Nintendo Patents Watch
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ninpatentswatch.bsky.social
Nintendo Patents Watch
@ninpatentswatch.bsky.social
Human-run account covering patents, tech, and business behind Nintendo products (任天堂特許ウォッチ; 任天堂专利追踪; 任天堂專利追蹤)
https://ninpatentswatch.wordpress.com
This is not a Game-Key Card apologist thread, only an explainer on the precarious status of Game Card:

1. Although never disclosed, there are evidences suggesting that the GC “ROM” is actually pre-programmed NAND. Due to the AI boom, NAND price is now in a “super cycle”. (img source: ADATA)
1/
November 12, 2025 at 9:02 AM
Inventory data from Nintendo’s semiannual report, as of 2025-09:

• Largest total inventory and finished goods inventory since 2001-03 (possibly ever), likely stockpiling for Z-A release and holiday sales
• Work-in-progress inventory decreased to the usual range (pre-launch rush was over)
1/
November 12, 2025 at 3:14 AM
Isn’t this the 2nd time Mochizuki pushing this narrative? For a business reporter, he’s curiously inattentive to details:

• Digital NS2E games are counted as NS1 sales
• Digital only games (Welcome Tour, DxD) are not reported
• Furukawa Q&A: We plan to keep selling NS1 games to NS2 owners
1/
November 11, 2025 at 5:48 PM
Live2D Inc. announced Switch 2 version of Live2D Cubism SDK for developers (2D character modeling and animation tool)

Source: prtimes.jp/main/html/rd...
November 11, 2025 at 4:10 PM
Sounds like Switch 2 now supports LE Audio/LC3 codec for low latency? The setting looks similar to Sony Sound Connect’s “Bluetooth connection quality” (image below):

• Sound quality (LDAC/AAC/high bitrate SBC)
• Stable connection (low bitrate SBC)
• Low latency (LC3)
1/
November 11, 2025 at 3:11 PM
I’m traveling today, and can only offer a brief intro for the following 4 new patents. Please click the links for details.

GameChat safety patent 1: Server-side filtering of communications based on user age
www.j-platpat.inpit.go.jp/c1801/PU/JP-...
November 7, 2025 at 6:35 AM
Hate to pour cold water on the dev acquisition talk, but that slide was presenting things *already* happened.

• Very precise number of “a” video company acquisition (Dynamo)
• In contrast, acquisition of “developers” being plural (Next Level, SRD, Shiver)
• All others are done or in progress
1/
November 6, 2025 at 4:45 PM
Duskbloods will be jointly published by FromSoftware (Kadokawa subsidiary) and Nintendo. My guess is that the former will handle the domestic market, and the latter overseas.

Source: ssl4.eir-parts.net/doc/9468/ir_...
November 6, 2025 at 8:00 AM
[New lore?] Before creating Pokémon Red and Green, Tajiri jokingly said to Miyamoto:

“To surpass Nintendo’s Mario, we’d have to sell two copies of [same] game to each customer.”

I’m sure that it was just a joke. Let’s be normal.
Note: Unofficial translation
www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/pdf/2025/...
November 5, 2025 at 10:47 PM
Nintendo explained why they updated Animal Crossing.

Furukawa: With dev costs and time increasing, it’s harder to maintain the pace of new releases. Since NS2 is BC, we’d recommend NS1 games to first-time buyers. Balancing new releases and evergreens engagement will sustain NS2’s momentum.
1/
November 5, 2025 at 10:11 PM
Updated KPIs in today’s Management Policy Briefing (img 1) compared to past data:

• Annual Playing Users stopped declining and stayed flat (img 2)
• Nintendo Accounts +34M YoY (img 3; indicating Switch user churn and/or mobile user growth)
• NSO Members stayed flat too (img 4)
1/
November 5, 2025 at 3:04 AM
In case some are wondering why I had no patent posts for a week:
There were only some patent continuations/divisions that aren’t new, and one Mario Party patent that I didn’t find interesting enough to write. But if you’re hungry for it …
patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/de...
November 4, 2025 at 9:05 PM
Here’s a good visualization of how massive the Switch 2 launch is. The chart below shows Nintendo’s consolidated financial results since FY2018-03.

