What was the best control pad?

[SignOfZeta]

OK, something I found regarding analog sticks; evidently they were used first, before digital sticks were. I guess this shouldn't really be surprising since early games were all discrete logic and had no real memory, or CPUs, or digital encoding or anything, so making use of a digital stick would be harder than making use of an analog one.

http://gamasutra.com/features/20070323/edwards_01.shtml

Gamasutra: What was the very first video game you created? Was it the "pumping" game?

Ralph Baer: No, the very first thing was first to put one spot up. Once we had one spot up and we knew how to move that around, we said, "Oh, let's put two up and chase each other, and wipe one out when you catch up with him." The "chase game" was the first.

The unit is down in the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria. It's already been played by probably ten thousand school kids in the last year. And it's just a lot of fun. And it's played with joysticks. We had joysticks wired up to stuff. I made very, very inexpensive analog joysticks. You chase around, and if you're clever enough, [you] keep dodging the guy who's chasing you, and it's exciting! It's two frigging spots on screen and it makes one exciting game.

[nat]

I used my Battle Pad for the first time the other day.

IMHO, this is by far the worst controller ever made for the PCE/Turbo platform. At least, the worst one I have ever used.

The only thing going for it is it's shape, which actually makes it pretty comfortable to hold. So what's wrong with it, then? For starters, the turbo switches are mounted along the top edge of the controller. They are in the center, out of reach of BOTH hands without completely letting go of one side. This makes toggling them in mid-action impossible. But the real killer here is the D-pad. The D-pad is a crosshair shape, unlike the circular design 90% of all other Turbo controllers use. And it's STIFF. These two factors make diagonal moves in shooters impossible.

So what good is it? About the only time this controller would ever be of use is in a slow platformer where diagonal movement doesn't exist and toggling turbo speeds isn't vital. It's too bad, too, since the ergonomic design is kind of cool and very comfortable to hold.

[esteban]

Look what happened to my NEC Avenue 6 pad and my extension cable:

Holy crap, I hope that never happens to me. I'd remember if it already had, wouldn't I? Seriously...

[esteban]

BATTLE PAD: Verdict

That pad is nasty imo as I've owned it in the past!  I find the directional way to stiff and unresponsive for my liking.. and also the directional control I felt was too far apart from the buttons making it feel a bit awkward to hold.. maybe someone with bigger hands might appreciate it but not me!

I used my Battle Pad for the first time the other day.

IMHO, this is by far the worst controller ever made for the PCE/Turbo platform. At least, the worst one I have ever used.

The only thing going for it is it's shape, which actually makes it pretty comfortable to hold. So what's wrong with it, then? For starters, the turbo switches are mounted along the top edge of the controller. They are in the center, out of reach of BOTH hands without completely letting go of one side. This makes toggling them in mid-action impossible. But the real killer here is the D-pad. The D-pad is a crosshair shape, unlike the circular design 90% of all other Turbo controllers use. And it's STIFF. These two factors make diagonal moves in shooters impossible.

So what good is it? About the only time this controller would ever be of use is in a slow platformer where diagonal movement doesn't exist and toggling turbo speeds isn't vital. It's too bad, too, since the ergonomic design is kind of cool and very comfortable to hold.

Well, I must say, you both seem to corroborate each other. The fact that this pad is so different from the usual PCE pad makes it kinda interesting. I wouldn't mind trying it out for the novelty of it.

[nat]

Yeah, it's really not that bad in a game like, say, Keith Courage where diagonal movement and turbo-switching isn't integral to gameplay.

I really do like the shape and feel of the pad. It's too bad the actual control sucks for most games.

[grahf]

Look what happened to my NEC Avenue 6 pad and my extension cable:

Hey joe, is it the pad or the extension cable that came apart? If its the extension cable, i'm interested in it for a project. If its the pad, then i'll trade you a good one for the extension cable