What's the oddest controller you've ever used?

[Jason]

If you've been playing games more than a couple of years, you'll no doubt have used some severely unusual-shaped controllers - Nintendo are masters at this kind of thing, and it makes you wonder what they put in the coffee down in the R&D labs at Nintendo towers.

What's the oddest one you've ever seen/used?

==========================

For me, it's got to be this baby:

http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/01/dreammachine.jpg

I promise I haven't just made that in MS Paint. :p

If that image isn't hilarious enough, it cost $1700, and didn't really seem to do anything. Granted, I doubt it could have possibly been as hideously unresponsive as some of the early MadCatz offerings for the PSone, but all the same, it still looks completely ridiculous.

[Wayne]

Odd? Well that would have to be the glove, I still have it. The one I have is for the PS1 or 2, not sure, it's been a while. I remember playing Tekken Tag with it, but you know, it might have been a Ps2 backward compatible. Cool looking, but not practical. The Dreamcast's controller was also a bit odd, and yeah the Jaguar. I could go on and on I suppose, I collect this stuff.

[Rob]

Ahaha the horrible photoshop job putting all those people together in front of that hideous controller is making me gut laugh. Oh that's just beautiful. WTF are the people looking away from the screen and what sound setup is on the wall? It looks super expensive. :lol:

For me I would have to say the worst or oddest controller I have ever used in the N64 controller. It was awkward and it's poorly thought out button/joystick arrangement still makes me annoyed.

[Wayne]

The N64 controller was weird but then that's Nintendo for you, some younger gamers might argue that the Wiimote is the strangest. Pretty much any controller that negatively affects the way one plays Street Fighter is an odd one. Guess that explains why there were no SF titles on the N64..I think

[JustaBitOutside]

Remember the NES max? It had the turbo buttons yeah, but how was the sliding directional pad going to do anything helpful?

I also remember for the NES an old school joystick which was quite worthless.

I'd have to say that nintendo has made the most worthless controllers over the years. Does Virtual boy count as a system or a controller? My neck still hurts and I am permanently color blind.

[Wayne]

Actually the Virtual Boy's controller was one of Nintendo's better models, that says a lot for Nintendo's controller designs. Did the Virtual Boy really affect your vision? I heard it could, but none of the games were that good to have me playing it that long.

[Lance]

For me, it's the Exercise Bike controller

http://www.ubergizmo.com/photos/exergame.jpg


Who wants to exercise while playing games? Doesn't that defeat the purpose of playing games?

[Wayne]

For me, it's the Exercise Bike controller

http://www.ubergizmo.com/photos/exergame.jpg


Who wants to exercise while playing games? Doesn't that defeat the purpose of playing games?

Lol, Can't say it does, unless of course you really hate exercising. Time and place for everything though I guess, but if you love exercising like I do then combining the two every now and then can be fun, guess you hate the WII :lol:.

Never saw that controller before.

[MyNameDidntFit]

Call me crazy but...
http://www.igcse-computing.com/students_html/FirstPage/keyboard.jpg
CRAZYCRAZYCRAZYCRAZYCRAZYCRAZYCRAZYCRAZYCRAZYCRAZY CRAZYCRAZYCRAZY

I know. But hear me out. I don't just mean the controller... I mean the controller being used simultaneously for FOUR PLAYERS. What madness is this? Well, I experienced it playing a game I believe was called V8 Supercars or something similar.

Yeah. Like I said: madness.

[JustaBitOutside]

I don't think you're crazy at all... it just hadn't ever occurred to me until now how shitty it is :). I'm mostly a console gamer anyways.

[KAZMAIER]

I once owned a PS1 transparent controller if that counts.

[Jason]

Hah, do you know the worst thing about keyboards as multiplayer controllers? A lot of them won't even register more than 3-4 keypresses at once, so you're screwed if you want to do more than JUST walk forwards and shoot anyway. :p

[Noble1]

A keyboard and mouse isn't always bad, I like RTS games and the keyboard makes microing so much easier. I'm not saying a controller is'nt good enough for RTS games because i did own halo wars at one point but a keyboard is more useful.

[CemeteryGates]

Nah, I'm a firm believer that RTS games are for computer. Console strategy games feel extremely awkward. I remember playing StarCraft on N64... it was damn near impossible.

[Diachron]

I almost said the Steel Battalion 5 Million button monster.... but on second thought that controller is actually pretty damn cool! My only regret is not getting one.

