1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:06,640 Picture a gamepad. You know, kind of wide, two handles, two thumb sticks, 2 00:00:04,480 --> 00:00:10,280 some face buttons, a D-pad, and you know, some shoulder buttons, too. That's 3 00:00:08,560 --> 00:00:15,640 basically every controller ever at this point, right? But what if I told you 4 00:00:13,760 --> 00:00:20,360 that not only did some foresee this future over 20 years ago, we hit a lot 5 00:00:18,400 --> 00:00:24,520 of wacky potholes on the road to modern perfection. There's no shortage of 6 00:00:22,840 --> 00:00:28,720 fodder for a video like this. So, for today, we'll be ignoring intentionally 7 00:00:26,480 --> 00:00:32,400 weird controllers like chainsaws, katanas, and hip-hop logos. And instead, 8 00:00:31,280 --> 00:00:37,800 we're going to be sticking with some more technically and historically interesting specimens. Starting with the 9 00:00:35,960 --> 00:00:40,440 most historically interesting of the bunch. 10 00:00:46,320 --> 00:00:53,400 This absolute unit is called the XE-1AP, 11 00:00:50,680 --> 00:00:56,880 developed by Dempa Micom Soft in 1989 for the Sega Mega Drive and MSX 12 00:00:54,960 --> 00:01:00,360 compatible home computers. They're still around, by the way. One of 13 00:00:58,520 --> 00:01:03,360 their most famous products was actually the Framemeister, which has sadly been 14 00:01:02,040 --> 00:01:07,720 discontinued. The XE-1AP notably served as the 15 00:01:05,519 --> 00:01:12,040 inspiration for Sega's 3D control pad for Saturn, which [music] in turn was 16 00:01:09,840 --> 00:01:16,080 made into the Dreamcast controller, which inspired the original Xbox 17 00:01:13,720 --> 00:01:19,840 controller. Don't believe me? Check out these concept sketches from Xbox 18 00:01:17,720 --> 00:01:24,240 co-creator Seamus Blackley. That's right. You can trace the modern Xbox 19 00:01:21,880 --> 00:01:28,680 controller all the way back to this thing. 20 00:01:25,520 --> 00:01:32,360 But, uh, it's substantially bigger than 21 00:01:28,680 --> 00:01:34,200 even the Duke. So, how the heck do you 22 00:01:32,360 --> 00:01:38,080 do you even hold this thing? What works best for me is index and 23 00:01:36,280 --> 00:01:43,200 middle fingers on the shoulder buttons, thumbs on the sticks, and ring and pinky 24 00:01:40,640 --> 00:01:47,680 fingers holding the grips. It's not the most ergonomic setup in the 25 00:01:45,600 --> 00:01:52,920 world, but considering this had never been done before, it's not bad. That's 26 00:01:50,720 --> 00:01:56,800 right. Not only was this the first use of an analog thumb stick as we know them 27 00:01:54,760 --> 00:02:01,480 today on a controller, it was the first use of shoulder buttons and grips, too. 28 00:01:59,320 --> 00:02:05,920 Predating the Super Nintendo by a year, the N64 by 6 years, and the DualShock by 29 00:02:04,320 --> 00:02:11,280 8 years. Now, true 3D games weren't a thing on 30 00:02:08,640 --> 00:02:17,280 the MSX or Mega Drive in 1989, but Sega's 3D-like arcade games use analog 31 00:02:13,880 --> 00:02:20,120 controls. And home consoles didn't have 32 00:02:17,280 --> 00:02:22,120 analog controls, so Dempa made their own. 33 00:02:20,920 --> 00:02:26,520 The way the stick functions is shockingly simple. On the inside, the 34 00:02:24,400 --> 00:02:29,520 stem slips into two split half rings that overlap each other and connect the 35 00:02:27,880 --> 00:02:33,480 two potentiometers representing each axis. All that moving the joystick 36 00:02:32,120 --> 00:02:37,520 actually does is turn those potentiometers. The right stick only has 37 00:02:35,760 --> 00:02:41,840 one axis that serves as a throttle in most cases. And if you want to use it in 38 00:02:40,360 --> 00:02:46,520 a different orientation or even invert it, you can do that by simply 39 00:02:43,720 --> 00:02:50,640 twisting it. Neat. The controller itself has six face 40 00:02:48,720 --> 00:02:54,600 buttons, four switches, and four shoulder buttons. 