The United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has publicly released a new filing from Nintendo that has sparked speculation from fans.

The filing was shared and discussed on Famiboards by @LiC, and is for a new wireless controller with the FCC ID “BKEBEE021”. As with many of Nintendo’s patents, images of the controller are currently being kept obscured, set to only be made public in September 2025.

However, that hasn’t stopped fans from excitedly speculating on what it could be. The prevailing theory is that it is for a new wireless Gamecube controller. Firstly, the FCC ID above contains the letters “BEE”, which was used in the IDs for the Gamecube. Secondly, the filing does not mention NFC capability, which the Gamecube controller also does not have. Finally, the filing includes an image of where the regulatory body’s approval label would be on the device. By overlaying a picture of the Gamecube controller over this image, the Gamecube’s label is in the exact same spot.

It is presumed that this controller will be similar to the retro controllers Nintendo released for the NES and SNES, meant to coincide with games from those systems being added to the Switch Online service. If the speculation that this patent is for a Gamecube controller are true, then this could indicate that Gamecube games might finally be coming to the Switch, or at least the Switch 2.

That said, as with all theories of this nature, we caution readers to take this report with a grain of salt. Stay tuned for more updates as they come.

What do you think? Let us know in the comments.