Topic: Nintendo Rumors and Speculation

Reagrding online functionality, free online services were in the brochure of the Wii U a few months ago, so they are really one of the Wii U's selling points. I hope Nintendo is not that dumb to remove one of its most important selling points...

So, a new patent by Nintendo surfaced today on NeoGAF. An article detailing it can be found at Wii U Daily here.

a supplemental computing device configured to detachably couple to the game console via the physical communication interface, the supplemental computing device comprising: one or more processors configured to provide, over the physical communication interface, processing resources to the game console to assist the game console in locally executing the game;

If this has to do with the NX, it seems to me like a key bit of insight into how the console works. In my opinion, it makes the hybrid system more likely. If the "supplemental unit" is actually a handheld device, this patent says that it is possible to share its processing with the main unit. The patent mentions a separate controller. So I envision it as a scenario where you have a mobile unit, but you can hook it up to the home unit on a dock, and let it sit there next to the home unit. Then you grab a controller and play on the screen, using the save data you created on the mobile unit. I didn't think it was practical for devices to share and double up processing speed, but this patent seems to suggest so.

The most basic (and boring) interpretation of this is that you will be able to purchase supplemental drives to boost the system's power to your liking. I don't know how likely this is, though, as it seems like it would be tricky to make games for it with this in mind. For example, the New 3DS has more processing than the original, but that leaves developers with the option of not using it at all, or excluding those who haven't upgraded. If you could add on supplemental processing to the NX or Wii U, wouldn't we have the same scenario?

The patent also suggest it could have something to do with the cloud. Can any tech-savvy Nintendolife users help me out in interpreting this? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Based on what Neogaf is saying, it actually could mean that there's just a handheld and the supplementary computing device acts as a way to give you more power for console gaming.

The supplementary device can also be shared, allowing others to use that computing power via the cloud. By doing so you will also be compensated with things like discounts and possibly My Nintendo points.

I think it suggests three scenarios:

1. NX Handheld + your supplementary device
2. Handheld + other supplementary devices
3. Handheld only.

Whether or not an NX console would also be a thing alongside the NX handheld and the supplementary computing device I don't know.

I do believe that this patent tells us what NX is.

@DarthNocturnal: That's the vibe I'm getting from this. It sounds like something that would demand plenty of extra work for third-party ports, but it no longer seems outlandish. I had previously been very open about predicting that a hybrid console was not likely, but I keep seeing things like this and doubting that prediction more and more. I know it's just a patent, but it's a very descriptive patent this time, and it coincidentally seems to indicate some sort of multi-part system.