Drag x Drive review – fun and frustrating in almost equal measure

A new Nintendo console usually means a fresh innovation, which in turn leads to a new game highlighting that innovation. For the Wii, it was Wii Sports, and for the original Switch, it was Arms. Now it’s the turn of the Nintendo Switch 2 and Drag x Drive, a game that emphasizes the Joy-Con 2’s mouse mode controls as a means of wheeling yourself up and down a court and shooting hoops. Sounds fun, right? Well, it is, kind of.

If you’ve somehow missed the trailer footage for Drag x Drive, let me break it down for you. What you’ve got here is a wheelchair basketball game, though it feels more like wheelchair netball, as there’s no bouncing or dribbling, with three-minute-long 3v3 matches on a small court. To control your chair, you use the two Joy-Con 2s as if your hands were on the wheels, pushing yourself forwards with both hands or turning by pushing just one of the controllers forward, while you shoot at the goal with a flick of the wrist. You can also steal the ball from an opponent by clattering into them when you’re defending your goal. It’s pretty simple stuff, at least to start with.

Your Drag x Drive experience starts out with a pretty chunky tutorial that introduces you to all the basics of movement, playing with the ball, and in-game scenarios. The tutorial is longer and a little slower than I’d like, but it still does a pretty good job of feeding you the basics before you jump into an online lobby or harness your skills in Bot Battles, which, as you can probably guess from the name, is a format that sees you take on the game’s talented AI. I say talented, as there are nine difficulty levels, and it gets pretty tricky once you reach level six and upwards.

A game such as Drag x Drive lives or dies by its controls, and despite spending the best part of a week with them, I still can’t decide whether I’m a fan or not. Yes, they can be pretty fun, and there’s no doubt that they’re engaging. That’s a good start, because at the end of the day, what’s the point in playing a game if it’s not fun? You can also pick up the controls pretty quickly, throw yourself into the game, and have a good laugh, if nothing else. However, it’s not all peachy, at least not if you want to start taking things seriously.

The gameplay requires a certain level of precision, but it often feels like you’re battling against the controls. Say, for instance, you’re trying to make a tight turn to face the goal, having carried the ball across the court. If you overdo it, even slightly, you’re suddenly facing the wrong direction. This wouldn’t be so bad if it weren’t for the fact that you only have 14 seconds of possession to get a goal, and I often found myself wasting precious seconds trying to find the perfect angle, but essentially just wheeling myself around in a circle.

The precision issue also applies to movement, as it’s all too easy to overshoot when careening down the court, ending up sitting directly under the net with no angle to try and score. Admittedly, this issue is a little less egregious than turning, as I got the grips with it after a few days of playing, but in the heat of the moment and with seconds left on the clock, it can feel a bit anticlimactic if you find yourself underneath the goal and surrounded by opponents.

Once you’ve got the hang of the controls, or at least some semblance of hurtling yourself around the court, you can try out some trick moves. I’ve just about mastered the bunny hop, which is more than I ever achieved in two years of real-life BMXing while practicing in the Public Park – this game’s equivalent to a hub area – but pulling it off in a game took a lot of work, and I probably frustrated my teammates a little, as I was much more interested in showing off my sick skills than scoring a goal.

There’s a slight redeeming factor for Drag x Drive’s tricky controls in that when you get it right, it feels very rewarding. During the Global Jam, I intercepted a pass from an opponent, took the ball all the way down the field, launched myself up the halfpipe behind the goal, and sank a slam dunk. It felt pretty good, and even better than it would in a Bot Battle, as I know for a fact that five other people just watched me do it. In that moment, I felt like Drag x Drive’s answer to Michael Jordan. Then I didn’t score a point for the rest of the game, but still, I’ll always have that moment.

Something I noticed pretty early on is that you can’t play Drag x Drive for that long, or at least I can’t. I was online for about 40 minutes during the Drag x Drive Global Jam test event, and after that, my arms were beat. I’m not sure if it’s the way you have to hold the Joy-Con 2 controllers or the constant arm movement, but I felt properly worn out after just those few games. I don’t think that’s a good sign for a game whose success is likely dependent on its ability to keep players engaged so that matchmaking pools don’t run dry too quickly, but I could be wrong.

