Nintendo Switch is facing its greatest challenge to date: a lawsuit which can end its life. Nintendo's latest puppy could be banned from sale because of its Joy-Con controllers. The detachable controller is allegedly violating a patent which was filed by a manufacturer called Gamevice in 2012.
Gamevice and the Wikipad
Gamevice, a manufacturer of game controllers, came up with an idea of tablets with detachable controllers and patented it in 2012. The detachable controller is related to an Android -based tablet called Wikipad. Wikipad was released in 2013, and it is not available for sale anymore.
Gamevice is claiming that the idea of "detachable controllers" were originally theirs and Nintendo doesn't have any rights to use it. Nintendo Switch's Joy-Con controllers are a bit different to Wikipad. Joy-Con is not attached to each other while the Wikipad's controllers are attached. In short, you use Wikipad by sliding the tablet to the controller while you slide the Joy-Con on the Switch to get it to work.
The lawsuit
In the lawsuit, Gamevice is claiming that Nintendo "has caused, and is continuing to cause, damage and irreparable injury to Gamevice." So the controller manufacturer is asking for compensation for the damages from Nintendo. Gamevice is still on the market and is selling game controllers for mobile devices.
They claim that Nintendo is harming their business by using their ideas unlawfully.
Could Switch be banned from sale?
It depends on the way users will want their Switch to be, a Home Console or a mobile device. The controllers are not needed if you are a home-console fan. There is still the Nintendo Switch Pro Controller that can accompany the Switch at the point of sale.
So for future users who would use the Switch as a home console device, Joy-Cons are not really something that will affect Switch's saleability.
But the Joy-Con's absence in the packaging will undoubtedly affect buyers that want portable gaming experience. If Gamevice's lawsuit wins, Nintendo will not be able to sell the device with the current design.
Nintendo will likely redesign the console, but let's hope things don't go that far.
Other devices that have Joy-Con similarities
There are a number of devices that already resemble Nintendo Switch's Joy-Con design, and some are even more similar to Switch than the Wikipad. Nvidia's Shield is a two in one streaming and gaming device. Razer also had the Fiona which has controllers on each side of the device.
