The legal battle started back in 2006, when  game controller company Anascape filed two patent infringement lawsuits against gaming giants Nintendo and Microsoft, alleging that both companies infringed upon 12 of its patents. 

Microsoft chose the quick way out of the conflict and quietly settled with Anascape out of court. The terms of the settlement were not disclosed to the public. 

Nintendo chose to carry on and it was now left with a hefty bill. According to the company, the Wiimote and Nunchuck controller’s motion-sensing technology were not found to violate the plaintiff’s patents.

One of the patents brought to court by Anascape  waqs filed in 2001 and it features the following description: 

“An image controller structured for allowing inputs to be converted or translated into electrical outputs, one preferred controller structured with at least a sufficient number of sensors to aid in controlling three-dimensional objects and navigating a three-dimensional viewpoint shown by a display. An active tactile feedback vibrator is mounted as a component of the controller for providing vibration to be felt by a user. Some preferred embodiments also incorporate proportional sensors allowing user variable inputs to cause imagery to be variably controlled.”