I’ve had a look at a fair share of Nintendo Switch 2 accessories over the last few weeks, and at one end, you’ve got extremely great value, and sturdy cases like Powerwave’s range which starts at $25 for a case that would be more than enough for 98% of Switch 2 owners, but for those that want the absolute best of the best where price isn’t an issue, enter the dbrand Nintendo Switch 2 Killswitch case.
Calling this a case feels like an injustice, because it’s so much more and quite frankly unlike anything else available for the Nintendo Switch 2. Dbrand has been refining this concept starting with the Steam Deck, then the ROG Ally/Ally X before rolling out its best version yet for the Switch 2.
The Killswitch for Switch 2 not only looks stylish, and provides incredible protection to the entire Switch 2, but it also improves the ergonomics and comes together to form a package that feels like it was created by Nintendo, which is the greatest compliment that I can give.
Whilst I’ll be talking about the entire package in this review, it’s important to note that you can purchase it in three tiers (which saves you money) or any of the parts individually.
You can order from dbrand HERE or at the below links:
I thought this was important to lay out before I start talking about the individual parts, because it’s really hard to talk about the Killswitch without talking about the entire package (Travel Kit), but I also don’t want to mislead people into thinking that they get the whole kit with the Essential Kit.
The core part of the Killswitch 2 is a back cover that slots over the back of the Switch 2 to provide protection to the back whilst allowing all of the ports to remain useable. This does have a little adhesive strip purely to keep it in place, but I haven’t used it and have noticed no slippage. The kickstand isn’t at all impeded by the back case, and dbrand has included a kickstand cover (made out of the same material) which does use adhesive, and provides ultimate protection if you choose to use it.
Similarly for the Joy-Con grips, these slot in to fit perfectly with a little lip locking them in place. Dbrand has included adhesives for those that want a little more stability, but again, I haven’t needed them. The Joy-Con grips make a huge improvement to the Joy-Con 2 controllers which are definitely improved from the originals, but due to their thinness don’t leave you with a lot to grip.
The Joy-Con grips add quite a chunky bit to the bottom where your hands naturally rest giving them security and comfort. They’re also made of an extremely grippy texture that allows your hands to stick a lot better. This makes a huge difference both when using the Switch 2 in handheld form, or using one Joy-Con in each hand.
I obviously understand why Nintendo opted to keep the Switch 2 the same thickness, but the comfort on offer here is a significant improvement and I’ve found it very hard to go back when I’ve taken the Killswitch off for filming.
Because of the slightly thicker nature of the Killswitch case (and the tightness of the dock), dbrand has invented a dock adaptor that simply slots over the top of the original Nintendo Switch 2 dock, putting the Switch 2 on the outside front of the dock, which I much prefer with any of my handheld docks.
The dock maintains the OEM cooling of the original dock, which is purely just to maintain the temperature of the dock components and nothing to do with cooling the Switch 2, and obviously it maintains that 4K/60 FPS output of the original dock as well. When the Switch 2 isn’t on the dock, I’d argue it looks a little bit ugly, but when the Switch 2 is on the dock it looks so much better and is a lot easier to get in and off.
That is the core essential kit and I’d say it’s more about baseline protection of the back of the Switch 2 and improving the ergonomics hugely with those improved Joy-Con grips, but really that’s just the beginning.
Moving onto the travel kit, you get an incredibly sturdy frosted front cover, that loops around the Killswitch back case perfectly so that you can chuck it in your bag for ultimate protection, and it covers all ports and opening except the top USB-C port.
Dbrand has also cleverly created a 10 game card holder that magnetically snaps into the top of the travel cover, so not only can you take them with you on the go, but because the case is frosted, you can have a little peek of your Switch game cards, which is much nicer than looking at a black screen. It’s a tiny bit finicky getting the cards in and out, but it’s a great concept that sells the entire Killswitch experience for me.
Last in the travel kit (or able to be purchased separately) are the stick grips which I’m never usually a fan of, but these are an extra bit of height to the sticks and also a good amount of texture, that the analogue sticks are lacking to really complete the experience.
You can also purchase the Prism 2.0 screen protector to complete the protection – I haven’t put this one on the Switch 2 yet, but have used them in the past and they are great both for protection, fingerprint reduction and super easy to put on.
All-in-all, the Dbrand Nintendo Switch 2 Killswitch case is expensive, but it does genuinely feel like it improves the physical Switch 2 experience in every way whilst providing extreme protection with style that only dbrand products can provide.
The dbrand Nintendo Switch 2 Killswitch case starts at ~$92 for the base pack and you can grab it from the dbrand website HERE.