toot.si is one of the many independent Mastodon servers you can use to participate in the fediverse.
Toot.si je slovensko Mastodon vozlišče katerega osnovni cilj je omogočati prijazno skupnost in varnejši prostor.

Administered by:

Server stats:

122
active users

Jesus Christ just use the same sticks as everyone else does

Using the larger, potentially more durable, joysticks would mean a larger potentially less portable Switch. Given that portability is the core feature of the Switch I can understand Nintendo’s reluctance to implement them. Especially when other companies are experiencing similar issues with their sticks. In my opinion a novel approach is the way to go here. Hall effect is nice, but it is costly and could potentially present some legal challenges at the moment.

A company already makes hall effect joysticks that are JoyCon sized and they claim to hold a patent for them. I haven’t taken the time to verify, but even if they don’t have a leg to stand on they could still take Nintendo to court.

@JonDorfman I wonder how they would do that while also not violating patents on JoyCons that I suppose Nintendo has.

I have not checked, but would be surprised if they do not.

Nintendo doesn’t hold a patent on the JoyCon joysticks. As far as I am aware they are an off the shelf component.

@JonDorfman, I did a quick online search for Nintendo’s JoyCon patents, and interestingly found a US one from 2023 (2020 in Japan) about what looks Hall effect analogue sticks:
patents.google.com/patent/US20

patents.google.comUS20230280850A1 - Information processing system, controller, information processing method, and computer-readable non-transitory storage medium having stored therein information processing program - Google Patents This information processing system includes: a controller including an operation element to be displaced from an initial position by user's operation, a restoring force imparting section applying a restoring force for returning the displaced operation element to the initial position, a resistance section using a magnetorheological fluid whose viscosity changes with a magnetic-field intensity and which becomes resistance when the operation element is displaced from/to the initial position, and a magnetic field generation section which provides the magnetic field to the magnetorheological fluid; and a circuit capable of controlling the magnetic field generation section. The circuit controls a magnetic-field intensity so that the viscosity of the magnetorheological fluid periodically changes at least between a first viscosity state and a second viscosity state in which the viscosity is lower than in the first viscosity state so that the operation element returns to the initial position by the restoring force.

That patent is what I was referring to when I mentioned a novel approach.

Matija Šuklje

@JonDorfman, right, but Hall effect analogue sticks themselves have existed for a long time, so that technology in general (except any novel addition) is (most likely) not patented anymore.