We likely won’t have any challenging answers to any of these questions until the Switch 2-focused Nintendo Direct launch scheduled for April. But that doesn’t mean we can’t speculate! We put our heads together and made a list of what we had think the button is for what and what we do hope the button is for. There are no wrong answers – well, at least not until we get them true answers in April – so feel free to comment what you think the C button will do!
This is probably the most likely of the theories. As previously speculated by Polygon editor-in-chief Christopher Plante, there are rumors that the C button opens the game’s text or video chat system, which allows Nintendo Switch 2 owners to communicate freely with each other and eases the process of joining multiplayer games. This would be a welcome improvement on the original Switch, as well as offering the possibility of a fun modern UI.
We could all utilize some assist from time to time. Who better to lend a helping hand and some sound advice than Lieutenant Columbo, the cunning, Zen-like detective immortalized by the behind schedule, great Peter Falk? If you press the Columbo button, you’ll hear one of the detective’s ironic catchphrases and witty bon mots. If that doesn’t sound like a quality of life feature, I don’t know what does.
Nowadays, it seems like everything and everything has a mandatory AI assistant. Your phone, your car, your blender – whatever you want. So why shouldn’t there be a Nintendo Switch 2 (except that no one asked for it)? Pressing the C button could possibly bring up an AI assistant avatar modeled after one of Nintendo’s many iconic characters, offering in-game tips or shouting out a catchphrase.
Screen capture/screen sharing (“click”)
A lot has changed in the gaming world since the launch of Nintendo Switch in 2017. One thing that could definitely make a difference is the way gamers share screenshots and videos of their favorite gaming moments with each other. This is where the C button on the Switch 2 may appear. One of our leading theories is that this button, in addition to the proprietary chat function, allows players to take photos or stream videos of their favorite moments or interactions in the game. What would this function be called? Of course “click”!
Who doesn’t love sound collecting coins in Super Mario Bros.? Wouldn’t you love to have a button responsible for delivering that sweet hit of dopamine with that sweet tone in any game you play, Mario or not? Well, that’s what the C button can do! Just press it to your heart’s delight whenever the occasion calls for it! Beat a really challenging boss? F-yo! Do you have a very challenging achievement? F-yo! Are you feeling depressed? F-yo!
Polygon deputy editor Matthew Reynolds has his own idea of what the C button is for:
Have you ever played an intense game Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and you thought to yourself, Damn, I really should watch Federico Fellini 8½? Relative, am I right? Well, you won’t have to choose between looking at one screen or another to choose your entertainment, thanks to the dedicated Criterion Channel button on Nintendo Switch 2. With a library of over 1,500 titles to choose from, Criterion Channel could be a killer app for Nintendo’s newest console.
We know which console NO Do you have a dedicated Criterion Channel app? PlayStation 5. Checkmate, Sony.
