Nintendo has been keeping its mouth shut about the Nintendo NX, but as expected, the rumor mill has not stopped churning about the upcoming gaming system, though there isn't a lot of information we know about the Nintendo NX.
A couple of patents and a few reports, however, may give us a glimpse at what the Japanese video game company has in store for gamers.
The first patent, which was discovered by Nintendo Enthusiasts, points to an "information sharing system" where players can share their achievements with one another. The technology would also allow them to share gameplay leading up to that achievement, while adding messages in a way similar to Miiverse.
The second patent hints at what the Nintendo NX controller will look like. NeoGAF first spotted the patent filing for an "operation apparatus" that needs to be held by the player with at least one hand. Patent images show a handheld controller with a big screen sitting at its center. This is flanked by two joysticks. On the right are two face buttons, while a d-pad sits on the left. At the top of the controller are two scrolling shoulder wheels that can be operated with the index fingers.
Earlier this year, an alleged Nintendo insider, speaking despite a non-disclosure agreement, let slip that Nintendo wants to make cross-play an important part of the Nintendo NX. The system is expected to be more like the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, with games able to run on other hardware with support for cross-play. Presumably, this will allow gamers to play on the PC or tablet against players on the Nintendo NX.
This followed an earlier rumor that Nintendo was planning to ditch the optical drive altogether, allowing players to store their games in an SD card or a hard disk drive. What this all means for players, if true, is that the new system could provide a better way to store games, since optical drives are too slow for games.
All this will supposedly be powered by an AMD chipset, which wouldn't be surprising, since Nintendo and AMD have already teamed up for the Wii U. In December 2014, AMD chief financial officer Devinder Kumar hinted that the company was working on two chip designs, one x86 and another ARM, and one of them will be used to power a new gaming system.
Further on in July, AMD CEO Lisa Su announced they won a contract to design a chip for an unspecified product that will generate billions of dollars, leading many to believe she was referring to the Nintendo NX.
It's worth noting, of course, that Nintendo has yet to deny or confirm all these rumors. One thing the firm has categorically confirmed, though, is that it will not use Android to run its upcoming console. In the meantime, we'll have to take everything with a grain of salt until Nintendo finally speaks up as promised in 2016.
