Nintendo has always been interested in the ways that users interface with the worlds inside games. They see games as being more about the player’s physical presence than an effort to make the player disappear into the game, and their controller designs reflect this philosophy.

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Nintendo has contributed a number of great innovations to player control over the decades, from direction controls to button inputs. The company is so bent on innovation that almost all of its controllers are different from one another, each one a bizarre and sometimes grotesque mutation, but each also telling its own story. But which controller rules them all? Let’s examine each console’s main controller hardware and find out. We are counting only the controllers bundled as standard with each Nintendo system, and each one will be examined with the corresponding era in mind.

7. Wii U GamePad: Nintendo's Answer To A Question No One Asked


Miyamoto indicated that the Wii U Gamepad would have added an additional $100 to the retail price. Unfortunately, even Nintendo couldn’t come up with a use for the GamePad that made the RRP appealing.
The games that center most around the gimmick—like Nintendo Land, Game & Wario, and Star Fox Zero—received mediocre reviews. One of the best uses of the GamePad was Zombie U, and even that was because the developers recognized that shifting one’s gaze was inherently a detriment and used it as a challenge in the gameplay. Zelda producer Eiji Aonuma similarly later admitted the feature was abandoned for Breath of the Wild because it proved during development to be distracting.

While the GamePad successfully minimized lag to its screen, second screen mechanics were already viable enough through widely available smart devices. And even so, the functionality hasn’t been put to much use on PlayStation or Xbox consoles, and the Switch doesn’t support the feature at all. Hardly the gamechanger it was hoped to be.

6. Nintendo GameCube Controller: Reincarnating Electronics


Gamecube controller

A disadvantage of the GC controller is that it wasn’t on par with its competition in terms of number of inputs. It lacked a left shoulder button, only featuring one on the right called Z. Its two sticks weren’t clickable, and it had no Select button next to Start/Pause. Having four less buttons was one of the aspects that made cross-platform titles difficult to port over. Sometimes strangeness is a strength of Nintendo, but sometimes it’s a weakness.

In 2001, however, pressure-sensitive analog triggers, such as L2 and R2 on the DualShock 2, were relatively new. The GameCube’s controller prominently sported this feature, which proved useful in precision and functionality. Strangely, after the GameCube, Nintendo abandoned detection of multiple degrees of pressure in its consoles’ controllers, and the company hasn’t looked back since.

5. Wii Remote: Looks Like A Channel Changer, Plays Like A Gamechanger

Wii remotes


The shape of a TV remote combined with the simplicity of one big button was so intuitive that anyone with any techno-literacy could grasp it. Reggie Fils-Aime’s successful campaign for Wii Sports to be packed in with the console provided a definitive proof of concept, and a new fad was in full force.

However, the comparative lack of inputs caused a shoehorning in of motion controls where digital input was more practical, and third-party titles were absent or compromised—partially due to the unconventional nature of the controllers.

4. Nintendo 64 Controller: Hard Mode For Holding Things

Nintendo 64 controller

Named the Control Stick, the Nintendo 64’s thumbstick allowed 360 degrees of character/cursor movement. Miyamoto originally considered the first 3D Super Mario game for release on the SNES, but he moved it to the N64 primarily because of its controller. Launching with the system, Super Mario 64 came to define what the N64 was all about—multidirectional freedom in fully 3D environments. Without such an appropriate input method, it is doubtful that the console would have claimed its codename of Project Reality. The importance of analog control right at your thumb tip still remains king. When it comes to the counterintuitive three-pronged design, that’s a different story.

3. NES Controller: Making Rectangles Fun

NES controller


More than just a stick with a single button, the NES controller came to define every console made since its inception. The + Control Pad, often called the directional pad or d-pad, was popularized on home consoles by the NES. Some Game & Watch units previously integrated it, but the NES truly illustrated its versatility. As far as digital movement in games was concerned, the D-pad was the future. The controller’s Start and Select buttons were handy enough to have remained in some form for over three decades, and the classic A and B face buttons have featured on all of Nintendo’s consoles since. However, the design was overly geometric. The sharp corners weren’t a good idea then and they aren’t a good idea now.

2. Joy-Con: Drifting Redefined

The Nintendo Switch’s Joy-Con controllers are essentially a full realization of the two-handed concept innovated for the Wii. The important difference, however, is symmetry, both between Joy-Con-L and Joy-Con-R and with other platforms’ controllers. Nothing is compromised in number of inputs. Motion control is still present but not required, providing the best of both worlds.

The Joy-Con’s true USP (unique selling point) comes in the form of their versatility: they can be used vertically or horizontally, by one or multiple players, and independent from each other or connected together in the same grip. The fact that two-player support is granted out of the box with the standard Switch didn’t hurt either. Their small size and poor reliability, however, prevent the Joy-Con from taking the crown.

1. Super NES Controller: Curvy Perfection

SNES controller

While manufacturers still struggle to create the ideal controller for 3D gaming, the Super Nintendo controller represents the Golden Age of 2D. The SNES controller didn’t even innovate as much as it refined, but its design is the most enduring of any Nintendo controller. Squint at any modern controller and you will see the SNES pad. Its shoulder buttons and four-button diamond-shaped layout have been with us since the SNES first brought them in. We didn’t have analogue input, vibration, or microphones back then, but as far as the 2D era is concerned, the Super Nintendo’s controller was the ultimate archetype.

NEXT: The PS2 Controller's Secret Feature Paved The Way For The DualSense