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If you’ve owned a Nintendo Switch, then you’ve dealt with this issue, the dreaded “Joy-Con Drift”! It’s an issue so widespread among Switch users that it sparked a class-action lawsuit against the company. Now, it seems that Nintendo is FINALLY going to fix this problem. Nintendo filed a patent for a Joy-Con with a Smart Fluid inside. This, the company believes, will solve the drift issue.
This is something of a breath of fresh air for Switch owners. Joy-Cons are not cheap, so prematurely having issues with them is a source of frustration. It was also frustrating to hear that the newer Switch Lite also experienced Joy-Con drift. While that’s the case, it doesn’t appear to be as widespread at the moment.
Nintendo filed a patent for a Joy-Con with a Smart Fluid
Rather than making tweaks to the Joy-Con’s design, it looks like Nintendo wants to flip the script on the design altogether. According to VGC (via Techradar), the company has filed a patent for a Joy-Con that will use a “magnetorheological fluid” (MRF). This is a fluid that changes its viscosity based on the strength of the magnetic field applied to it.
At this point, we don’t know how the liquid will be implemented into the controller. However, we know that it’s meant to replicate the feeling of a traditional controller. This means that the viscosity of the fluid is meant to make the joystick spring back when the player lifts their thumb. How quickly the joystick bounces back is important when it comes to competitive gaming.
At this point, this was a filed patent. We’re not sure if Nintendo will be rewarded the patent or not. Also, since it’s still in the patent stage, we’re still in the dark about several details of this potential Joy-Con. The only visual we have is the simple illustration below.
This device is still a mystery to us. We don’t know when the company will officially bring a device to the market if at all.
Could this come with the new Switch?
It seems convenient that this patent arises while we’re following rumors and news regarding the “Switch 2“. One could imagine that this Joy-Con could launch with the new device.
That’s tricky to think about. This is only a patent, which doesn’t mean that the company is building the product. It’s so early in the production stage that we shouldn’t count on it coming within a year or two.
However, news about patents usually comes months if not more than a year after the patents are filed. For all we know, Nintendo could have been working on this new Joy-Con for well over a year. Who knows if there are new Joy-Cons on the factory lines right now?
This remains to be seen. For the moment, we’re just going to have to wait for the next leak.