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Sony Patents Wii U Like Design

Online gaming publication Games Beat has revealed that Sony issued a Wii U like patent during 2010. The patent is Titled Position-Dependent Gaming 3-D controller, and Handheld as a Remote. Here’s a brief description of the intriguing patent which bears a striking resemblance to what Nintendo has proposed with Wii U:

Methods and systems for using a position of a mobile device with an integrated display as an input to a video game or other presentation are presented. Embodiments include rendering an avatar on a mobile device such that it appears to overlay a competing user in the real world. Using the mobile device’s position, view direction, and the other user’s mobile device position, an avatar (or vehicle, etc.) is depicted at an apparently inertially stabilized location of the other user’s mobile device or body. Some embodiments may estimate the other user’s head and body positions and angles and reflect them in the avatar’s gestures.

Thanks 64SuperMarioReturn

257 thoughts on “Sony Patents Wii U Like Design”

      1. My face was just like this when i read this news -_____-

        Also Sickr you got my name totaly wrong! How dare you sickr! =D SARCASM!

                  1. But they didn’t make it public until 2011, so there’s now ay Sony would have known about it and copied it, so this time the point goes for Sony. Both companies came up with the technology independently, regardless of what the other was doing.

                1. He’s fighter Wiiu idea was since 2005-6 but they didn’t wantedthe wiito beidenticalto ds so they saved the des forlater

    1. This^
      The reason why it’s always so bad, is because they can never develop anything that fully uses the hardware, Nintendo can develop with full use of the hardware with their hands tied behind their backs.

        1. ^Yeah that’s what I was thinking. A touchscreen in the back seems kind of pointless if you ask me. But to each his own.

      1. Nintendo has been working on this since atleast before then. It takes atleast 3 years to make a new console, let alone start from nothing and work to a launch in 3 years!

        1. And Sony certainly had this idea before they patented it. It’s not like they woke up that morning and went, “Quick, to the patent office! I just had a great idea last night!”

        1. And they had the idea before that, since the early 2000’s. They said they were going to make a console like this back then but instead the ideas they had (for games) were better suited for handhelds. I’m not saying Sony came up with the idea first, but I highly doubt they read Nintendo’s mind and copied it.

          1. Idk, I mean it’s kinda suspicious….Nintendo patents their design in 2008, and then 2 years later Sony patents theirs?

            1. Nintendo didn’t patent the WiiU Idea in 2008, they started developing the console in 2008 this means the whole streaming controller idea could have come much later.

              Nintendo patented the WiiU streaming idea in 2010, as did Sony. It’s not suspicious stop being naive.

          2. i completely agree with you because when the made the PSP the Idea of having a second screen was there we just never got the full product with it thats why you could use you PSP to navigate the PS3 and even stream movies and music to the PSP from the PS3 they just couldnt get the games to transfer over the same way that is why we have the PS Vita now it can finally handle this processing graphically!

    1. sonys technology,ideas,consoles,tvs etc are copied from other companies.that company doesnt exist in real and especially for me

        1. Agreed, this website is ful of too many trolls. Sony patented this waaay before the Wii U was announced! Well, time to leave this website, I don’t want to catch their stupidity.

          1. o yea announced that’s how you justify it. I’m not a fanboy, I like all three companies, some more so than others but I’m open to all three.

            But there’s a big difference between announcing something and developing the idea? Nintendo has been working on the Wii U ever since after the Wii came out, they said it themselves at E3 last year..

            1. And how could Sony have possibly known they were going to use a controller like that? It’s like saying Nintendo knew the Vita was going to have dual analogue sticks and decided to make an attachment.

          1. I support everyone… except Microsoft. If someone is hating on Sony, I’ll defend Sony. Someone hating on Nintendo, I’ll defend Nintendo. I’ll let it slide when Microsoft’s involved.

            1. Trolololololololololololololololololol

              oh boo hoo. U mad Sony is just a copycat bro? lololol Just accept it the move is a blatant Wii rip off this new controller will be no different. Lol! And since there will be very little differences from the wii u it’s destined to sell poorly

        1. It’s like you holding a car door with a small TV on it and a direction pad you need to punch to use. As opposed to Nintendo’s completely logical and effective tablet controller. (not sarcasm, I absolutely love the design).