The Fairchild Channel F controller is a strange one. I've got one in my basement. It's a weird plunger-joystick-limited-paddle-dongle thingy that never feels comfortable. You feel like you're either inflating a bicycle tire, or are about to press a TNT plunger!

http://flickeringcolours.net/v2/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/3869785046_d360508cf5.jpg

I bet Nintendo wish they thought of it!

(Much love to the big N, but yeah-- they have strange controller dreams).

[Nonsequitur]

A mouse and keyboard.

[Jason]

The Fairchild Channel F controller is a strange one. I've got one in my basement. It's a weird plunger-joystick-limited-paddle-dongle thingy that never feels comfortable. You feel like you're either inflating a bicycle tire, or are about to press a TNT plunger!

The hell is that thing?! What was that released for?

[Diachron]

The hell is that thing?! What was that released for?

That was the controller for: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairchild_Channel_F

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/55/Fairchild_channel-f_system_2.jpg

I still remember sitting in rapt attention with my friend over killer games like Shooting Gallery!

http://www.chris-hind.co.uk/images/faircat4.jpg

I used to drool over that ad..

[Jason]

Haha, wow... I thought I at least knew of most of the consoles out there, but that's a completely new one on me! Did you twist the knob on the end to move left/right?

[Diachron]

Yeah-- the knob would rotate approximately 45 degrees left and right. It was also a joystick.. AND a plunger.

So if you were controlling a gunslinger, you'd move knob to position him.. twist it to aim... and BLAM! Plunge it to shoot.

It sounds as awkward as it was. But at the time I was in heaven.

[Daggers]

I think the oddest/worst I've ever had to use/try to use have been, first and foremost, STEERING WHEEL controllers.

I just...can't work them lol, they're really odd and awkward I find using a regular controller is much better for driving games :/

I also remember having a go on a Skateboard controller which was just truly strange, I found it quite hard to work (but then I've never been able to skate...).

[Jack]

That was the controller for:
http://www.chris-hind.co.uk/images/faircat4.jpg

Doodle and Quadroodle!

[Whaturmuva]

R.O.B. for the NES looks like it was fun.

http://killass.lardpirates.com/nes/ROB/rob-stackup.jpg

[Diachron]

R.O.B. for the NES looks like it was fun.

Actually it was. It was also fun to hack-- somewhere in my garage is a breadboard we rigged with some potentiometers and arcade switches to bend poor R.O.B. to our will. We later bolted him to a platform which was in turn bolted to an RC truck, and it only went downhill from there. :D

[Jason]

I also remember having a go on a Skateboard controller which was just truly strange, I found it quite hard to work (but then I've never been able to skate...).

Ah, the infamous Tony Hawk's Ride! A game that got completely panned from just about every angle, yet Mr Hawk insisted that this was because 'people had already decided to hate it', prompting this beauty of a comic from the guys at Penny Arcade:

http://art.penny-arcade.com/photos/738306486_nMfjE-L.jpg

[Diachron]

Ah, the infamous Tony Hawk's Ride! A game that got completely panned from just about every angle, yet Mr Hawk insisted that this was because 'people had already decided to hate it', prompting this beauty of a comic from the guys at Penny Arcade:


Haha! Mr. Hawk is usually a rational fellow, but that comic is dead on.

[Br1ckt0p]

The NeGcon for playstation was a wetware musher. Many hours spent dislocating the wrists on TOCA touring cars with that one.

[Jason]

Ah, I remember that! It was a complete nightmare - I nearly ripped mine in half, if I recall correctly - it never quite twisted as far as I was expecting it to!

(Oh, and welcome to the forums! :))

[Br1ckt0p]

Thanks for the welcome. Yeah, I nearly ripped mine in half too. I loved the long analogue buttons though. In fact, it was a good controller when you got used to it. I set times with that I couldn't get close to with a d-pad.

Reminiscing, I've just come accross a photo of a Konix I used to use on the Spectrum. Odd if you haven't seen one before, but it was very good (if you were right handed).

http://www.cedmagic.com/tech-info/remote-control/epyx-500xj-joystick.jpg

[Salem]

The oddest is probably a tortoise joystick for Atari ST/Amiga. I use the term 'joystick' loosely because there was no stick... it was literally a tortoise. You put your hand on its back a bit like a giant mouse, and to move you tilted its shell in the direction you wanted. The button was one of the hexagon shapes making up the shell.

It was a pain in the arse at first, but once you got used to it, it was quite good!