Patents are essentially exclusive, monopolistic rights over technical creations (inventions). Simply put, it is the state saying, "I invented this, so protect it for me." While some level of ethical judgment goes into granting patents, most are approved unless they involve outright crime or severe violations of social ethics. This means that pesky little annoyances—like forced ad viewing, monetization push, device lock-in, or restrictions on consumers' right to repair—slip right through.

In reality, countless patents designed to wind consumers up or pry open wallets are pouring out. Video games are no exception. Terrifying patents once seen only in the film or advertising industries have occasionally surfaced in gaming as well. Granted, most have never seen the light of day for various reasons, but just the mere possibility of them being implemented makes our palms sweat and our limbs tremble. We have gathered the cursed gaming patents that thankfully never happened—and absolutely never should have.

Filed by Sony back in 2006, this patent is nothing short of demonic. The core concept is brutally simple: 'Interactive content playback starts → Forced pause → Ad display → Playback resumes.' It was even designed to apply to online multiplayer, meticulously ensuring that every single player in the middle of a match would freeze up together right in the heat of combat to watch an ad.

Picture this: you are playing Call of Duty or the Battlefield series, dodging a hail of bullets, finding cover, and finally stepping out to exploit an opponent's psychological slip-up for a counterattack, when suddenly the screen freezes and a new movie trailer pops up. Your perfect ambush timing is laid bare for everyone in a paused state, and the moment the ad finishes, a torrent of rain falls right onto your character. This terrifying patent, which would crank in-game stress up to eleven, thankfully has never been applied to any game. Let us pray it stays that way forever.

Unveiled this past September, Microsoft's shiny new patent has naturally horrified gamers once again. The system has an AI read game engine data in real-time to figure out 'natural resting points'—like loading screens or right after a boss fight—before locking the screen and shoving an ad in your face. Watching the ad grants you 'credits' to buy some breathing room before the next forced ad. Sure, it allegedly avoids active combat and cutscenes, but the fundamental issue remains: an AI is arbitrarily hijacking the flow of your game.

Just as you are opening your inventory to sort gear or soaking in the adrenaline rush of finally taking down a boss, the AI chimes in: "Ah, taking a break, are you? How about an ad?" Considering they filed a patent around the same time to track player expressions and voices via camera, they might even be sizing you up to time the ads. Xbox Chief Strategy Officer Matt Ball tried to draw a line by stating that "interrupting gameplay is a bad experience," but the lingering thought that this tech could be deployed at any moment leaves a bitter taste.

Filed by Activision in 2015, this patent cleverly preys on player psychology. The core idea is to turn the matchmaking system itself into a 'Monetization engine'. Fresh beginners are deliberately paired with veterans decked out in expensive paid gear, designed to make the newbies envy and covet those flashy weapons so they crack open their wallets. Once they make a purchase, the system prioritizes placing them in lobbies where they can dominate, thereby driving even more spending.

The reason this patent sparked massive backlash is that it fundamentally shatters the trust that matchmaking in competitive games should be fair. When public outcry erupted over the realization that opponents were chosen not by skill or ping, but by 'the probability of opening your wallet,' Activision drew a line, claiming, "It was merely an exploratory R&D patent and has never been implemented in-game." While that is a relief, it gives us a rather uncomfortable peek into how the industry schemes to bleed our wallets.

This 2011 patent from Microsoft harks back to when they tried to conquer the living room with Kinect. Dubbed the 'Consumer Detector,' it uses cameras and sensors built into devices like the Kinect to monitor the number of viewers in front of the TV in real-time. If you invite a bunch of friends over and exceed the licensed viewer limit, the screen abruptly cuts out and demands an extra payment. Before you can even fire up a movie or game, it asks, "How many of you are watching?" and charges you accordingly.

Charging extra based on headcount is horrifying enough, but it sparked severe privacy concerns because a gaming machine would be constantly surveilling your every move right inside your living room. Fortunately, this idea stalled during the application stage without ever being registered as an official patent, and the Kinect hardware it relied on was quietly discontinued into the annals of history. Truly, a piece of technology that should never, ever come to fruition.

Taking the number one spot is Sony's 2009 patent, which is quite the out-of-this-world concept. Under this system, when an interactive ad pops up, the player must complete a specific action to make it go away. If you quietly step away or look elsewhere, the ad refuses to end and stays stuck in standby. The most infamous example is shouting 'McDonalds'. Once a McDonald's ad finishes, you supposedly have to scream the brand name into a microphone just to return to your game.

The premise of forcing players to actively engage with ads rather than just pressing a button is bad enough, but imagine having to shout brand names into thin air while gaming, just for your family or friends to witness. Talk about face-melting embarrassment. Like the others, this patent merely served as a laughingstock across various media outlets and was never actually implemented. We owe an overwhelming debt of gratitude to the fact that it remained strictly as patent blueprints.