According to Patrick Klepek from MTV’s Multiplayer blog, Microsoft is secretly working on a new accessory for its Xbox 360, that will mimic some of the features of Nintendo’s widely acclaimed Wiimote.

Citing an anonymous source close to the matter, Klepek said that the new controller has “four face buttons, an analog stick and microphone”.

Besides that it seems like Microsoft is ready to go one step further than Nintendo and incorporate into the controller the Xbox Live Vision Camera.

The anonymous source has also provided a sketch picture of the allegedly new controller. (click here to see it).

Of course, Microsoft has nothing to say about the rumor and the company stays mum, as it did on several other occasions.

In fact this isn’t the first time when the rumor about a new Xbox 360 controller is spreading out. Last year in December XboxFamily reported that Microsoft is working with Sarataoga-based Gyration to create a motion-sensitive peripheral for Xbox 360 controllers. Gyration is the same company that was charged with the task of creating a prototype Wii remote. But nothing was officially confirmed by any of the parties involved.

However, it seems like Xbox 360 is in need of a “face lift.” Launched in November 2006, Microsoft’s console is the oldest from the three gaming platforms available. Unlike Sony, which has constantly upgraded and modified its PS 3 or Nintendo, which are constantly pushing new gadgets like Wii Board or Wii Zapper, Xbox 360 has almost the same configuration. Speaking of controllers, earlier this month Sony launched in the United States its DualShock 3 with rumble features. So maybe a new controller for Xbox 360 isn’t such a bad idea.

There were various rumors that we might soon enough see a BluRay drive, external or internal, for Xbox 36, but yesterday Neil Thompson, Senior Regional Director for Northern Europe of Microsoft's Entertainment & Devices Division said that the company will rather concentrate on its download service than think about a new unit.

But the question still remains: does Xbox 360 need a new gadget to be more appealing for gamers? Looking at the latest numbers regarding gaming sales in the US released by the NPD Group, Sony's Playstation 3 has surpassed the Xbox 360 for the second month in a row in February, but Microsoft predicted that this will happen, due to its problems to estimate sale figures correctly.

On the software front, the Xbox 360 games are still best sellers as the first places in the Top 10 were taken in February by Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare with 296,000 units and Devil May Cry 4 with 295,200 units.

It seems that for the moment Microsoft has found the right equation, but if Sony will keep outselling Xbox 360, maybe the Redmond company will have to consider a change, and a controller could be a winning move. Let’s not jump ahead of ourselves though and forget that for the moment nothing is official.