For example, Nintendo filed a patent for a console that would not use discs, which is certainly a possibility for the NX, though keep in mind that many patents filed by companies wind up on the cutting room floor before ever actually being produced for the masses. The screen could also be used to display supplemental in-game information, and can even host a miniature web browser, though we can’t imagine how useful the latter will be. The controller also appears to have vibration, as well as gyro and acceleration sensors.
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The patent is for a hand-held device featuring a wide, elliptical touchscreen that houses a card slot, two “operation sticks” towards the left and right edges of the screen, and also has two additional operation buttons on the top of the controller (effectively “L” and “R” buttons). The touch panel may be resistive or capacitive and could cover nearly the entire display area of the screen.
Or maybe it’s nothing to do with NX and it’s just a random idea someone at Nintendo had and thought they better patent it.
Besides the company’s new president Tatsumi Kimishima saying that the system will be “something unique and different,” and not a successor to the Wii U or Nintendo 3DS, all we’ve had to work with in the past few months are small patent leaks. When viewing the first portion from the front, an area except key tops of the operation sticks becomes a display area.
Tech and gaming companies files many patents that don’t end up being made into actual products.
The maker’s current console, the Nintendo Wii U features a touchscreen that can show games, but only within range of the home unit itself. A new device is expected soon.
Nintendo has previously been linked to Sharp’s Free-Form Display technology, which consists of IGZO LCD panels which can be cut into different shapes, so unlike many patent rumours, there could be some truth in this one.
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At this point, the Nintendo NX is confirmed to exist by Nintendo, but there is no release date yet.
