Evolution of gaming console controllers
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Controllers for gaming consoles have evolved over time to become easier to use and provide more value to players. Early controllers were more difficult to use and provided only basic control of games, while modern controllers are more intuitive and support enhanced gameplay through features that engage and entertain players. The evolution of controllers has increased the ease of use and play value for gaming consoles.
Evolution of gaming console controllers
Editor's Notes
- Borrowed knowledge Play Value @ onnetworks.com Peppered with my experiences
- Mainstream gaming started with arcades History of video games predates them What are arcades? - watering holes for alternate experiences
- 1971 first arcade game computer space
- Fly around shooting UFOs
- Fail 4 buttons; too many Unnatural placement Poor coordination between action and effect Wide gulf of evaluation
- Year later (1972) Pong One of the most popular games of all times Still being cloned
- Essentially oversimplified 2D tennis
- 1 control! Instant hit Very intuitive Not alien, not computer Just another device
- 1979 Asteroids Essentially computer space clone Just that you shoot asteroids instead of flying saucers
- Almost exact same controls as computer space But a big hit! Why? - People were ready
- People had developed necessary hand eye coordination learned to associate strange actions with seemingly unrelated outcomes
- Pong interface wasnt natural 際際滷r vs dial But dial more familiar than slider Smaller norman gulfs And outcome immediately associatble Limited actions and outcomesa
- Around the same time (1977) Atari 2600 comes out Took gaming to home No longer have to go to arcade
- Single platform for 100s of games Problem with having that many games Each game cant have custom controls
- One controller to rule them all! Stick And Button Return to natural, physical actions Not having to relate strange actions with crazy outcomes Ubiquity of actions Extension of body
- Lessons learned from aviation Keep it real Pilots have to react fast and instinctively/naturally WW II Spitfire
- Up until now every game had its own controller Trackball Wheel Gun Foot pads
- Japanese invasion 1985, NES Reinvent consoles - stand apart Reinvent controller
- D-pad and 2 buttons Still minimalist still zen! But actually,
- they stole it! Game & Watch handhelds Donkey Kong Mario -> Super Mario Bros But gamers still skeptical
- But very popular People got used to it quickly So popular Spawned a whole line of controllers as games got complicated Required more interactions More subtle interactions we add more buttons On pad shoulder Way of the future Displaced joysticks Displaced Atari And then
- Explosion of console market Sega Genesis Sega Dreamcast Nintendo Gamecube Analog triggers- continuous functions Analog controls- return of the joystick More nuanced control In 3D worlds More than discreet up-down-left-right 360 buttons
- Those Japs just dont stop! PS2 (1997) 2 sticks More free movement Triggers, shoulders Best of all
- MS Xbox Xbox 360 Wireless Sonys answer
- was nothing short of a revolution!!! DS3 wireless 6 axis accel Games that played back Dual independent force feed back Old ideas combined well Meanwhile, Nintendo has been sidelined But, finally, in 2006 the veteran samurai awakens
- to usher in a new age in interaction
- Wii and
- Wiimote No more translation Direct physical actions Closer to total immersion Simplicity More zen