Net sales (left axis, gray): highest since NS1 launch
Net income (right axis, navy): higher than NS1 years 1-3

Source: www.nikkei.com/article/DGKK...
November 4, 2025 at 8:14 PM
During today’s conference, Furukawa stated that Nintendo wants “as many people as possible” to get a Switch 2 during the year-end shopping season, aiming to sell above the forecast (19M units). Since the company has expanded capacity post NS2 launch, “production won’t be a bottleneck”.
1/
November 4, 2025 at 10:30 AM
Nintendo’s KPI of Annual Playing Users is conspicuously absent from today’s financial disclosure.

Since last quarterly report showed the first ever drop of APU post Switch launch (from 129M to 128M), it reasons that the number probably declined further and Nintendo chose not to publicize it.
1/
November 4, 2025 at 7:59 AM
Top ten trending items for Japanese teen girls in H1 2025 include:

#1 Pokémon TCG Pocket, 31.4%
#2 Tamagotchi (due to “Heisei era girls” retro trend), 28.6%
#7 Nintendo Switch 2, 12.5%

Source: Mynavi, survey of 618 13-19 y/o girls
cm-marketinglab.mynavi.jp/column/2025k...
November 3, 2025 at 7:40 PM
Remember all the breathless reporting of Nintendo “banning” RTA in Japan (speedrunning event) from using Nintendo games? That was demonstrably untrue.

RTA in Japan just unveiled their Winter 2025 lineup, and 30 selected entries are Nintendo games: docs.google.com/spreadsheets...
1/
November 2, 2025 at 6:04 PM
Alps Alpine (アルプスアルパイン), supplier of HD Rumble actuators and analog sticks, revised up their financial forecast for the FY ending 2026-03 (img 1). One of the reasons for the revision is “an increase in sales”, including “growing demand for game consoles” (img 2).
1/
October 31, 2025 at 4:45 PM
The person who won a copy of Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road seven years ago just received a letter from Level 5 with a download QR code. He was in elementary school when he won, and now is in high school. Better late than never!

Source: X account GOTTbatotai54
October 31, 2025 at 2:43 PM
It appears that one of those in-development* TOSE projects w/ added Switch 2 support may be Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake: www.tose.co.jp/en/news/2025...

* As of 2025-08-31
October 30, 2025 at 9:30 AM
Macronix’s (旺宏; NS1 Game Card supplier) Q3 financial report indicates that the company is still unable to produce NS2 Game Cards. www.mxic.com.tw/en-us/about/...

• Their 2025Q3 ROM shipment was barely higher than 2024Q3 (img 1). Without Pokémon Z-A, the number probably would’ve cratered.
1/
October 30, 2025 at 5:01 AM
Capcom did NOT “blame” MH Wilds’ sales to the price of PS5. That Tsujimoto interviewed was given in May, before the sales began to sag. He was patting themselves on the back for selling 10M copies *despite* the PS5 ownership cost.

Source: xtrend.nikkei.com/atcl/content...
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Monster Hunter Wilds’ post-launch sales continue their slowdown in Capcom's latest results, at just 160k.

That’s fewer than the 447k in the previous quarter (and 10m at launch), which Capcom called “soft”, and later partly blamed the price of PS5.

vgc.news/news/monster...
Monster Hunter Wilds’ post-launch sales continue decline in latest Capcom results | VGC
Wilds sold just 160k copies in Capcom’s latest reporting period; sales now neck-and-neck with World…
vgc.news
October 29, 2025 at 8:01 PM
Nintendo Korea announced preorder bonuses for Metroid Prime 4: wide mouse pad (practical!), 500pcs jigsaw puzzle, and wall scroll. Unknown availability in other regions.
www.nintendo.com/kr/news/arti...
October 29, 2025 at 10:33 AM
Capcom’s video game sales in fiscal H1 (Apr-Sep):

• Highest-ever total sales unit and catalog sales unit
• New titles : Catalog titles = 4.2% : 95.8%
• Overseas : Japan = 90.2% : 9.8%
• Digital : Physical = 94% : 6%
October 29, 2025 at 9:15 AM
Mario runs fast, 260 km/h to be exact

Img 1: N700S Series Shinkansen
Img 2: 800 Series Shinkansen
www.jrkyushu.co.jp/train/mario/
October 29, 2025 at 8:11 AM