User Interface & Experience

NetEase received 2 patents addressing control precision in mobile gaming. The first redesigns touchscreen joysticks by adding a buffer zone between walk and run regions that remembers the player's previous movement mode, preventing the interface from accidentally switching speeds when fingers drift near zone boundaries. The second allows eliminated players in combat games to trade their positions in the respawn queue with teammates, letting someone with an earlier revival slot voluntarily give it to another player considered more tactically useful at that moment.

Sony received 1 patent for a system that lets players create and share annotations linked to specific game states rather than video timelines. Tips, hints, or commentary appear exactly when another player encounters the same situation in gameplay, regardless of the path they took to reach it. The system includes sharing controls and can generate annotations automatically using machine learning.

Netflix received 1 patent for second-screen technology that turns phones or tablets into game controllers with interfaces that reconfigure themselves based on real-time gameplay events. The layouts change dynamically as the game progresses, and the system supports asymmetric information display, meaning different players can see different information on their respective screens during multiplayer sessions.

EA received 1 patent for a 3D character customization interface organized around intersecting tracks of cosmetic options. Players scroll through 2D thumbnail carousels for different item categories, and when thumbnails meet at an intersection point, the selected items automatically render on a central 3D character model while previously equipped items revert to 2D thumbnail form.

Nintendo received 1 patent for a map system that tracks player movement across multiple vertical layers such as ground level, airborne zones, and underground areas. The interface displays the current layer's movement trail with thicker or more prominent lines while showing other layers with reduced visual emphasis, and icons indicate which layer a replayed track occupies during playback.

Tencent received 3 patents covering interface improvements and progression systems for competitive mobile games. The first expands weapon attachment switching in shooters from simple two-option toggles to radial or panel interfaces that support 3 or more accessories, activated through specific touch gestures during combat. The second adds a participation-based reward track to ranked MOBA modes, giving players milestone bonuses for simply playing qualifying matches rather than tying all rewards to win/loss outcomes. The third connects building level indicators to enemy unit health values in tower defense games, letting players read difficulty scaling directly from visual interface elements instead of estimating it through trial and error.

Dell received 1 patent for placing gaming notifications and overlay elements using AI-generated heat maps that identify which screen areas receive the least player attention. The system avoids disrupting important gameplay zones and adapts the interface when players move between rooms with different display sizes in a multi-room home gaming setup.

Beijing Zitiao Network Technology received 1 patent for a multiplayer voice game that automatically pauses music or dialogue, prompts players in turn to continue the lyrics or lines, and scores their vocal accuracy in real-time. The system handles media playback control, turn management, and voice-to-content matching within a unified interface, eliminating the need for manual coordination across separate applications.