We can all likely agree that not every system update for the Nintendo Switch brings about fantastic new features that we’re all getting excited about. In fact, the majority of the system updates seem to be the result of incremental development that ultimately offers little to the everyday user other than spending the modicum of time necessary to download and install another mandatory update. This one, however, tastes a bit different than the standard helpings that we’ve been subjected to.
It’s worth noting that this doesn’t bring about the usage of Bluetooth headphones, an oft-requested feature that currently has no effective substitutes without introducing a frustrating amount of latency. Just throwing that in there.
What it does bring, however, is a way to remap your controller at the system level. This is exciting news for anyone that plays a healthy variety of platforms, as its one of the most stress-inducing means of controller-interaction.
What button on the pad do you press when a title asks that you press ‘X’? It’s typically not in a calm environment, either; nasty quick-time events that spring upon players unexpectedly has more than once been the downfall of a character that I’ve attempted to control.
Nintendo Switch firmware update 10.0.0 is now available featuring Animal Crossing: New Horizons profile icons! #ACNH #AnimalCrossing pic.twitter.com/vRDGYbzO0Q
— ACNH Island News (@ACNewHorizonsEN) April 14, 2020
Further, if you’ve played a title on a different platform (such as PC) and want to play the same title on the Nintendo Switch (an impressive feature of The Witcher 3), your entire control scheme has suddenly changed, making it almost impossible to function in-game on a high level. With the new controller remapping, you can place the ‘X’ button wherever you dang well please.
Add a decal or four onto the pad, and you suddenly have a controller that doesn’t cause panic every time you pick it up. It’s a far easier method than opening a controller and moving the buttons manually, not to mention safer for the product.
Beyond this fantastic change comes the standard, more mediocre, changes. You can bookmark a maximum of 300 articles from the ‘News’ segment if you’re so inclined as to page through the tabs on your Switch.
You can now transfer your data between your system memory, and an SD card. Not all data can be freely transferred, but it does allow users to control their internal system memory a bit better rather than simply presuming that the Switch will care for it. Finally, there are new ‘Play Activity Settings’ where you can hide recently played titles (such as Gun-Gal 2 or Dead or Alive Xtreme 3 Scarlet). There are also six new icons user-profiles from Animal Crossing: New Horizons that you can opt to display.