  1. Perhaps everyone else missed the part where it fucking said 2010, you know, the year before the Wii U was announced. The article should read, “Wii U Bears a Striking Resemblance to Older Sony Patent.”

            1. Sure. Think of idea, patent it several years ago for no reason at all. I don’t see what’s the problem in admitting that Sony copied an idea (if you’re not biased). I mean they already did it with Move.

              1. Your comment could be handled in the same way I treated Samuel Cooper, but you’ve obviously put some thought into your comment so it would be rude to belittle you for it.

                However, the point still stands; Nintendo had this idea in the early 2000’s (when thinking up an idea for the GameCube successor), but it didn’t develop into anything (both literally and figuratively). Then they just “happened” to patent it several years later. We have no idea why they thought it was a good idea to patent it now instead of 10 years prior; or, as you put it, “patent it several years ago for no reason at all.”

                Finally, replace “Sony” with “Sony/Nintendo” (In that third sentence) and you’ve got an unbiased comment (and some advice for a lot of people on this site). Not saying they didn’t “copy” Nintendo over a lot of things, but they had the concept for the Move down since back in the late 1990’s; they just had no idea how to implement it. Nintendo showed them the best way to do it with the Wii; they realized that, and finally found out how to implement motion controls into the Eye Toy.

  2. Alilink (Take My Salt)

    Sounds impractical and expensive. Doesn’t sound like the Wii U tbh. The only similarity is the touchscreen controller.

      1. Copycats ?
        Sony patented the design in 2010. That’s one year before 2011, the year the Wii U got officially announced in. So, how is Sony copying Wii U before they saw what the WiiU looks/is like ?
        Think before you talk such nonsense.

          1. Yes, as you said, they STARTED in 2008. But the official announcement of the tablet-like controller was in 2011 at E3, which is a year later than Sony’s patent. I doubt that Sony had any chances to get their hands on the blueprints of Nintendo, means they patented it before they knew Nintendo is doing something similar as well. And that means: My argument isn’t that invalid after all (:

            1. if blogs can get ahold of the patents to display here, what makes you think sony couldnt have seen the nintendo patents before the hardware was officially shown/announced?

    1. They must of used the DeLorean time machine to go travel into the future and steal nintendo’s idea. Great Scott!

  3. i told ya that sony is a copycat company.but dont worry i know that ps4 will fail from their high price :) but anyway lets just see

    1. LOL! Go brush up on console history you dumbass, you’d see that Sony has always had the cheapest AND most successful system every generation until the last one, with the PS3 and the PSP… Seeing how the Wii was also the cheapest and most successful, it’s almost 100% guaranteed the cheapest next-gen console will be the most successful. And Sony knows that, seeing how they have the most successful console of all time under their belt; they’d be foolish to pull off another PS3.

      1. sony doesnt have any successful consoles and they suck get a life i know the console war 100 trillion times better than u and i know what sony did in the past.i hate sony and that company is worse than microsoft
        !

        1. Omg you are so freaking annoying >_< just play a damn PS3 before you start saying Sh*T about it! Kinda like food, dont knock it til you try it. I used to hate xbox but now that I got one I freaking love the thing! more then my Wii but not as much as my PS3.

        2. I know I’m putting too much work into replying to you (you’re obviously just doing this to piss people off, I refuse to believe anyone’s that stupid) but it’s not just for you, it’s to shut up all those other trolls as well:

          First gen Sony had a console for:
          PS1: 102 million
          N64: 32 million sold.
          Saturn: 16 million

          Second generation:
          PS2: 154 million
          GameCube: 23 million
          DreamCast: 10.6 million
          Xbox: 34 million

          Then there’s this generation, which we all know about, but I’ll list anyways:
          Wii: 94 million
          PS3: 61 million
          Xbox 360: 64 million

          1. Close but Sony released their holiday sales numbers and it put the ps3 at 66.2 million. It sold really well.

        3. The PS2 worked well because that was back a little while when games were basic, straightforward structure. Now, they jacked up the price to unreasonable amounts, used interfaces and menus that resemble a boring computer, released the Move to fit in, and have a mundane catalog of games. Xbox pulled off many of it’s things better, and I’m not very happy about Microsoft’s business model. But Playstation 4 will almost certainly just try to overpower the other systems, probably won’t add a unique method of control, and will probably exceed a $700 price tag.

