Would Drag x Drive Be Better With Miis Or Non-Mouse Control Options?

August is nearly over, and we’ve had two first-party releases this month: Kirby and the Long Title Nintendo Employees Are Obliged to Say in its Entirety and Drag x Drive.

The Kirby revamp just came out (and it’s very good) while Drag and Drive (yes, this one’s definitely an ‘and’) hit the courts back on 14th August. Are you still playing it? I’m willing to bet dozens of you are.

Ah, what a shame. For a game that demonstrates some genuine originality, it just throws up too many roadblocks for the average player, whether it’s the novel but uncompromising Mouse Mode controls, the dreary presentation, or the restrictive online team options. It makes for an intriguing pitch — and it really is a blast in exactly the right circumstances — but will anyone be playing this come Christmas? Is anyone playing it now?

I found myself wishing I could just control the thing with standard stick and button inputs. I know that would circumvent the game’s USP and introduce a skill gap, as people using buttons would quickly and easily (I imagine) outperform players sticking to motion controls, so you’d need to split the playerbase via control scheme.

And for a game that’s designed to show you the real gameplay possibilities of Mouse Mode beyond the obvious (and beyond the minigames in Welcome Tour), optional button inputs would be tantamount to admitting defeat. “Yeah, this is our Mouse Mode showcase! But you don’t have to use them._{..and it’s easier and better if you don’t.}“

I reckon Nintendo could frame it as an accessibility win without losing too much face. Ironically, players with any sort of movement impairment in their upper body will likely struggle the most playing Drag x Drive. And given the game’s muted debut, alternative control schemes would likely draw in a far larger player base. It’s not too late if Nintendo just swallowed its pride.

It’s an odd one, because I admire the boldness of the idea and the mechanical execution. Only Nintendo would do something like this, but it’s looking like a one-and-done affair for all but the most devoted players with the optimal setups (3v3 over LAN at the Nintendo Switch 2 Experience).

I had a great time with it back in April, and really hoped that would translate to the game proper, which I assumed would have more meat on the bone beyond the demo I played. Bolstered by Nate Bihldorff’s comments in our interview that, “in typical Nintendo fashion, there’s more game beyond that,” I assumed we’d seen only a small slice of the pie.

But no. Beyond the minigames, it’s pretty much exactly what I played in April ad infinitum. Can you imagine what a difference a simple change of scenery would make? An outside court by the beach or up a mountain wouldn’t fundamentally change anything, but would drastically improve the pervading presentational drabness. Perhaps Nintendo didn’t want to distract from the novel mechanics with any trademark colour, but jeez. After half an hour you’re jonesing for something beyond Burnished Black, Weathered Chrome, Medium Grey, Metallic Grey, Dark Grey, Dark Sea Grey, Neutral Grey, Grey Grey…

Or how about an injection of personality with some characters? Nintendo’s got a few of those, right? Something. I thought Switch Sports was bland, but Drag x Drive is crying out for some verve and charisma beyond the mechanical thrills.

Perhaps there’s a sensitivity and reluctance on Nintendo’s part to sitting Mario and co. in wheelchairs, and I understand that a whole other, valid conversation around representation would come from just slotting in Mushroom Kingdom characters that demonstrably, famously, have zero mobility issues. But featureless robots with customisation that extends to a splash of colour and some cat ears? They won’t cause offence, sure, but they aren’t a satisfactory solution. You can’t even make them look like Daft Punk.

Just adding Miis would give the game 1000% more personality. You still wouldn’t want to be stuck with it at a party, but right now it feels like a brick wall in the presentation department – a complete turn-off. That is, if the controls didn’t make you Abe Simpson outta there beforehand.

Before launch, we’d worried that DxD might turn out to be Switch 2’s ARMS, a game we loved and which still sold multiple millions of copies, but which didn’t capture the audience it arguably deserved. Drag x Drive, though, feels like it ground to a halt almost immediately, not even able to sustain Labo-levels of novelty. It’s got my respect, but the surprise and delight was incredibly fleeting with this one. Imagine if it had an ounce of ARMS or Splatoon’s style to go with the game.

Is there a way Nintendo could pivot and pull it back? Could Miis or regular button inputs change things for you? Would you be upset if they added DxD as a free-to-play perk for Nintendo Switch Online subscribers? Let us know in the polls and comments.