98 replies to this topic

[z28in82]

I had recently replied to a post about a N64 game and wasn't even aware just how I had grown to despise my N64 do to a poorly designed controller. So I thought I'd ask if anyone else grew to hate a system do to a controller? Or if the opposite happened, in my case I went from being a Nintendo Zealot to a Sony person do to just how comfortable a controller feels in my hand (althought the second shoulder buttons took a while to get used to, but still not that bad a deal)
Thanks guys & gals :wink:

[Lemmi]

Favorites

Sega Saturn
Sega Genesis
Goldstar 3DO


Hated controllers

Atari 5200 (the worst thing ever created)
Playstaion
N64
SNES (the button set up suck )

[Tempest]

I wonder how many people who list the 5200 controllers as "The Worst Things Ever Created" have actually ever used them? I find that most people just hear the stories and automatically assume that the 5200 controllers suck. Truth be told, I think the 5200 controllers are great. Sure they have some flaws (very fragile, mushy fire button), but they're not the anti-christ of controllers like most people make them out to be. I don't think most people ever give them a chance before buying into the hype (or would that be the anti-hype?).

As for my choices:

Best:
---------
Genesis
PS2
and of course the good ol' standard 2600 stick


Worst:
--------
7800 - The most painful to use controller ever invented
N64 - What the heck is up with the button placement?
Intellivision - Just because I hate that STUPID DISC!


Tempest

[Lemmi]

Tempest said:

I wonder how many people who list the 5200 controllers as "The Worst Things Ever Created" have actually ever used them?    

Tempest

ive actually used them, played them, cleaned them, and they just plain suck i think controllers shouldnt have to be babied & cleaned constantly, if you think of all the other controllers out there these 5200 sticks stand out as being crappy at worst and annoying at best

[NE146]

yep Tempest said it like it is. Word brutha!

The 5200 controllers rocked over so many others and when working are a joy (at least to me) to use. But that's the trick... is they have to be working. But they are definitely NOT "the worst" as that's just a bunch of HYPE.

My choices:

N64 controllers however, despite them being promising, did in fact after a time prove to cramp my hand. Maybe it's because for the majority of the games, they had you holding the middle portion of the controller so it was always at that odd angle.

Colecovision, like them or not, they were stubby and large and flat and square. After all these years... still yucky.

SMS pad. Some people like these. I don't. They are too flimsy feeling and it seems it's much easier to hit the diagonalls right when you want to go straight up/down/left/right. heheh

[Jetboot Jack]

Best

Gamecube
Dual Shock
Japanese Saturn

Worst

Xbox (Whoa - too big for my tiny mitts!)
5200 (yes I have tried REALLY hard to like them - but please, no self-centering is just STUPID)
Colecovision (they give me blisters!)

sTeVE

[King Atari]

I can't believe everyone hates the N64 controllers, I like them. The GameCube controllers are great, very easy to grasp and use. Personally, I just can't get used to the Playstation controllers.

If I had to choose between the 5200 and 7800 controllers, I'd pick the 7800. I find keypads confusing without overlays, and even though my first games for it go in the mail today (you da man, Stan), I can tell they'll be a pain. No self-centering is a veryyy bad thing. The 7800 controllers are uncomfortable, and do have a tendency to break as well, but I think they're easier to grasp, at least that's how it is for me.

I like the Intellivision controllers. Like I said, keypads without overlays are confusing, but the disk is neat (though not great), and the controllers are nice and lightweight. The main problem with them though is that they're a pain in the a*s to get back in the system (on the first INTV). Still, on a whole I like them.

Anyone ever use a Bally Astrocade controller? Kind of like a gun handle with a joystick on the top. Before I stupidly sold mine at a flea market for $5 years ago, I saved one of the controllers. At least I did that much.

[z28in82]

King Atari

I am a lil confussed as to how you can like a cube controller but not like the psx/ps2 controller? I mean the dual shock is roughly the same design as the cube controller, but to each their own.
As for why I dislike the N64 controller it took quite a while to get used to the Z button, but if you were to use the center joystick as to the left cross, I had a helluva time getting to the left shoulder button and the 4 direction c buttons were cute at first but just wore me down after time. It just never felt natural in my hand and was always trying to find a way to "grip" it properly but i eventually just gave up on it and only play games where I have to use as few buttons as possible.

[StanJr]

Best: tie: VCS joystick, NES controller. Simple and functional, does not require 8 fingers to wor, nor does it require double jointed fingers.


Worst: tie: N64, X-BOX. N64 button placement is ALL over. This entire controller is confused. Any game requiring use of both joystick and D-pad are a nightmare. Yick. X-BOX is like the DC controller on steroids. Bulky, the triggers are WAY too big (like those phones with the BIG numbers for old people), and due to the grip design, my thumbs, when relaxed, always gravitate toward the big dumb looking XBOX logo in the middle (why is that there anyway? What is the deal with the white and black buttons? Double Yick.

