The C Button on the Nintendo Switch 2 Was Added as a “Last-Second Decision”

Nintendo Switch 2’s C button was a late addition, with a new interview stating it was added following a “very last-minute request.”

The Nintendo Switch 2 Joy-Con 2’s mysterious C button sparked debate ahead of the Switch 2 Nintendo Direct, where it was revealed to be a dedicated button for the console’s Discord-like GameChat feature. In a series of developer interviews posted on Nintendo’s website diving into various aspects of the Switch 2’s creation, Sumikazu Ono, a member of Nintendo’s entertainment planning and development department, said the C button came as a result of making sure the GameChat feature was easy to use.

He said he thought the idea of having to pause the game and go to the home screen, find the right menu, make a chat room, and then return to the game (the way basically every other modern video game console does it) was “bothersome.” That resulted in the idea of the C button.

“So we asked for a special button to be added while the hardware design was in progress,” Ono said. “It was a very last-minute request, just before the controller molds were about to be made.”

Ono said he thinks GameChat’s ease of use, as well as the fact that the Switch 2 comes with a built-in microphone, will result in more players trying voice chat for the first time.

“We knew a lot of players would eventually stop using this feature if it wasn’t easy to understand, so we worked hard to ensure it could be used easily to play with friends and family without any fuss,” he said.

In the interview, Ono described GameChat as one of the Switch 2’s “defining features,” and that its origins came from trying to capture the vibe of a “student lounge” where people can gather not just to play games but also hang out.

“Until now, online play for Nintendo games has meant everyone coming together to play the same game,” Ono said. “But more than anything, we wanted to create a space where people would naturally gather, whether it’s to play the same game together, or different games, or even just to watch.”

GameChat will technically require a Nintendo Online subscription to use, but can be accessed for free until March 2026, around nine months after the Switch 2 releases in June 2025.

In a previous developer interview, Nintendo said the Switch 2’s magnetic Joy-Con 2’s were originally an idea for the first Switch, but the idea was shelved following a meeting with late Nintendo President Satoru Iwata where he gave feedback on the prototype.

The Nintendo Switch 2 will launch on June 5 for $450, with preorders, including a Switch 2 bundle with Mario Kart World, going live April 9. Nintendo announced a number of new first-party games coming exclusively to Switch 2, including Donkey Kong Bonanza and Switch 2 versions of games like Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.