          1. I highly doubt that the PS4 will cost that much. Sony has learned there lesson and same with nintendo with the 3DS launch.

  4. Hahahahaha! Again, SONY will copy Nintendo and develop a better variation of Nintendo’s Ideas! XD PS Move > WiiMote

      1. The WiiMote lack a number of buttons and there are wires connecting him with the Navigator. You also have to buy a WiiMotion Plus to make it work like it was suposed too! The Move has the right number of buttons, it’s not heavy and no wires! The only problem is that shitty glowing ball!

        1. You think the Wiimote (awesome name) weighs a lot? Sounds like your saying that by mentioning that the Move’s controller isn’t heavy.

    1. While there is no doubt in my mind that Sony’s Move is technologically better than the Wiimote (even with MotionPlus thrown into the mix), Sony has no idea how to use the Move to sell the PS3. Thus making their venture into the casual market foolhardy.

        1. Not exactly. They saw the analogue controller work wonders on the Nintendo64 and since then Sony has put them to much better use than Nintendo.

          When it comes to ‘traditional’ ideas, Sony puts them to amazing use, not so much with new, casual and innovated technologies.

          1. actually the n64 wasnt anolog it was an inverted mouse ball thats why it breaking easly. thus ninty copy sony true analog.

            google is your freand

    1. I’ve had a PS3 and Wii.

      PS3 for the games not on Wii.

      Do you know what im going to do now? Not buy PS4 because it will copy and Wii U is better.

      1. My 3d never comes off on my system. After a while your eye will become use to the optical illusion and they won’t work as hard to produce the fake depth. I hope they improve 3d even further. Im really into this 3d fad

        1. I’ve been keeping the 3D off recently, it just doesn’t do anything for me anymore. Once i get new games i’m pretty sure i’ll start using it again.

  5. SCREW YOU SONY! YOU COPYED SSB AND NOW THIS!

    THATS THE PART OF SONY I HATE!

    BTW: Microsoft is worse… they copy everything.

      1. There was a rumor going around about sony making an ssb styled game but I haven’t heard anything about it in awhile. :x

          1. They just called it fight for now… they will most likely change the name.

            Just like lots of things… they start with a name then name it different later on.

            The first Starwars was originally called Blue Harvest but the changed the name half way through making it.

        1. They never announced anything… these days people keep forgetting the difference between rumor and fact… like people saying the 3DS costs only “$101 to make”, even though that was a rumor and never confirmed.

          1. not exactly… some guys just counted what every part would costs and added the costs of putting them together. this was made by some copy-paste newsoutletters to this thats the price of 3ds story

    1. i dont think that micricock copys everything but they stole so many companies like fucking rare and they fired the most talent game developers including the stamper bro

      1. I love the way people rename microsoft into weird names.

        I like saying Microsocks, or Microsucks or anyother names.

        Apple created their Apple 2…. soon later Microsoft released their own computer just like the Apple 2.

        Microsofts X box controller is a Nintendo controller copy, because they sticked to the A, X which was Nintendos original controller buttons.

        Anyone make up a new name for Microsoft like Microsocks or microsucks.

        Microsoft ruined all the good franchises.

        1. Lol those buttons always get me confused when I play my 3DS then xbox360. I really dont why they couldent have there own button scheme.

        1. The only reason Microsoft is here today is because Bill Gates took Steve Jobs’ Macintosh operating system, tweaked it a tiny bit, and released a little operating system called Windows, which made Microsoft into a huge and extremely successful company because Bill Gates stole.

  6. Wasn’t there talk of using PSVita as a controller in similar way stated above a few months ago or am I unconsciously making stuff up?

