We asked the European Commission to call on national authorities to investigate Nintendo’s practices in their countries, launch a coordinated enforcement action and issue a joint position, requesting the company to change the design of their product, to effectively prevent its early obsolescence, and until then, to repair this product for free and properly inform consumers about the limited lifespan of the Joy-Con controllers.

Finally, we asked the European Commission to inform us about any relevant procedural steps taken with regards to the potential investigation and co-ordination and to be regularly informed about the process under confidentiality requirements.

This complaint was officially closed in April 2023, with the news that Nintendo had committed to lifelong free repairs of Switch game consoles suffering from ‘Joy Con Drift’.

Nintendo faces EU-wide complaint over premature joystick wear
Euractiv (28 January 2021)
“Japanese video game maker Nintendo will face an EU-wide complaint for premature wear of a joystick controller on its Switch console, French and EU consumer groups said Wednesday (27 January).”

Usure de manettes Nintendo: les recours de consommateurs s'étendent au niveau européen
France 24 (28 January 2021)
“Après une plainte en France contre Nintendo, accusé de vendre des manettes de jeux qui s'usent trop vite, des associations de défense des consommateurs veulent donner au dossier une dimension européenne, indique mercredi l'organisation UFC-Que Choisir.”

European Consumer Organisation Submits Formal Complaint About Nintendo Switch Joy-Con Drift
IGN (27 January 2021)
“The European Consumer Organisation has submitted a complaint to the European Commission about Nintendo Switch Joy-Con Drift, and is calling for a "Europe-wide investigation" into the issue.”

Consumatori Ue contro Nintendo: “I controller della Switch si rompono subito”
La Repubblica (29 January 2021)
“La Nintendo è finita nel mirino dei consumatori europei. I controller della Nintendo Switch, la console che ha venduto quasi 70 milioni di unità in tutto il mondo, si rompono troppo presto e troppo facilmente. Nel giro di due anni dall’acquisto, infatti, molto spesso diventano inutilizzabili: i personaggi sullo schermo si muovono da soli, senza che il controller venga neanche toccato.”

Nintendo sotto accusa per i guasti dei controller della Switch
Wired (29 January 2021)
“Un'organizzazione europea di consumatori accusa Nintendo di obsolescenza prematura riguardo i controller di Nintendo Switch e chiede alle autorità europee e nazionali dei vari paesi di aprire una indagine.”