Patents
The Weird and Wonderful World of Joystick Patents
The U.S. patent office has issued some cool and strange joystick patents over the years. In this post, we have a look at some of our favorites!
Microsoft’s Accessibility-Focused Refreshable Braille Display Controller Patent
Microsoft's patent involves“a refreshable braille display accessory for a game controller” that would allow blind video game players to read on-screen text.
Microsoft Files Patent Application for In-Game AI Helper
Earlier this year, international patent application WO2026035323A1 was published. Assigned to Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC, the patent application relates to “video game help sessions” assisted by built-in AI helpers made to assist players through tricky parts of a game. The language in the…
Nintendo Files Patent Application Directed to Touchscreen Creature Capture
Nintendo filed a patent application to be included in their creature-capture and mount-switching gameplay systems patent family. Japanese Patent Application 2026-019762 relates to a monster catching gameplay loop in which players use…
New Patent Publication for AMD’s “AI Rendering Engine” Demonstrates Further Push into Generative AI in Video Games
AMD's patent application relates to improving the performance of the rendering tasks that a traditional game engine would perform.
Delivery of “Alternate Content” During Video Game Wait Times: How Sony Might Use Their New AI Patent Publication to Serve Ads
A Sony patent application, recently published as U.S. Pat. Pub. No. 20260138036, relates to showing video game players advertisements while they’re waiting for games to load. The publication concerns finding the precise…
Federal Circuit Finds Niantic AR-related Patent Claims Ineligible
On April 23, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed a District Court ruling that patent claims directed to augmented reality (“AR”) location services were not subject-matter eligible under…
Piecing It Together: Inside KingsIsle’s Jigsaw Game Patent
Mobile devices can be handy, but their small screens can make certain kinds of games difficult to play. Recognizing this issue, U.S. Pat. No. 10,646,773, assigned to KingsIsle Entertainment (known for Wizard101…
US Patent No. 9,076,292: Encouraging player socialization using a nemesis and avenger system
Overview: In the world of online gaming, fostering player interaction and enhancing social dynamics are crucial elements for player retention and engagement. A patent issued to Blizzard Entertainment describes systems and methods…
Corsair Receives Japanese Utility Model for “Sensing” Mouse Wheel
Corsair recently was awarded Japanese Utility Model No. 3,251,063, which describes a “sensing roller device” for a mouse that can provide a “virtual bodily sensation" (that is, it seems, tactile feedback like…
Colopl receives Japanese patent on replaying location-based events
Japanese game developer Colopl Inc. has received a Japanese patent, Japanese Pat. No. 7,671,912, directed to a “replay control means” that can “revive” an event for a specific location.
Modulate, Inc. receives patent on machine learning-based toxic speech moderation system
Modulate Inc., a company using voice technology to “proactively detect[] key behaviors” to keep communities safer and “manage risk,” has been awarded U.S. Pat. No. 11,996,117, which relates to speech moderation using…
The Magic of Patents: Wizard101 and How Patents on Game Mechanics Have Evolved – Part 3
This post is part 3 of our three-part series exploring patents on game mechanics through the lens of Wizard101. In Part 1, we looked at a patent related to pure gameplay mechanics. In…
The Magic of Patents: Wizard101 and How Patents on Game Mechanics Have Evolved – Part 2
Part 1 of our three-part series exploring patents on game mechanics through the lens of Wizard101 looked at something that feels like more of a pure gameplay patent, relating to how combat…
The Magic of Patents: Wizard101 and How Patents on Game Mechanics Have Evolved – Part 1
Video games are as much technology as they are art. And patents are how innovators protect new and useful (fun!) technology. One important area of innovation in games is new and engaging…
Infernal Tech. Case Emphasizes Need for Caution When Parts of a Patent Claim Refer Back to Earlier Language
Infernal Technology, LLC v. Activision Blizzard Inc. Case No. 2021-2349 Decided: January 24, 2023 The Federal Circuit issued a decision on January 24, 2023 stating that a collection of Activision Blizzard’s video…
Palmer Luckey’s User-Killing VR Headset: Creepy, but Eligible to be Filed as a Patent Application
Famous VR developer Palmer Luckey recently developed a virtual reality headset rigged with bombs such that, if you lose the game, the headset explodes and kills the user. Per Luckey’s blog: The…
Determining the Article of Manufacture in Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality Design Patents
There’s a super interesting article just published in the AIPLA quarterly journal by one our (Banner Witcoff’s) law clerks, Sonia Okolie, on design patents within augmented and virtual reality. She does a…
U.S. Patent No. 8,814,675: Method of operating an online game using terraformed game spaces
U.S. Patent No. 8,814,675: Method of operating an online game using terraformed game spaces Issued August 26, 2014 To Zynga Inc. Summary: U.S. Patent No. 8,814,675 relates to a method allowing players…
U.S. Patent No. 9,174,128: Dynamic quests in game
U.S. Patent No. 9,174,128: Dynamic quests in game Issued: November 3, 2015 Assigned: Zynga Inc. Priority Date: April 26, 2012 Summary: This patent relates to creating computer-generated quests for a game. Some…