“PSP Go” trends in Japan as users note its resemblance to Nintendo’s newly revealed console patent

The recent public release of a patent Nintendo filed for a dual-screen console that can be split in half has caught the attention of fans eager to find out new information about Nintendo’s next console. But as the appearance of the console appeared to be a sliding mechanism at first, many were reminded of the PlayStation Portable Go from 2009, which caused the words “PSP GO” to trend on Japanese X/Twitter for a while. 

A patent submitted by Nintendo in November 2022 and publicly released on October 26 of this year shows off the designs for a dual-screen portable game console that somewhat resembles previous Nintendo consoles such as the Nintendo DS. However, unlike prior handhelds, the dual screens of the patent’s console would have the unique capability to detach from each other, allowing players to use them separately as controllers, somewhat like the Switch. 

In the patent, the console’s two screens are referred to as the first and the second devices. The first device features a touch-screen display on its top surface and an LCD display on its underside, while the second device contains an additional screen capable of haptic feedback, a joystick, and buttons. Both screen devices can attach to one another using magnetic connections and have two connection states. The first state features the first device positioned on top, with the touch screen surface facing upward, while the second device is connected below. In the second state, the first device is flipped, displaying its LCD screen upward, and it is connected to the lower second device with the second device’s joystick, buttons, and touch screen visible similar to that of the DS. 

At first glance, many Japanese users believed the console bore a resemblance to Sony’s PSP Go due to its rounded rectangular shape and the assumption that it had a sliding feature. However, upon closer examination of the conceptual functions of the patent’s device, such as the lower touch screen and detachable controllers, the device appears to be more similar to Nintendo’s DS and Switch. It’s not yet known if the device would be a hybrid system allowing players to play on both the handheld console and an external display or if it would be handheld-only. Additionally, it’s unclear whether it would support physical games in a format like game cards or rely solely on digital downloads like the PSP Go. 

In addition to the detachable dual-screen console, Nintendo also filed multiple other device patents. Among the patents submitted was a single-screen electronic device, a single-screen portable game device, a portable electronic device, an electronic device with a fan, and some sort of shell for covering the Switch.

The news of the patent has generated significant excitement about Nintendo’s next console, but in fact, most trademark registrations do not end up being developed into products. Back when the Nintendo Switch was still only known under the codename “NX,” Nintendo had been similarly registering numerous device-related patents. 

While Nintendo frequently files patents for various device concepts, it’s still unknown whether the detachable dual-screen console will become a reality. Nevertheless, users seem to be interested in the possibility of the handheld, with many hoping for backward compatibility with the DS and 3DS should the console ever come to fruition.