Summary
Sonyrecently filed a patent for a new video game feature that could simulate in-game odors, not unlike the infamous Smell-O-Vision systems of old. Sony has made efforts to increase player immersion in video games during the PlayStation 5 era, thanks to theDualSense controller’s haptic feedbackand the console’s 3D audio support. These features allow players to feel different in-game sensations using different controller vibrations and have sounds occur around them as if they are actually inside their favorite first-party PS5 title.
While gaming consoles have always used a player’s sense of sight, hearing, and even touch to bring virtual worlds to life, there have been a few efforts to bring odor into the mix over the years. Microsoft once toyed with the idea ofa scent-emitting Xbox One controller, and a small company known as HAPTICSOL offers a special development kit for VR games that emits scents at certain moments. However, these efforts have remained fairly niche, and have drawn comparisons to the scratch-and-sniff scent cards and fairground cinema experiments of decades past.
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Now Sony is looking to bring the ever-elusive scent of smell to its homegrown gaming experiences with a newly-filed patient. This patent describes a system that could provide players with a fragrance during certain in-game moments with a detachable accessory. Said aromas would come from cartridges like the ones included withXbox’s pizza-scentedTMNTcontrollers, which would be triggered in synch with certain lights and sounds from a given video game.
Sony has filed several different patents over the past couple of years, and most of them pertain to possible new features for the PlayStation 5 or even a future gaming console. Some are meant to help players improve their skills at a certain game by offering a special dojo to practice their skills or anAI couch to assist with inventory management. Others describe smarter parental controls that could prevent younger players from accessing age-inappropriate content and even give a better look at the PS5 Access controller.
Only time will tell ifSony’s latest smell-related patent will lead to success, especially given the ill-fated attempts to add odor to movies and television in the past. However, the idea of a console giving off certain fragrances during in-game moments is an interesting one, and could help increase player immersion if done right. There are still various technical issues to be addressed regarding this new, Smell-O-Vision-like aroma system, so players probably shouldn’t expect to see it anytime soon. In fact, it’s possible it will never materialize in any significant way at all, as companies file patents all the time that never result in a tangible consumer product.
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