  7. Gosh darn it, another company ripping off the Magnavox Odyssey! Big surprise since lots of systems are similar, the patent looks something like the Move (connecting the eye to the system to read a handheld) so its not far off from what Playstation already had. I personally prefer the Wii to the Move (I don’t have to recalibrate it every time I use it and it seems more responsive) but the Move is not bad. Playing Heavy Rain with the Move was fun. I’d say relax though it doesn’t surprise me that people over-react and will continue to. Don’t worry Ralph H. Baer will sue both Nintendo and Sony.

        1. Airbuz, yes it is. the tablet less so, however the system still uses Wii remotes. sorry, when i seen the wii remote for the first time i agreed it it the future of gaming. (silly Americans, get off your damn asses.)

          1. It isn’t really motion. It depends if your playing off TV… The game demo of Ghost Recon Online had no motion… it was just controller interactation.

            And just to correct your mistake… I’m not American.

  8. Hey …leave sony alone
    Ps move was a huge sucksses
    Even my girlfriend has one even thought she doesnt have a ps3 console
    Leaving the jokes aside,sony copy nintendo….nothing new
    Nintendo copy sony …..a sea of lawsuits!!!!!

  9. I don’t understand those fanboys… I mean, can’t you read ? Sony patented the design in 2010. In that year, nothing official was announced by Nintendo about the WiiU, everything got revealed in 2011 at E3. And if you’re smart, you’ll know that 2011 was the year AFTER 2010. So, how is Sony copying Nintendo if they didn’t even know shit about the WiiU ?
    To me, it rather looks like you just can’t accept that Sony patented the idea first and did have an idea as good as Nintendo’s.

    1. Do you realize that ninty is been workin on wii u right after the lunch of wii ??
      Also do you think that the wii u controller was made the same year it was anunnced
      Its like :good morning honey wanna have some se…
      Never mind i have a idea for a controller i will not patent it also i will make the electronik parst just for 3 h …..cika boom
      Does that seams reality to you?

      1. I never said anything like that.
        No info about the WiiU was officially announced before E3 (this does not mean Nintendo wasn’t working on the WiiU before E3), which means that Sony didn’t have any chance of knowing what Nintendo was developing. So, how the hell is Sony copying them then ?

        1. Yes, as you said, it COULD leak. But in this case, it did not. The very first time a tablet-like controller was being talked about in public was at Nintendo’s announcment at E3. Nobody (outside Nintendo, of course) knew about that kind of controller before. Even if, it’s been only speculations, means it was nothing official of Nintendo.
          In other words, there is no way Sony could have copied Nintendo’s Controller.

          1. They copied SNES Controller design for PS1. Then N64 that had Analog so they added 2 and RL triggers.

            So basically Sony Controllers are copied from SNES design and N64 analog influence.

    2. Wii U started devellopment in 2009.
      Wii U rumored started early 2010.
      Wii U revealed in 2011.
      Wii U release in 2012.

      It take more than a 2 year to make Hardware like Wii U.

      Also has Sony tried showcasing this Product. NO until Sony release this product this patent is invalid. That why you should work on before patent it.

      1. every design stands on the successor of the previous gen. that’s just the way it is, Nintendo hasn’t had a serious competitor since Sega when it comes to user interface.

      2. I never said Nintendo started developing the WiiU after E3. I never said it takes less than 2 years to develop a hardware like WiiU, actually I didn’t say anything about the time it takes.
        Plus, as you said it yourself, in 2010 RUMORS started. Rumors =/= always the truth. Those rumors were just what people speculated/wished/thought/wanted concerning the WiiU, there was no official information about it from Nintendo back then.
        Anyway.
        I don’t really understand what you mean with “NO until Sony release this product this patent is invalid”. Oh, and I don’t agree with you on the last point. In my opinion you should patent an idea first before working on it.

  10. Wii U was in development before 2010. We heard rumors of Project Cafe about in 2010. We seen it at E3 2011. And we will have it this Year!! So this Patent invalid also Sony didn’t even start announcing or showing this product so yeah. Nintendo been doing this console and wireless product connection quit a long time.

  11. After reading most of these comments, I came to a conclusion: “Fuck it.”

    Since when did common sense die? Come off it all! The only person who has common sense (and logic) here is AbuJaffar, It’s a patent in 2010, Nintendo released their announcement of the Wii U in 2011 in E3. People here are saying “I believe,” or “I think,” regarding over the fact that “Nintendo made a patent for the Wii U in 2008.”

