Control Command Escape

Game Revolution has spotted that Apple has been awarded a patent for a game controller, however, on inspection of the published application, it seems they may have misunderstood the point.

The underlying idea seems to be that the “controller” is actually an iPhone, which can download software to allow it to control a given device (i.e. an Apple TV or iMac, but also including DVD players or consoles) using Near-Field Communication, and can have one of several different controller layouts.

Although it seems it will be aimed at the iOS crowd, details are understandably vague, and it could be something that finds its way to OS X.

Update: Patently Apple has more details and insight into the patent.