41 00:02:52,080 --> 00:02:58,280 If you're keeping track at home, Sega pads at the time had four buttons, and 42 00:02:56,640 --> 00:03:02,080 later seven buttons was the best you got. The two face buttons on the right 43 00:03:00,800 --> 00:03:05,480 share the A and B buttons with the shoulder buttons on the same side, and 44 00:03:03,960 --> 00:03:11,480 the buttons on the left shoulder handle C and D. Now, D isn't a normal button on 45 00:03:09,760 --> 00:03:14,680 the Sega Genesis controller, and while it shows up in the options menu, it 46 00:03:13,040 --> 00:03:20,320 doesn't actually do anything that I can tell. The rest, I think, are for the MSX. A 47 00:03:18,320 --> 00:03:24,680 handful of Mega Drive games did support it, but because it didn't get released 48 00:03:22,680 --> 00:03:29,440 outside of Japan, and the Mega Drive was well behind both Nintendo and NEC there, 49 00:03:27,520 --> 00:03:34,680 it didn't gain widespread support. Unlike orders from lttstore.com, we got 50 00:03:31,920 --> 00:03:38,360 your back. Well, Dempa stuck to Japan. Advanced Gravis Computer Technology, 51 00:03:36,520 --> 00:03:42,480 founded right here in British Columbia, was far more prolific in the west, 52 00:03:39,960 --> 00:03:47,600 specifically in the PC peripheral space, with [music] the Gravis gamepad being 53 00:03:45,160 --> 00:03:51,720 the quintessential PC controller of its time. So much so that it was available 54 00:03:49,800 --> 00:03:56,600 for the Philips CDI, for better or worse. But, this test-like gamepad, while 55 00:03:54,560 --> 00:04:01,280 historically significant and interesting with its flippable controls, isn't as 56 00:03:58,880 --> 00:04:06,480 interesting as the PlayStation-like gamepad pro. While it was available in 57 00:04:03,960 --> 00:04:11,120 USB, the white game port version was special in what it did with a far more 58 00:04:08,600 --> 00:04:16,680 limited interface. I mean, look at it. 10 buttons. That alone is weird. Because 59 00:04:14,680 --> 00:04:22,560 the old PC game port can only support up to four axes and four buttons at best, 60 00:04:19,480 --> 00:04:25,880 half that at worst. How does it do it? 61 00:04:22,560 --> 00:04:28,640 Using what they called GRIP, or G R I P, 62 00:04:25,880 --> 00:04:33,960 which, as French blogger PolkoMandy discovered, is a 5-bit I squared C style 63 00:04:31,560 --> 00:04:38,640 interface using the first and second buttons for clock and data transfer. 64 00:04:36,800 --> 00:04:42,960 This means that not only does it only need up to 11 of the 15 pins on the 65 00:04:40,680 --> 00:04:48,640 port, it can theoretically support up to 11 buttons, 15 if you include the D-pad, 66 00:04:46,520 --> 00:04:53,440 and it can support multiple gamepads at once. Yeah, this was a big deal back in 67 00:04:51,800 --> 00:04:58,320 the day. Because of the way game ports worked, two controllers via a Y splitter 68 00:04:55,680 --> 00:05:01,720 would be limited to two buttons each. But, with GRIP, the second controller 69 00:05:00,360 --> 00:05:07,120 uses the buttons that would normally be used for the second controller for an additional serial connection. 70 00:05:05,200 --> 00:05:10,720 Gravis even made a four-controller hub using this technique, with each 71 00:05:08,360 --> 00:05:13,760 controller having eight buttons. Get subscribed, by the way, because we're 72 00:05:12,120 --> 00:05:17,960 going to look at a keyboard that has this kind of plug-in approach to 73 00:05:16,080 --> 00:05:21,480 peripherals for it that you're not going to want to miss. 74 00:05:19,760 --> 00:05:25,480 If you're wondering why I care about all this game port nonsense, it's because 75 00:05:23,160 --> 00:05:28,760 that USB just didn't catch on for game controllers in the early days, because 76 00:05:27,760 --> 00:05:33,560 well, you didn't have all that many ports. I mean, maybe you had two for your whole 77 00:05:32,440 --> 00:05:38,320 PC. Microsoft Sidewinder Force Feedback Pro, 78 00:05:35,920 --> 00:05:42,240 probably the best joystick of its time, only