Being able to wirelessly connect an external gaming controller has been an option on iOS for quite some time. However, native support hasn’t been. It was only with the launch of iOS 14.5, for instance, that Apple added native support for Sony’s DualSense PlayStation 5 controller and Microsoft’s wireless controller for the Xbox Series S and Xbox Series X. And now Nintendo is getting in on the fun, too.
While Apple hosted its keynote speed for the annual Worldwide Developers Conference yesterday, and went over a ton of new features coming to its major platforms, some of the new elements always remain a mystery. At least for a little while. But when the company seeds that first developer beta, it’s only a matter of time before the finer details start to surface.
That’s why we know Apple is adding native support for Nintendo’s Switch Pro and Joy-Con controllers with the upcoming release of iOS 16. iOS developer Riley Testut was the first to discover the new support, taking to Twitter to say that the Switch Pro controller works “perfectly” when paired.
!!! iOS 16 natively supports Nintendo Switch Pro Controllers!!
Can confirm they work perfectly with Delta 😍 pic.twitter.com/p8u1sdjvTt
— Riles 🤷♂️ (@rileytestut) June 6, 2022
Resource: How to pair Xbox and PlayStation controllers with iPad, Mac, and Apple TV
What’s more, the pair of Joy-Con controllers (that typically attach to both sides of the Nintendo Switch console), are recognized as a single device when paired with an iOS 16 device. which was confirmed by Nat Brown, an engineering manager at Apple. Brown also confirmed that it’s quick and easy to switch between registering the Joy-Con controllers as two separate devices, or a single one:
Test away. Lmk if you hit any issues. With both paired, hold the bottom face buttons (left “capture”, right “home”) for a few seconds to join the Joy Cons into one controller and do it again to split them.
— Nat Brown (@natbro) June 6, 2022
Apple adding support for Nintendo’s controllers is a step in the right direction for the end user, but it will be up to developers to actually bring support to games and apps for it to actually matter. Which is how it always works, so fingers crossed that it’s sooner rather than later that we start to see some titles that support these wireless controllers on iPhone and iPad.
Are you looking forward to this new addition with iOS 16?