    Believing there is a patent means you wish it was so that way you can justify Sony copying Nintendo. Thinking there is a patent means you don’t really know, but are making it up to justify said situation.

    But here is the thing: Every – and I mean EVERY – company copies from one another; Nintendo does this, too. So please, shut up. It’s not that serious for you guys! Are any of you working for Sony or Nintendo? No? Then do me a kind favor and please, shut up. Your fanboyism is showing.

    1. This is why I have to sigh and shake my head a bit every time the discussions of Move devolve to “Sony copied” which then goes to “Sony first demoed the tech in 2000” followed by the fact that Mattel made the Power Glove taking it out of both the companies’ hands followed by the know-it-all who has to point out Le Stick predated the Power Glove. How many times does this conversation need to be had?

      On a separate note, the does the latter part of this patent suggest the controller will have Kinect-style tech?

    2. man just shut the hell up! i thought you had common sence the moment i started reading your comment, turns out your just ass dumb as most people on the internet! i guess nintendo did all this shit in one week and than showed it off at e3 yea thats it -__- dumb ass!

  12. Sickr….really…You know most of these people don’t bother to read the info where it CLEARLY states it was patented way before the Wii U was announced. So you come up with the title what will cause another huge flame war instead of posting nintendo news….I just don’t understand why people can’t have BOTH a Sony and Nintendo console, instead of hating Sony just because they can’t afford a PS3…

          1. Normally people type like that to save time, but I can’t see how spelling “itz”, “teh”, and especially “cahares” makes typing faster. I’m getting a really powerful “douche” vibe from this comment…

            1. fuck u 2 dumbshits. ur both cock sukers and facebook is for dumb lozers lik u hoo have no reel frends. i dontz cahare if u dont lik my spelling fuck u fat assholes. ima waaay smarter tah u and u 2 are ugly trolls hoo hate ninte do cuz it kiks sonyz and microsoftz asses so yah fuck off.

              1. Hey, who’s to say you’re not smarter than me? You could very well be a defense attorney living in Kansas or a doctor in Connecticut. Heck, you could be a teacher/professor of mine. All I’m saying is that if you’re going to spell incorrectly, you might as well spell words shorter… at least someone benefits that way.

        1. rides_a_ten_speed_everywere_guy

          10 lol yeah that was 12 years ago when i was 10 any way u know what i was talkin about do be a dick…………………..DICK

      1. Playstation fans would have a hissy fit if Sony tried to change the design of their controller, remember when the PS3 controller was first shown off?

          1. either that or they’ll keep the same controller they’ve had since 1997 and just use the vita as a touchscreen controller since they need to find something that’ll make that system sell worth anything

          2. Even more likely, they’ll just release the Dualshock 4 and try to sell the screen controller as an extra one. It seems to be a tendency of Sony to sell in pieces. PS Move is a perfect example of this.

  13. All this tell me is that Sony is going to Copy Nintendo New Controller. They r not creative, I like Sony because they’re like the Dude who talks big and bad and says cool things but u know not to take them serious. I’m a Nintendo Fan because the Big N doesnt say much of nothing but hits u with a haymaker out of nowhere flooring you.

  14. rides_a_ten_speed_everywere_guy

    ok nintendo has the right to steal sony idea after what they did with the playstaton move.sony made so many clames that the move was better than the wii mote in so many ways and havent even showed why it was worth the 50 + bucks to even buy. nintendo showed why the wii motion pluse was better than standard motion controls and i bet if they owned the ps move they could show why sony cant make decent products. now sony whats to steal the wii u idea we all saw this comming from across the world sony clames stuff is just a gimmic and its not a threat but when it bites them in there ass they wana start taking heat to it fuck u sony i only bought the ps3 for the blue-ray player which i dont even use nintendo and microsft is gana destroy u and i wana be there when they do

    1. WiiU tablet concept was originally designed for the Wii (look back into some of the controller design prototypes that leaked during that time.)

