Microsoft is possibly developing its own Joy-Con-like controllers that could help it produce a PlayStation Portal alternative, among other things.
Microsoft is possibly developing a pair of detachable gaming controllers not unlike the Nintendo Switch Joy-Cons, some recently surfaced patent documentation reveals. Although the appearance of the newly emerged concept is reminiscent of Nintendo’s two-part gamepad, the underlying technology appears to hint at Microsoft brainstorming an indirect answer to the immensely popular PlayStation Portal handheld.
While both Sony and Nintendo have long experimented with portable systems, Microsoft has never pursued a traditional handheld console in over 22 years of making Xbox hardware. But the company’s recent foray into cloud gaming did yield plenty of adjacent solutions by turning virtually any modern smartphone and tablet into a handheld system capable of gaming on the go.
Microsoft is now seemingly exploring ways to make this technology even more accessible by providing users with the option of using platform-agnostic gamepads. A pair of such detachable controllers akin to the Nintendo Switch Joy-Cons surfaced in a patent for “adaptable input devices” that the tech giant secured in late December.
