The PlayStation 5 controller should have a touch screen

According to a patent filed in 2017, Sony is considering a better way to integrate a touch screen to its iconic controller, despite the failure of Nintendo.

And if the controller of the next PlayStation, still at the stage of enigmatic prototype, was equipped with a touch screen? This is the badumption that TechCrunch raises in an article of November 12, itself supported by a patent filed by Sony in 2017 and made public on October 16 last. According to the long and tedious description provided by the patent, this screen would replace the current central touchpad surface of the controller, introduced in 2013, with the version Dualshock 4, which marked the first real complete redesign of the controller, since its all first iteration in 1994.

When reading this information, the first question that one can ask is probably something like "very good, but for what?"To be honest … we do not know too much." The current touchscreen fulfills its mission perfectly without being too intrusive, and replacing it with a real screen could jeopardize the ergonomics of the controller and overall worsen the experience of the game. To be convinced, Sony only has to look at its main competitor.In 2013, Nintendo confirmed what the world already knew: the Wii U (and its huge controller with a touch screen ubiquitous) was a big, big commercial flop, later the company corrected the shot with the Switch and, oh, surprise, the sales went away.

Astonishing, therefore, from Sony. Admittedly, it is only a patent, which absolutely does not guarantee the presence of this accursed touch screen on the next iteration of the Dualshock controller; however, it is time to make some badumptions. In view of the Wii U experience, Sony will not take the risk of using this screen to display additional information from gameplay – no sane player wants to alternate the look between his TV and his controller during a game.

If touch screen there is, its role will most likely serve as a relay to the internal menu of the console, including to manage the invitations and messages of other players during online games. In short, baduming that Sony really decides to continue this momentum, the touch screen will probably not revolutionize the ergonomics of the controller. And at the risk of playing purists, that's good. According to the latest rumors, we will have no answer until 2020 and the release of the PlayStation 5.