Nintendo faces lawsuit for patent infringement over the Switch's controller design

Gamevice, a third-party hardware developer, believes Nintendo is ripping off its design and infringing on its patent rights with the Switch's Joy-Con controllers. The company filed its patent infringement complaint with the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California on Wednesday claiming the design of the controllers are too similar to their own Wikipad and Gamevice controller. The company wants Nintendo to stop production of the Switch and to pay for damages. 

Wikipad

As you can see above and below this image, this is what the Wikipad and Gamevice controllers look like. The Wikipad does look similar to the Switch but the controllers don't separate itself from the Switch. Meanwhile, the Gamevice controller, which comes in several versions for different tablets and smartphones, has a flexible band that connects the device to the controller. 

Gamevice

The 2015 patent, which Gamevice refers to, is called "Combination Computing Device and Game Controller with Flexible Bridge Section." This is the patent the company claims Nintendo infringed on. But as Mashable points out, the issue with filing a complaint based on this patent is already evident in the title, specifically the part about the "Game Controller with Flexible Bridge Section." The Joy-Con controllers don't have that part. Gamevice says that the body of the Switch is the bridge section. But this part is actually a separate device that the Joy-Con controllers communicate with and can optionally attach to.