There’s another gameplay mechanic that rubs me the wrong way, and that’s how you don’t reset after scoring or conceding. Instead, the game pushes any opposition players out of the two-point zone before the ball goes back into play. After a while, you adjust, and as soon as you’ve scored, you race back to your own end to defend the goal, but it doesn’t feel nearly as intuitive as something like Rocket League – yes, I’m going to mention Rocket League a couple of times in this review – which puts you back in the starting position after every goal.

The problem I keep finding myself having is that I’d just prefer the option to use old-school button controls. Yes, I know, this goes against the point of games such as Drag x Drive, much in the same way it would for everything from Wii Sports to Wario Ware: Move It!, but that’s how I like to play high-intensity games. My concern for the future of this game is that, given that I’m forced to use the mouse mode controls, I might only go back to it to show my friends the concept at game nights, whereas if button controls were an option, I’d potentially play more.

Outside of the core 3v3 game, Drag x Drive also features some decent minigames that serve as a way to train your movement skills while also offering a change of pace from online showdowns or Bot Battles. You’ve got time trials to tap into that need for speed, a game where you chase down a ball launched from the sky, and a few others. If I were being cynical, and a lot of the time I am, I’d say this is just filler, but I did find myself spending a lot of time trying to beat my own high score in shooting contests, so I can admit that this selection of minigames adds a bit more depth to a game that occasionally feels like it needs it.

Another thing I will say in Drag x Drive’s favor is that it’s a very clean game. The UI is all very polished, as is the gameplay itself, which is exactly what you expect from Nintendo. However, it’s also not nearly as visually stunning as a lot of other Nintendo games, and some might accuse it of being a little gray and drab. I might be one of those people, but it’s not exactly a deal-breaker. I just wish it had the vibrancy of a Rocket League or even something like Arms to give the gameplay a sense of spectacle. As it stands, it feels more like you’re playing in a pretty subdued training arena.

I can also imagine that, like a lot of multiplayer-oriented games, Drag x Drive is a lot more fun when you’re communicating with your friends and teammates using GameChat. The online sessions I joined were a bit chaotic because everyone wants to score all the time, and nobody wants to defend. I’m not calling people out here because I’m as guilty of that as anyone else, and people online seemed nice enough, doling out high-fives at every opportunity. It’s also nice to wave at people and have them wave back.

Considering this is a Nintendo game, there are a surprising number of options when it comes to customizing your driver and your chair. I’m bringing the Neon Genesis Evangelion vibes to the function with my green and purple setup. There’s also an in-game achievement system that actually rewards you with new cosmetics, including some fancy helmets for your driver, which, if you’re so inclined, might be the sort of thing that keeps you playing for longer than anticipated – providing your arms can take it, that is.

Before rounding up, it’s worth noting that performance felt great on the Nintendo Switch 2 when playing Drag x Drive, and like Donkey Kong Bananza, it’s a reminder of just how much more powerful this console is compared to its predecessor. At no point did I notice any issues with frame rates or any sort of sluggish gameplay, which, in fairness, is exactly what you should expect from a developer monolith such as Nintendo, but it’s still good to see.

Ultimately, my problem with Drag x Drive is that it feels like a tech demo that got out of hand. Yes, it’s a great way of showing off the Nintendo Switch 2’s mouse mode controls; I’m not arguing with that, but is it a great game in its own right? I’m not sold, and I’m not sure how much I can see myself going back to this one. It’s not bad; it just feels a little shallow, even if online play can get pretty engaging when everyone’s playing ball. Still, I’ve been wrong before, and if you spent hours playing games such as Wii Sports or Nintendo Switch Sports, then this is likely right up your alley.

There you have it, our Drag x Drive review ahead of the August 14 release date. To find out what else you’ve got to look forward to on the Nintendo Switch 2, check out our guide to all the upcoming Switch games. Or, if you’re looking for something else to play, see our list of the best Switch games, including some great picks you might not have played yet.