Nintendo sets a high price for Switch peripherals
Update: Packed-in Joy-Con grip will not charge controllers, and separately sold controllers will not include dummy grip
Original Story: Nintendo has set the US prices for Switch peripherals, and it's already clear that bringing extra players into your experience of the $300 console won't be cheap.
An extra Joy-Con controller will be $79.99 MSRP at launch, and the controller's two parts can also be purchased separately, for $49.99 each. It's worth noting that each half has functions that the other does not; the right part contains the motion IR sensor, for example, while the left has the only button for capturing footage.
In addition, the Joy-Con Charging Grip costs $29.99. This is a central panel to which the controllers can be attached, allowing play to continue with no loss of battery power. It's also necessary for the Joy-Con controller to take on a more traditional pad structure when the Switch is connected to a television, giving it an ergonomic function that many gamers will find appealing.
However, the combined cost of a second Joy-Con and Charging Grip setup will be $110. One alternative is the Pro Controller, which will retail for $69.99 - this is broadly similar to the pricing of a PS4 or Xbox One controller at the time of their launch, though each of those systems launched at a higher price-point.
Nintendo is also selling additional Nintendo Switch Docks, which charges the Switch tablet and connects it to a television. An extra Dock will cost $89.99, and the package will include an AC adapter and an HDMI cable.
The $299 launch price will be welcomed by many of Nintendo's fans, but these peripheral prices cast it in a different light. Playing side by side with friends, or the ability to move the system easily between different TV screens, are desirable use cases for the Switch. Achieving either, or both, will not be cheap.
Update: The Switch console will not be bundled with a Charging Grip for the Joy-Con controllers, which may come as a surprise even to those who watched Nintendo's reveal event.
Marketing images released for the console so far depict the two parts of the Joy-Con controller attached to a piece of black plastic bearing the Switch logo. It is almost identical to the Charging Grip that Nintendo is selling as a peripheral for $29.99, but it is now clear that the bundled Grip will not charge the controller - it simply allows them to take on the ergonomic form of a traditional pad.
Polygon spotted as much in a Nintendo Treehouse video, which articulated the difference with a clarity that the preceding event lacked. This means that the bundled Joy-Con controller - which has a stated battery life of up to 20 hours - can only be charged when attached to the Switch tablet.
None of which makes a Charging Grip an essential purchase, of course, but certainly a very desirable one. In addition, it's worth noting that Joy-Con controllers sold separately from the Switch will not include the dummy Grip that's packed-in with the console. For a second Joy-Con controller to take the form of a typical pad - for games that require two analogue sticks, say - it will be necessary to purchase a $30 Charging Grip.