supported the game port, and also 79 00:05:40,760 --> 00:05:45,880 had a special mechanism created by Creative Labs to use the MIDI 80 00:05:44,000 --> 00:05:50,280 capabilities of the game port for bidirectional communication, rather than 81 00:05:48,200 --> 00:05:54,040 the traditional joystick protocol. It's that bidirectional communication 82 00:05:52,040 --> 00:05:56,840 that made force feedback possible, something Microsoft was pushing pretty 83 00:05:55,560 --> 00:06:00,120 hard at the time. Unlike Nintendo's contemporary Rumble 84 00:05:58,560 --> 00:06:04,960 Pak, which had a vibrating motor like we're all familiar with in modern controllers, the Force Feedback Pro had 85 00:06:03,480 --> 00:06:09,040 directionality and texture to its impulses, actually shaking the stick in 86 00:06:07,120 --> 00:06:12,960 response to in-game action. While the game port was seriously old by 87 00:06:11,160 --> 00:06:16,760 the time Microsoft finally retired it with Windows Vista, the effort that went 88 00:06:15,280 --> 00:06:20,760 into extending and improving it with features like this isn't talked about 89 00:06:18,680 --> 00:06:24,880 too often nowadays. But, they were vital in cultivating PC gaming around this 90 00:06:22,680 --> 00:06:28,120 time, and led to big features we'd see come back later. 91 00:06:26,360 --> 00:06:32,880 Speaking of which, a friend of mine from junior high actually owned a Freestyle 92 00:06:30,040 --> 00:06:38,760 Pro, a boomerang-shaped monstrosity that had terrible D-pad, but an extremely 93 00:06:35,400 --> 00:06:40,520 interesting analog control. Motion. 94 00:06:38,760 --> 00:06:44,840 Wikipedia describes it as similar to the six-axis controls found on PS3 and later 95 00:06:43,040 --> 00:06:48,920 Sony controllers, and I'd say that's about accurate. It was difficult to get 96 00:06:46,880 --> 00:06:53,560 used to back in the day, but it gave the controller a lot more utility than it 97 00:06:50,720 --> 00:06:58,240 had without it. And likely planted some seeds in future Sony engineers' minds. 98 00:06:56,600 --> 00:07:03,160 It straddled the line between USB and game port, and was one of the many controllers of its time that hedged its 99 00:07:01,360 --> 00:07:06,840 bets by including a game port to USB adapter in the box. 100 00:07:04,880 --> 00:07:10,760 Microsoft had a lot of other wacky ideas in the pre-Xbox years, but few others 101 00:07:08,960 --> 00:07:14,800 truly caught on. Let's come back to the Sega days for our 102 00:07:12,480 --> 00:07:20,520 final controller. You ever get fatigued when playing games? You know, cramps, 103 00:07:17,600 --> 00:07:25,920 blisters, numb thumb? Well, the Turbo Touch 360 from Triax is 104 00:07:23,840 --> 00:07:30,240 here to save the day. This was available on the NES, Genesis, and Super NES, and 105 00:07:28,160 --> 00:07:34,680 did away with Gunpei Yokoi's historic invention entirely, replacing it with 106 00:07:33,160 --> 00:07:39,520 this thing. "No need to push," they say. "This 107 00:07:38,040 --> 00:07:42,520 technology breakthrough NVIDIA game control uses a capacitive touch sensor 108 00:07:41,400 --> 00:07:47,960 instead." Otherwise, it's pretty much a standard Genesis controller with nuclear yellow 109 00:07:45,720 --> 00:07:50,880 90s styling and turbo switches. Clearly, Triax was confident in this 110 00:07:49,560 --> 00:07:55,360 technology, though, with their higher scores or your money back guarantee as 111 00:07:52,760 --> 00:08:00,720 seen on TV style marketing. So, hey, maybe it's better than I let on. 112 00:07:58,480 --> 00:08:04,760 So, compared to a regular controller, this gives you way finer control. Like, 113 00:08:02,840 --> 00:08:09,200 I can adjust the throttle any way I want. I can go pretty much wherever I 114 00:08:06,800 --> 00:08:12,880 want immediately on the screen. Whereas before, with a controller, doing that 115 00:08:11,160 --> 00:08:16,920 kind of stuff, like holding right here, would actually be kind of difficult. The 116 00:08:14,800 --> 00:08:20,040 thumb stick is really tall, actually. So, that makes it a little bit awkward, 117 00:08:18,840 --> 00:08:24,880 aside from all the other things that make it awkward. But, can't argue with 118 00:08:22,480 --> 00:08:28,560 the results. It works. Like, that's pretty good first three stages, I think. 