[ROBERT]

Hello fellow gamers:

I have fairly large hands so the Xbox and N64 controllers feel pretty good to me. The controllers that I've had the most problem with, however, are as follows...

Atari 2600 paddles - don't get me wrong...they initially work great, but too easily become "jittery". The WD-40 solution happens far too often for my tastes.

ColecoVision - The joystick is fine...it's the placement of those buttons that ticks me off...talk about contributing towards Carpal Tunnel Syndrome !!

Atari 5200 - I finally had the chance to pick one up and try it out at a vintage game dealer...then I remembered what Ron Corcoran told me about the resetting to center and how difficult it makes things and I quickly abandoned all hopes after that !!

Xbox - the fell is right, for me...I just don't like the positioning of some of the buttons, that's all. Though I can play Circus Maximus and Crazy Taxi, for me to truly be devastating I would need to reconfigure the buttons and neither game allows for this the way you would like...at least Crazy Taxi gives you two Cfig setups, but the alt setup stinks and I need to re-allocate to really kick some butt at it

Atari 2600 "Sicko Wico" joystick - possibly the worst of the lot. In my opinion, along with the standard joystick, the one made by "SpectraVision" reigns supreme !!

Magnavox Odyssey 2 - an 8-way notched joystick...how quaint...and ANNOYING !! Can't tell you how many times I messed up in either KC Munchkin or Pick Axe Pete because of it.

Well, that's my choices.

Robert T Mruczek
Twin Galaxies - Editor and Chief referee
Star Wars classic arcade champion
rmruczek@doremus.com (work E-MAIL)

*******************************

[Chris++]

Cheers:
Original 2600 stick
Bally Astrocade grip-stick
Jag controller
PSX/PS2 stock controllers

Jeers:
Intellivision controller
ColecoVision controller
N-64 (this is a bias; I hate the analogue thing)


CF

[Tempest]

The Colecovision! How could I forget? I hate that stubby little mushroom joystick. The thing gives me cramps after using it more than 10 minutes. It comes in a close second to the 7800 Pain-Line controller...

Tempest

[JagMX]

[b]Fav's:
Jaguar's Pro controller
3DO's Original pad
DC's Madcatz (not the gigantic one)
XBOX's Big and Small controllers
NES original

Awful's:
3DO's "Bat-A-Rang" controller, thing looks like it came out of a batman movie, seriously!
PS2's DualShock, i really dont like those analogs right there, i think the xbox's analogs are placed better.
N64's. Damn what a terrible controller.
Game Cube controller

[Chris++]

LMAO...."Pain-Line"....I can't believe I forgot about the terrible 7800 joystick. Well spoken, Tempest.


CF again

[TheSmirk]

Worst:
Atari 5200
Intellivision
Coleco

Favorites:
Atari 2600 joystick
NES Advantage
Dreamcast
PSX

[z28in82]

Robert

How right you are I forgot all about the Oyssey2 controllers, and I agree couldn't count the Number of lives lost on K.C. or UFO do to hitting the area between on of the notches. And the cord isn't long enough at all

As for the X-Box controller I have big hands also so the controller fits in my hand but it doesn't feel right and I hate the analog sticks on that controller. nothing but hooks and slices when playing outlaw golf cause the indent on the right thumb stick isn't big enough to put thumb in the center like the left one is. And it feels like my thumb is going half way to the moon to hit the white and black buttons.

[Sauron]

Favorites:

N64 (Yes, you head that right!) - A very good controller IMO
Jag Pro Controller - Too bad not too many games utilize the extra buttons
Genesis - Probably the best Dpad of all time
TurboGrafx-16 - Why haven't more console makers put Turbo switches on their controllers as standard?

Least Favorites:

XBox - Some good concepts, you'd think that MS would take a cue from their SideWinder pads
Intellivision - The worst controller of all time, for MANY reasons
Atari 5200 - C'mon guys, it's just HIP to hate this controller!

[bangles66]

Worst.
colecovision--too big
5200--when they don't work.

Best.
Sega Genesis Arcade Power Stick
Atari 5200 trackball
Atari 5200 --when they work.

[Bez]

Best: Tac-2

Worst: That grey and black flightstick from Vico i think.

Man I´ve seen joysticks suck, but this is the suckiest sucker that ever sucked...

[liveinabin]

Ok, best:-


Gamecube - when I can find any new stuff to use it with
Namco's Jogcon - true force feedback on a PS1 controller - wow!!
Dreamcast - took the awesome Saturn 3D pad and added a tiny weeny gameboy - what's not to like?


worst:-

Intellivision - I hate loathe and despise them, I really want to love the intellivision - Tron Solar Sailer is fantastic, but I can't use that thing for more than a minute till I sprain my wrist.
N64 - Stupid bloody shape, any controller that you have to explain how to hold to a newbie is bin-fodder.
Xbox - in the grand tradition of most PC gamepads, Microsofts console pad seems to have been designed (whatever they might say) on a Friday afternoon by someone who hates games.

