Sid Meiers Civilization 7 executive producer Dennis Shirk shared his opinion on the rumor that the new Switch 2 Joy-Con can be used as a PC-style mouse during a recent interview with IGN.It is definitely intriguing, Shirk said. You always do some trade-offs when you have to deal with pure console controls. And the announcement has some great stuff in it. I love what theyre doing with the controllers. Its all very cool. Thats about all I can say about it in terms of an opinion. I think it looks awesome and theyre not wrong, so it would be cool for something like that.IGN characterized Shirks response as both coy and teasing, possibly insinuating some implied subtext that doesnt translate through text alone. If any studio were to test out this potential Switch 2 functionality, Civilization developer Firaxis would be a good choice. Civ is commonly played on PC, like many grand strategy games, but always comes out on console, too, despite controllers being widely considered less efficient for this style of game. Civilization 7 will be launched on PC and consoles, including the Switch, on Feb. 11, so it wouldnt be much of a surprise if it ends up being compatible with Switch 2, too, which Nintendo has promised to launch within 2025.This is the exact scenario that makes the possibility of the Switch 2 Joy-Con doubling as a mouse so exciting. Although strategy games can translate well to consoles, rectifying the relative imprecision of gamepad controls could be a boon for the genre. As Polygon deputy editor Maddy Myers pointed out last month, the potential benefits also extend to point-and-click games like Rise of the Golden Idol and even more hardcore, real-time simulators in the vein of Starcraft.Regardless of the potential for a mouse, its probably unlikely that the Switch 2 will have the processing power to keep up with the most technically hefty PC games but this one addition to the already-versatile Joy-Con controller opens up a whole new world of possibilities for gaming on the upcoming Nintendo console. That said, only time will tell if this rumored gimmick goes the way of the Wiis motion controls or the Wii Us second screen.
