What We Know about a Potential New XBox One Controller

Recently, there has been speculation that Xbox One owners can expect to see a new Xbox One controller at some point in the future. Some people might be inclined to treat this speculation with a sense of skepticism, which is not a bad instinct under most circumstances. However, it is important to note that the speculation of the existence of a new Xbox One controller isn’t wholly baseless.

What Do We Know about This Potential New Xbox One Controller?

In short, what happened is that Microsoft secured a couple of new patents in December of 2018, which were filed back in June of 2017. In both cases, the patents are connected to potential improvements for Xbox One controllers such as a better level of mechanical tension when holding the left and right triggers as well as a superior sense of feedback for the same. Interested parties have uncovered diagrams for the patents, which seem to be for the Xbox One controller rather than the Xbox One Elite controller. However, considering the nature of those two products, it seems safe to say that should improvements show up in one, those same improvements are bound to show up in the other sooner rather than later.

On the whole, these two patents can’t be considered earth-shattering news. However, their existence is nonetheless potential cause for celebration for Xbox One owners who want to get as much enjoyment out of their consoles as possible. After all, while the Xbox One can already claim one of the most ergonomic controllers that can be found on the video game console market, even the smallest improvements can nonetheless make for noticeable differences. Something that can be particularly true for more dedicated video game enthusiasts who sometimes spend hours and hours with their controllers in their hands.

How Much Faith Should We Put into the Existence of This New Xbox One Controller?

With that said, there is still room for a sense of skepticism about what is happening here. Yes, Microsoft has secured a couple of patents that show potential improvements for Xbox One controllers. As a result, it is reasonable to speculate that Microsoft is in the process of creating a new Xbox One controller incorporating these improvements that will be made available to interested individuals at some point in the future.

However, it is important to remember that while this particular piece of evidence can be interpreted in this manner, it does not have to be interpreted in this manner. Certainly, Microsoft could be making a new Xbox One controller right now. However, it is perfectly possible that it isn’t, perhaps because its plans have changed or because it is waiting on something else that remains unknown to us at this point in time. As a result, until we hear an official announcement that Microsoft is releasing a new Xbox One controller, interested individuals shouldn’t get too excited lest they become disappointed by the reality of things.

Still, this particular line of speculation is pretty convincing by the standards of most speculation. The patents are real. Furthermore, the patents have a very clear purpose to them. As such, the belief that a new Xbox One controller is coming really is a good interpretation of the evidence that is available to us, though it still remains to be seen whether it will be borne out or not.

On the whole, this is a refreshing contrast from the more feverish speculation that has been happening in the video game console market in recent times, which has been spurred by the emerging consensus that both Sony and Microsoft are working on new consoles for the next round of competition in the video game console wars. Some of the theories that have popped up have been surprisingly good, whether because they come from reliable sources or because they are based on reasonable interpretations of confirmed information. In other cases, well, suffice to say that people love to speculate about upcoming products that interest them, which can sometimes cause them to get carried away in the process. Something that tends not to do wonders for the quality of their analysis or rather what passes for their analysis.