I'd put 5200, but I've never used one:) they sound bloody awful though, I can't imagine any controller actually being worse than INTV without actually injecting spikes into your wrists!

[Agent X]

Some of my favorites (limiting myself to first-party offerings for now):

PSX/PS2 Dual Shock analog controllers: Quite possibly the best all-around controllers ever created. PS2 version (Dual Shock 2) has the slight edge with the addition of pressure-sensitve buttons.
GameCube controller: Extremely comfortable, although the X and Y buttons should've been slightly bigger and better placed. Try the Wavebird for the same great feel, but wireless!
Sega Saturn small controller: Best joypad controller ever for fighting games. The large controller (earlier US pack-in controller) is pretty good except for weird triggers.
Sega Genesis 6-button Arcade Pad: Nice design.
Atari Jaguar ProController: Very comfortable; excellent improvement over the stock controller with lots of accessible buttons as well as the handy numeric keypad.
Atari 5200 controllers: The best controller of the classic era--when it's working, of course.
Atari 5200 Trak-Ball: Like having an arcade in your home. Super high quality.

Some of the controllers that needed to go back to the drawing board:
ColecoVision controller: Awful short-throw joystick ruins what is otherwise a good design. I tried it again recently, thinking that I might feel differently now that I'm an adult--nope, I don't.
X-Box original controller: Unnecessarily bulky and uncomfortable to hold. Button placement is odd, too. The smaller X-Box controller is better, but still falls short of PS2 and GC.
Panasonic 3DO controller: Remember when you had to open this atrocity up with a screwdriver just to get the ability to move diagonally? Feels chintzy, too.

[krisjohn]

I don't think I've got the standard controllers hooked up to much at home. I've got:

Dreamcast: Arcade stick
Saturn: 3D controller
Mega Drive: 3rd party controller with screw in stick
C64: Epyx microswitch joystick
PS2: DVD remote (not used for games)

Other consoles don't have anything plugged into them if I'm not using them.

The picture is of a one-handed controller I got for 5-player Bomberman on the PSX. I've even got a SNES/Saturn-to-PSX adapter for that classic feel.

I've got heaps of various controllers because I'm a big fan of multiplayer games. In addition to the normal offerings, I've also got heaps of different InfraRed remote controllers. Their popularity has dropped off lately because of the "rumble pak" feedback option in most modern controllers and the fact that the memory cards plug into the controller, but still they're a lot of fun. I've got IR controllers for the NES, Master System (Mega Drive if you don't need too many buttons), Playstation (digital only, no feedback) and Saturn.

[eric_ruck]

For worst I'd vote 5200 (followed not far behind by the Wico 5200). Then, does anyone remember this gravity-controlled 2600-style joystick? I forget the name but I remember it didn't work well at all. And I am in the camp that hates the GameCube controller.

I'm also in the large hands camp, I like the original Xbox controller lots, although I'm not crazy about the white and black button placement.

Eric

[PistolPete]

Good:
Atari 2600 (simple, classic)
Genesis (the NES pad done right. bigger, more form-fitting)
SNES (still too small but better than the NES... triggers were also a brilliant idea)
3DO (basicially a more sturdy SNES pad)
Saturn (the best of the original d-pads. good size, sturdy feel, concaved d-pad was a great idea)
Dual Shock 1/2 (the best controller in my opinion. comfortable, every button is easy to reach, 4 triggers, 2 sticks, etc.)

In-between:
Odyssey2 (good stick, but it's hardwiring to the unit is one of the worst ideas ever)
Atari 5200 (great idea... except for that non auto-centering part)
NES (too small, although it did create the new standard)
SMS (same as NES, too small)
TG-16 (boxy and ugly. at least the turbo was cool)
Dreamcast (nice controller, but too much wasted space. don't like the wire at the near end)
Gamecube (good in every way except I don't think the button layout and choice of letters is very intuitive.)
Xbox (I love everything about this one except the buttons are too hard and make long sessions blister-inducing)

Bad:
Intellivision (disc is inaccurate, buttons hard to reach)
Coleco (awkward to hold, stick is too stubby)
Atari 7800 (as someone already mentioned, the king of hand crampers)
Jaguar (pointless keypad, buttons hard to reach)

[King Atari]

Quote

I am a lil confussed as to how you can like a cube controller but not like the psx/ps2 controller? I mean the dual shock is roughly the same design as the cube controller, but to each their own.  

I never said I didn't like them, just that I can't get used to them .