standard Joy-Con that I think offers a much more comfortable wearable experience, the $50 MSRP for something like this isn’t bad.
The buttons and design also feel more at home with the Switch. These don’t feel like Xbox or PlayStation buttons. They sit a bit higher than a regular Joy-Con, but the trade-off is I find them a bit more tactile. The analog thumbsticks are much closer to the full-size ones (thank goodness), and overall it has a nice “Nintendo-y” feel.
The Split Pad Compact is far from the only ergonomically designed switch controller (or grip) on the market. What really sets it apart functionally are the back buttons. These buttons aren’t going to compete with the paddles on an Xbox Elite controller as there are only two of them, but I kinda like it that way. There’s also a turbo feature that lets you quickly trigger a key of your choice. I found little use in it in the games I played; Turbo will appeal more to those interested in older action games or RPGs that require you to scroll through a million text boxes.
Assigning a face button to either of the two rear inputs is a simple three-button combo. You hold “Assign” together with the button you want to map (the Capture and Home buttons are not allowed), then click the back button you want to map to; The light will remain solid red to show you did it right. Sometimes it takes a few tries, but eventually you get the feel for it. There are no profiles for different games, which is a shame. However, toggling button remappings is easy once you get them, and there’s only at most two back buttons to worry about anyway. But there is another critical caveat here.
Each rear button can only be mapped to the buttons located on the individual “Joy-Con” itself. Basically, the right back button can only be assigned A, B, X, Y since they are on the right side. The left button can only activate buttons on the left side.
While I initially grimaced when the rear entrances were so limited, I ended up finding great use in them The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. After playing this game with the Hori, I’ve realized that breaking weapons isn’t so bad; Actually, what was most annoying was just swiping my thumb from stick to D-Pad to switch mid-fight, which kind of slows the pace. Mapping the weapon menu to a rear button solves this neatly. Much more beautiful.
I also checked out the remastered version of Final Fantasy VIII– you know, the one with the damn digital motion controls that completely ruins the experience, which I’ll never shut up on. It hardly requires any quick keystrokes (other than a few sequences) or really even needs a back button; but the Split Pad Compact’s shape fits my hands so much better that reading its endless gray text boxes is just a more pleasing way to play physically.
A few smaller indie games have come and gone during my time with the Split Pad Compact. I also put more time into it Metroid horror. The extra palm of the slightly larger Hori controller just made it more comfortable. My Switch now feels like a mini Steam deck, as opposed to the more horizontal phablet experience provided by the stock Joy-Cons.
I don’t always use the Hori’s advanced features, like turbo and the rear buttons, but what I do do is play my damn Switch. Regularly even!
And that simplicity, that feeling that those things just get out of your way so you have a more enjoyable experience on the Switch, is the best thing about this new controller. (Oh, and in case you’re wondering, yes, according to Hori, these work on both the original Switch and OLED models). The inherent limitations of no rumble support, no wireless functionality, and no motion detection will be a clear deal breaker in many cases. But if, like me, you’ve found the Switch to be an ergonomic horror show of sorts, you might find the Hori Split Pad Compact a pretty good excuse to play it again, even if you just want to catch up on the many hits this console enjoyed in yours Absence.
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