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Tech giant Sony is working on PlayStation controllers for smartphones. A new patent has emerged on the internet and it shows off a controller that looks suspiciously like a DualShock 4 but with modifications for mobile devices, sparking widespread excitement among gamers.

The patent images were first spotted by Video Games Chronicle, and allegedly filed by the company’s Japan division. The images show how the Sony controller will look when connected to a mobile phone. It does resemble regular mobile controllers, in that the right and left sides of the controller has been split. As mentioned earlier, the controller has a design more similar to PS4’s DualShock controller and not the PlayStation 5’s DualSense controller.

Which means it features the complete set of arrow buttons towards the left and the action keys on the right. The options and share buttons can also be seen in the patent, which will be located on either side of the smartphone once it is plugged in. The joysticks and four trigger buttons are also present.

The patent shows the mobile plugged in on the controller, in a stretched-out form factor. While the controller will definitely be a big plus for a lot of games, it might just become a tad bit too wide for a gamer to play comfortably on it.

Interestingly, the controller is also said to come with a touchpad which would essentially be replaced by the mobile screen once it is plugged in. As of now, the users can actually connect the DualShock 4 to a mobile device through Bluetooth but this new controller looks to be specifically built for phones, once again hinting at Sony’s ambition to play big on the smartphone gaming front.

Earlier in May, it was reported that Sony is planning an expansion into the mobile market. Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO, Jim Ryan stated that even first-party IPs could make their way to the small screen. At the time, Ryan mentioned that the company was experimenting with the prospect. With this, the company also plans to expand its AAA games or live service games offerings.

Back in 2011, the company had made the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play phone, which was a slider handset that featured a joypad and buttons. Sony’s ambitions towards smartphone gaming was evident since then. Though once the company brings these new developments to mainstream production, it would provide more choice to its gamer base and eventually expand PlayStation’s roster of games to verticals other than consoles.

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India today

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