Drag x Drive is great in concept, but not very fun to play

There are a lot of individual elements to like about Drag x Drive, the latest Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive game. First, it’s a new IP, which is something we sadly don’t get enough of these days. On top of that, it’s focused on a genuinely novel concept: wheelchair sports. Using the Joy-Con 2’s new mouse functionality, you’ll have to slide your arms along a surface in tandem to control both wheels. It’s a rare example of disabled representation in games — front and centre of the experience, no less. And in practice, there are some neat ideas here to add a bit of depth.

Unfortunately, though, none of that comes together in a compelling way. The biggest reason for that is the finicky nature of the mouse controls. As you’re rolling around, you have to rotate each Joy-Con to steer in each direction. It’s intuitive enough on paper, but it doesn’t always respond in the heat of Drag x Drive’s various sports-themed minigames, which are playable both offline and online.

In the central 3v3 basketball mode, for instance, it’s important to angle your character so they’re directly facing the net. From there, you can make a simple throwing gesture to shoot, and thanks to proper positioning, with a little luck and the subtle automatic aim-assisting, you’ll generally be able to make the shot or at least get close to the rim. The problem, though, is that you often feel like you’re fighting with the controls to get yourself aligned, especially on the pretty small courts where collisions with other players cause you to be briefly stunned.

Part of these woes will no doubt be alleviated the more you get used to the controls, but even then, that leads into my other major issue with Drag x Drive: it’s just not all that fun. Even when you do have a better handle on the mechanics, there’s really not a whole lot to them. Sure, there are a few little tricks you can perform, like tilting, bunny hops and dunks (using little skatepark-like ramps beside the nets), and successfully landing shots while doing them rewards you with bonus points (i.e. 2.2 instead of 2).

But on the whole, it’s not really satisfying. Besides the fatigue you’ll likely feel before long in having to repeatedly make the rowing-esque back-and-forth arm movements, Drag x Drive lacks the cathartic thrill of other arcade-y sports games. Missing is the exhilaration of pulling off an insane gravity-defying trick in Rocket League or even precisely aiming and bouncing the ball off a wall before backflip kicking it into the net in this year’s Rematch. Instead, Drag x Drive‘s sense of reward often just comes from having overcome the friction of the motion controls.

This underwhelming feeling is even more pronounced in the rest of Drag x Drive’s minigames. In the game’s hub world, which is basically an indoor skatepark, you can take on other challenges, including sliding around little skate ramps, navigating through an obstacle-filled course and jump rope. Without the inherent dopamine rush of scoring in the basketball games, though, these missions feel even less rewarding. Some of them at least give you basketball-like rings that unlock new customization options, but otherwise, there’s little incentive to complete them.

Ultimately, that feeling extends to Drag x Drive as a whole. There’s some fleeting entertainment to be had in the overall novelty of the experience, given the unique premise and control scheme. But sadly, it never amounts to anything all that fun, even when you’re not fighting with the controls.

If nothing else, Nintendo charging $30 for this makes it a somewhat easier ask than some other games. But even then, the Drag x Drive gameplay loop just isn’t compelling enough, making it hard to recommend buying the game, period, since you’ll likely not play it for very long. For that reason, it actually feels like it should have been offered through Nintendo Switch Online so you could jump into it every once in a while without making any additional financial investment. As it is, though, you’re better off putting that money towards Donkey Kong Bananza (my current game of the year) if you haven’t yet.

Drag x Drive launches on Nintendo Switch 2 on August 14.

Image credit: Nintendo