The Joy-Con controllers used by Nintendo’s upcoming Switch 2 console could have technology in them that predicts a player’s next move. The information comes from a Nintendo patent filing published on January 23, referring to potential tech that could be incorporated into the Nintendo Switch 2 interface.
The Legacy of the Nintendo Switch
A Remarkable Run
The Nintendo Switch has had a good run. Launched more than seven years ago, Nintendo’s hybrid handheld/desktop game machine is the leading console of the current generation. In fact, the Switch recently became the best-selling console of all time in the US, surpassing the PlayStation 2’s lifetime sales numbers.
Transition to the Next Generation
Now, Nintendo is getting ready to pass the torch to a new generation of hardware, aptly called the Nintendo Switch 2. After months of leaks and rumors, the company officially unveiled the Switch 2 with a brief trailer. More questions about the console’s capabilities remain, though, which might be answered in an upcoming Nintendo Direct set for April 2.
Joy-Con Controllers: New Features
Predictive Technology
Some of those questions will undoubtedly be concerned with the console’s controllers, which seem to be packing a number of new features, including Joy-Con features originally intended for the first Nintendo Switch, like magnetic attachment. One such feature could be a system to predict future player inputs.
Details from the Patent Application
A patent application filed by Nintendo in August 2024 and published on January 23 details a system that tracks the position and direction of the player’s finger when near buttons, with the potential to predict the player’s next input. According to the patent application, which features little more than a system flowchart detailing the logic of the mechanism, Nintendo describes a system that tracks the player’s finger as it contacts buttons on a controller. When the player’s finger moves to press other buttons in sequence, the system can then automatically perform future inputs based on the order of the buttons the player contacted or pressed.
Implications of Predictive Technology
Enhancing Gameplay
In other words, the system as described can record the movement patterns of players’ fingers on the controller, then perform actions based on predicting their next input. This could smooth out operations for certain things, like menu selections, or even in-game actions like attack sequences.
Similar Systems in Gaming
Predictive systems have been at work in games for years, and similar attempts to use game logic to “guess” a player’s input underpin systems like rollback netcode in fighting games.
The Nature of Patent Applications
Speculation vs. Reality
It should be noted that a patent application is merely an attempt to patent an idea or mechanism, and not an indicator that the technology has been built or even deployed. Thus, absent confirmation from Nintendo itself, none can say whether the system patented is in the Switch 2, the original Switch, or any actual hardware Nintendo has made.
Insights into Nintendo’s Innovations
That said, patent applications do reveal what Nintendo’s engineers and designers are at least thinking about, such as how newspapers might work in a future Animal Crossing game. Whether or not these systems do make it into actual products is a different matter.
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