We’ve seen quite a few Switch case mods this past year. Some great, some all kinds of weird. That’s pretty much how this scene rolls. Either stuff is must-have or you question what the hell people were thinking.
This brings us to today: If you grew up on the GameCube and want a simple way to make your Switch more nostalgic, Retroflag’s new case could scratch that itch.
Retroflag Handheld Controller for Switch
It’s a long-winded name for sure, but the Retroflag Handheld Controller intrigues us. The first thing you’ll notice is the transparent GameCube purple shell. If there’s one thing companies need to bring back from the 00s, it’s transparent cases. Why aren’t they a thing anymore?
On the front of the controller you’ll find the A/B/X/Y buttons, all colored in the traditional GameCube colors, plus and minus buttons, and a GameCube-esq left stick and D-Pad. The right stick has also been given a healthy injection of nostalgia, too, and now resembles the yellow camera stick.
How the camera stick will handle in first-person games we have no idea, but if you’re going to mimic the GameCube, you either go big and uncomfortable or go home.
Retroflag GameCube Controller Features
One of the big features here is the introduction of Hall joysticks – a type of joysticks that don’t suffer from drift, unlike the Switch joy-con and PS5 controllers.
The controller itself also supports the Switch’s gyro function, has built-in rumble packs, and supports fast-charging through the base of the case.
Price and Availability
The Retroflag GameCube controller is currently available through the Retroglag store on Amazon in the US and Canada. At the time of writing, it’s out of stock on Amazon US, so we’re still chasing a price. If you’re grabbing it through Amazon Canada, it’ll cost $69.99.
Retroflag GameCube Controller Specs
- Size: 273x110x54 mm
- Support: Both the original Switch and the Switch OLED models are compatible
- Compatibility: Supports fast-chare and is plug and play
- Weight: 270 grams without a docked Switch
Conclusion
We’ve used Retroflag cases before when building our Raspberry Pi 4 and they’re always sturdy and straightforward to set up. The SNES case we got even came with a rather stylish fake cartridge that connects via magnets. And yes, it looks great in action.
All in all, we think the GameCube controller is a really cool idea. Sure that camera stick is giving us unfavorable flashbacks, but you can’t have a GameCube design without the C-stick. A yellow joystick in its place would just be strange.
The Retroflag GameCube controller may not be for everyone, but if you’re tired of third-party joy-con being useless, and want something nostalgic and drift-proof, it’s easy to see just who this controller is made for.
If this has your interest piqued, you can find out more on the Retroflag website.
