Nintendo has filed a new patent that we can soon see in the most anticipated "The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom" installment.
According to the report, the patent could point out the technical improvements that might appear in the upcoming game on the Switch console.
New 'The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom' Patent
As Nintendo releases more games for the Switch, many people think that the five-year-old console won't be able to keep up with the upcoming titles.
That is because the Japanese gaming giant doesn't bother to upgrade its hardware despite several complaints from players regarding its performance.
Soon enough, we will see the highly-anticipated "Zelda" game waiting to be explored. Before it debuts in May 2023, Nintendo released a patent filing about the image quality of this title.
According to My Nintendo News, the new patent, which was filed in June 2022, suggests that an enhanced image processing method will be contained inside the game.
Given that Satoshi Miyagi is listed as one of the inventors in the patent, there's a huge chance that the filing is intended for "Tears of the Kingdom."
Miyagi reportedly worked as a sub-director for the previous "Zelda" installment, "The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess," so he has experience in handling the series.
Japanese website Nintendo Every shared some snapshots of the patent, which might hint at some improvements for its key visuals.
The first picture depicts a building with an open window, while the second image illustrates a rock formation.
Related Article: 'The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom' Officially Announced Amid Nintendo Direct
What the Patent is All About
In r/GamingLeaksandRumors subreddit, the original poster asked what the Nintendo patent is all about. He said that the Japanese texts meant that it hints at "processing power and transparent objects."
According to serocsband, who might be familiar with game rendering, the patent is for rendering the clouds.
"Transparent objects (like glass or smoke or clouds) are very heavy to render even on high end PCs and an absolute PAIN to get running on Switch. So possibly a method to optimize those," he added.
If this is true, then it's something that fans should look forward to ahead of the game's release a few months from now.
Some people think that "The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom" won't run on the Switch Lite, V1, V2, and OLED because of hardware incompatibility. Because of this, they believe that Nintendo might launch the rumored Switch Pro that will be the answer for the issue.
Could it Be the Last 'Zelda' Game on Switch
Gamebyte wrote in its previous report that some industry insiders claimed that the upcoming "Tears of the Kingdom" installment would be the last major "Zelda" game we will see on Nintendo Switch.
According to the sources, Nintendo will release a new console in 2024, so it's expected that the upcoming games will be available on the new version.
