Published Jul 24, 2026, 8:00 PM EDT
Kyle Gratton is an editor and writer based out of Kansas City. He received a bachelor’s degree, dual majoring in English and History with a minor in Film and Media Studies, and has been a senior staff writer and reviewer for Screen Rant’s Gaming section since 2021, with roles in editorial, and various freelance projects.
A terminal Midwesterner who graduated from the University of Kansas, Kyle also has knowledge and interest in literature, film, film adaptions of literature, and history.
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When the 10th console generation eventually rolls around, Sony may have the only traditional, high-end, home console remaining when it introduces the PlayStation 6. Xbox’s next-gen machine is supposedly more of a PC, and Nintendo bowed out of the graphics arms race generations ago. We have virtually no concrete information on the PS6—the console hasn’t been revealed yet—but a new patent suggests its controller is going to fix modern gaming’s most notorious hardware issue.
Sony’s DualSense controller is arguably the greatest innovation of the PlayStation 5 era. No one seems to truly put it through its paces except Housemarque with the intoxicating action of Saros and Returnal, but I digress. Haptic feedback and adaptive triggers have been a revelation in a console generation otherwise mostly notable for the elimination of long loading screens, but the DualSense is not without issue. I think the ergonomics could use some work when updating to what will presumably be the DualSense 2, but a universally reviled issue is more important, and may already have been addressed internally at PlayStation.
Stick drift is not just a DualSense problem. It is most famously a common problem with Nintendo’s Joy-Con controllers for the original Switch, but Sony’s PS5 peripheral is also prone. Anecdotally, I have a DualSense with stick drift, but it’s minor, not nearly as bad as that of a pair of Joy-Cons I had to repeatedly send to Nintendo to get fixed. But the relative impact doesn’t make it any more excusable from a consumer standpoint, and third-party controllers have been offering a reprieve for years at this point.
It took a whole console generation, but Sony seems to finally be addressing the issue with its new controller design for the PlayStation 6. Sony filed a patent, viewable in the World Intellectual Property Organization’s (WIPO) records, for a new joystick assembly that uses contactless sensors (via TweakTown). Stick drift is most commonly caused by components within the assembly breaking down, with fragments interfering with the sensor or causing the stick itself to become loose.
Sony’s patent, per the WIPO filing, hopes to eliminate stick drift by utilizing “a tilting operation sensor that senses tilting of the operating stick in a noncontact manner[, so that] movement of the operating stick can be detected with high precision even under prolonged use.” It’s a similar design to TMR (tunnel magnetoresistance) sticks, which, like Sony’s proposed design, use magnets to ensure contactless sensing and avoid stick drift. TMR sticks have become popular in third-party alternatives over the last few years.
All the patent clues us in on is a potential stick assembly design. It shows nothing of the larger device, and I suppose it’s possibly not even for the PS6 controller, but if Sony has gone a whole generation without replacing the DualSense’s stick assembly, its successor is the most likely reason for the patent. That said, patents are filed all the time, and it doesn’t guarantee Sony will even use the contactless design for future DualSense iterations.
Patents are also unhelpful in understanding design timelines—it really gives us no clear idea of when to expect the PlayStation 6 and its new peripheral. Rumors, supposed leaks, and speculation have all suggested the PS6 could arrive as early as next year or as late as 2030, and the situation is likely only growing more complicated as the component crisis continues to worsen, driving up the price of the console’s components.
PlayStation is also currently facing a lot of backlash for its plans to stop disc production in 2028. Whether the continued outcry actually sways Sony’s strategy for the next generation remains to be seen (my money is on Sony being stubborn), but the move shows that the company is actively preparing for a new era. If the PlayStation 6 really won’t have a disc drive, then it seems unlikely to arrive before 2028, and we probably won’t get a good look at this new controller until closer to then as well.
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