Nintendo Switch looks set to deliver VR gaming on the go, as patents surface showing an add-on headset for the upcoming console.

The US Patent and Trademark Office has received filing for a "HMD (head mounted display) with the main unit 2 attached thereto". In less jargon-filled terms, that means a headset that the Switch is inserted into, similar to how mobile VR solutions such as Samsung Gear VR work.


Nintendo / US Patent Office

The patent image, spotted by gaming forum NeoGAF, backs this up, showing the Switch's tablet docking into the front HMU, with the headset containing the optics to deliver the VR experience.

The patent also describes VR games using the detachable Joycon controllers, while utilising the built-in accelerometer and motion sensors to deliver some form of head tracking. This backs up other hardware features revealed in earlier patents.

Rumours of the Switch supporting virtual reality surfaced at the end of October. Then, Nintendo president Tatsumi Kimishima said "if you asked as if [VR] might be possible in the future, certainly we can't say no. In terms of how it can be used for gaming, it's something we must consider."


However, the issue of how powerful the Switch will actually be, and what level of VR gaming it may be able to support, remains to be seen. While Nintendo will be revealing full specs in January, VentureBeat claims sources have confirmed the new console will uses Nvidia’s last-generation Maxwell architecture for its Tegra chips, rather than the newer Pascal version.

Pascal outperforms Maxwell with a 16-nanometre process, but is not said to be ready for the Tegra chips Nintendo is planning to use for the Switch. If true, that would put the Nintendo console on a power level below the original PS4, which was released three years ago. However, the custom Maxwell Tegra rumoured to be powering the console is said to be 20nm, which could deliver better performance than the 'regular' 28nm Maxwell graphics cards.

While that may not be enough to take on PS4 Pro or Xbox One S- it seems increasingly unlikely Switch will be capable of 4K output, even when docked for use as a home console - it could provide a deeper mobile VR experience than is currently available using smartphones. Hopefully, exact VR plans will be part of Nintendo's wider reveal next month.