First of all, EUR 30 in the mid-80s is equivalent to roughly EUR 55 today due to the effects of inflation
Newsflash, the Euro didn't even exist in the mid-80s.
"The lawsuit concerns the analog sticks in the Classic Controller and GameCube controllers, which Texas-based Anascape Ltd. claims to hold a patent on that Nintendo violated. The court has ruled in favor of Anascape, and U.S. District Judge Ron Clark has rejected Nintendo's request for a new trial. As a result, Clark said he will put a ban on the sale of the controllers (which includes sales of GameCube systems) starting tomorrow, July 23, unless Nintendo posts a bond or puts royalties into an escrow account."
Readers may note this isn't the first time the big manufacturers have been targeted in lawsuits involving features in their controllers.
The primary function of the design engineer is to make things difficult for the fabricator and impossible for the serviceman.