  15. i remember when Nintendo introduced its Wii remote and Sony S#!+ bricks to put something together as quick as they could to present to E3. Sony and Xbox have a been behind in the development of new gaming experiences, well since they will be a year later perhaps it won’t be as noticeable. Nintendo hasn’t had a good competitor in development since Sega.

    1. Sony said PSMove was actually originally being thought up for the PS2 Eye Toy as far back as 2001. Nintendo said the Wii was also being thought up in 2001. But I agree, Sony completely copied the design of the Wii remote.

  16. I already vowed to never by myself a Gaystation(oh, yeah! You hear that? GAY-station!!!)
    All right, Sony. Give it your best shot! I enjoy watching you CRUMBLE and DIE!!!!!!!

    1. I can only assume that you also already have your comfy chair and bag of popcorn ready as you prepare for the sinking of the VITAnic (not my joke, but dang that’s a good pun)

    1. expect an article sometime in the next few years from michael pachter predicting that the PS4 and its tablet controller will blow the Wii U out of the water or that people will flock from nintendo to sony

      1. In a few years the Wii u will be in the bottom of the ocean.
        I don’t think that all the people are going to buy a ps4 years later.
        *Pokes Ps Move*

  17. Pingback: Sony patenta un controlador parecido al de Wii U | Juegos Ecuador

  18. We all knew this was coming. Does when was the last time Sony had an original idea? It was probably a long time ago in Bethlehem.

    Expect the Sony fanboys who were shitting on the Wii U ‘s tablet controller, to love Sony’s.

          1. No it wasn’t. Nintendo started DEVELOPING the Wii U back in 2008! As in, they started putting together hardware and thinking, “What would be the best idea for a next-gen console?” We have no idea when they patented it… if they’ve even done that.

  19. You guys do realize this was patented in 2010, while the WiiU was announced in 2011, right?
    Looks to me like Nintendo stole Sony’s idea.

    1. Wii U should have been patented back in 2009/8

      Usually they never say how long ago they patent it… it’s usualy 3/4 before release.

      1. So if I have an idea in my head right now… I can’t start developing said idea until I patent it?

        Most mobile phones (like the 4S) and similar consumer products don’t get patented until 2 weeks or so before release; this is to prevent leaks and whatnot. Same here (with Nintendo and the Wii U, not Sony and the unknown PS4).

  20. Sony should never patent anything, they always wait for others to sell their version first and improve on it later. Why? Just make it after, no need to patent anything!!! I guess they are just making sure they can compete later with a “better” design no one can copy before them.

  21. Sony didn’t copy Nintendo, this was before Wii U was revealed.

    Nintendo didn’t copy Sony, Wii U has been in development since 2008.

    Just the way I see it.

  22. Sony always copies Nintendo in almost everything they do!!! Eye toy= gameboy camera/Dreamcast-Sega eye, PSP=gameboy/ds/game&watch, PSMove=Wii-Remote, hell the Playstation was suppose to even be a Nintendo system until Sony stabbed the big N in the back. Oh well seeing how hard Sony as a company is failing they won’t be around to release their PS4. If they do it should be their last!!!

  23. This doesn’t necessarily mean that Sony will make the PS4 like the Wii U. There are many patents that Nintendo has that they never put to use. Besides, I heard a rumor that the PS4 will use like a Kinect style controller. Don’t know how reliable it was but it’s one of the few things I have heard about the PS4. In other news I am so excited for the Wii U.

  24. Pingback: Sony patenta un controlador parecido al de Wii U | My Blog

  25. Can you imagine what Sony was thinking when Nintendo revealed the wiiu?
    “fuuuuuuuuuuuuuu-”
    Considering the fact that they patented their idea of s screen controller a year prior.

  26. Seriously trolls? Sony copies everything? Sony made the DVD and Blu-Ray discs prevalent. Oh wait, No Nintendo did that first(Not even setting the Wii up to play DVDs, lol). No they didn’t but fanboys will believe it that way. Nintendo must’ve copied from the Atari. Playing a video game at home on your own TV was definitely done by Atari before Nintendo was around.

  27. Pingback: Sony patenta un controlador parecido al de Wii U > DsWii | FOTO - VIDEO

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