My fav was the SNProgrampad
It was great because the 3 buttons that were around the diamond (a la GameCube) were programmable and supported macros. Made street fighter stupid easy.
Were any ever good? Is somebody making good ones now for old systems?
8Bitdo has controllers for the NES, SNES and Mega Drive/Genesis. They also sell a wireless dongle for the PlayStation.
Retro-bit, Retro Fighters, and Krikzz are a few more manufacturers I can think of making controllers with original ports.
In particular, Retro-bit’s Saturn Pro pad is…interesting, let’s say. I have also used Retro Fighters Striker Dreamcast pads - they’re quite nice.
In yonder days, a few companies like ASCII and Hori come up a lot for reliable stuff.
I remember we bought a third-party controller as an extra for our SNES back when that was a current system, but don’t remember the brand. We got it because it was less expensive than an official controller, but it also quickly became noticeably less reliable.
Define third party controller.
I have my Steel Battalion controller, which was required for the game. Best controller and gaming experience I have ever had. Worth every penny.
But does that count as a third party controller, especially since it can only play one game?
Regarding controllers that are more generic, I have found 8bitdo’s Pro+ pretty good, but I am not fond of the joystick placement. I had an Xbox One knock off controller that had the layout of a WiiU Pro controller and I loved that, but it was wired only and that was disappointing. I had a Wii Classic controller that was styled like a WiiU Pro controller and I liked that too, but it was only a Wii classic controller, and couldnt be used on basically anything other than the Wii (the vapor console Coleco Chameleon used images of it for its controller).
Negcon for the Playstation:
My favourite of the Namco controllers has to be the Jogcon that was bundled with Ridge Racer Type 4. Outside of steering wheels, I’d never come across feedback like it until PS5’s adaptive triggers. Shame there were so few compatible games.
The N64 Hori Pad or he SNES Scoremaster. Not sure if the Scoremaster counts, as it’s an arcade stick but I really like how it looks like the console itself.
Wow that SNES controller has DS5-E level of functions
The Turbo Touch was ahead of its time. Had one for my Genesis. No more blisters.
I had one for my snes I hated it lol
The snes controller was fine as it was but the regular Genesis controller was incredibly balky. So the turbo was a step up until I got the 6-button. Definitely took a lot of time to get used to.
I’m happy with the 8bitdo controllers I’ve picked up. They’re great if you like the official controllers, but want something wireless.
NES Advantage although technically that’s not a 3rd party.
I loved this thing as a kid https://www.oldschoolgamermagazine.com/crazy-controllers-the-super-pad-64/
Instead of three grips like a normal n64 controller, it had two. It combined the left and middle grips into one. So the d pad, analog stick, L, and Z buttons were all on one grip. I don’t know how the economics would hold up today, but they were great for me back then.
It also had turbo buttons, which is always nice.