119 00:08:26,760 --> 00:08:32,039 But, yeah, holding it for extended periods of time like this, or at least 120 00:08:30,000 --> 00:08:36,360 holding it up like this, probably not the best idea. It's not ergonomically 121 00:08:34,479 --> 00:08:39,640 sound, and it is, uh, pretty pretty heavy. But, yeah, I kind of feel like 122 00:08:38,159 --> 00:08:44,800 I'm just you moving a mouse and clicking on stuff. This is ridiculously easy 123 00:08:42,520 --> 00:08:48,680 compared to, uh, using a gamepad with a regular D-pad. All right, let's switch 124 00:08:46,960 --> 00:08:53,160 to the other controller, then. Let's, uh, let's start with the Turbo 125 00:08:50,480 --> 00:09:00,381 Touch. See how this compares to the, um, XE-1AP. 126 00:08:55,040 --> 00:09:02,040 Uh, okay. Oh. Oh, no. Uh, 127 00:09:00,381 --> 00:09:06,880 [laughter] I, yeah, th- this this doesn't feel like 128 00:09:04,320 --> 00:09:09,960 I have any control at all, actually. I I touch it, and it's 129 00:09:10,120 --> 00:09:15,960 I mean, the controller works. I think my thumb is just too fat. It's like 130 00:09:13,320 --> 00:09:18,760 triggering multiple directions. But, uh, hey, at least I didn't die for the first 131 00:09:17,480 --> 00:09:23,000 three stages. Uh, significantly worse score. Uh, 132 00:09:20,800 --> 00:09:27,040 that's that's a thing. Yeah, like I basically never get an 133 00:09:25,360 --> 00:09:30,960 opportunity to lock on and fire anything, because I'm not actually able 134 00:09:28,880 --> 00:09:33,400 to point at anything. Yeah, I think there is something where I'm going to 135 00:09:31,920 --> 00:09:37,200 probably have to open this up and tweak those potentiometers. 136 00:09:35,040 --> 00:09:41,720 Uh, and if you rest your thumb on it, it's like, okay, kind of kind of works, 137 00:09:39,760 --> 00:09:47,240 but like now I'm constantly actuating something, so 138 00:09:43,880 --> 00:09:49,200 I can't I can't sweep my thumb in the 139 00:09:47,240 --> 00:09:53,760 kind of directions they say you can, like circular motions are easier now. 140 00:09:51,800 --> 00:09:57,360 That doesn't feel like it's a thing. I I don't know. 141 00:09:55,440 --> 00:10:01,200 It was not better than I let on. But, hey, that's not to say that the 142 00:09:58,880 --> 00:10:04,600 technology is bad necessarily. We're seeing its descendants make its way into 143 00:10:02,920 --> 00:10:09,480 controllers like the DualSense and Steam's upcoming Steam Deck. So, the 144 00:10:06,760 --> 00:10:12,880 idea was sound, it just it's not good for this purpose. If you 145 00:10:11,680 --> 00:10:17,920 open it up, you can see the metal capacitive plates that you're actually interacting with under the D-pad, as 146 00:10:16,360 --> 00:10:21,760 well as potentiometers you can tweak to adjust their sensitivity if need be. 147 00:10:19,960 --> 00:10:25,320 It's a pretty complicated PCB compared to most controllers of the time, but 148 00:10:23,640 --> 00:10:30,760 unfortunately, that didn't save it from bombing. It's conceivable you could get faster 149 00:10:28,440 --> 00:10:34,640 input if you got used to it, but at $15 more than a first-party 150 00:10:32,520 --> 00:10:38,880 controller, it was a steep ask to give up tactile feedback in the name of 151 00:10:36,280 --> 00:10:42,160 faster actuation. Come to think of it, gaming keyboards 152 00:10:40,840 --> 00:10:45,840 have been doing that for a while now, too. I maybe they were just too ahead of 153 00:10:44,760 --> 00:10:51,800 their time. There's far more controllers like these than we have time to talk about in one 154 00:10:49,000 --> 00:10:55,360 video. Like this Jet Fighter controller. And not all weird controllers are from 155 00:10:53,400 --> 00:10:58,520 the '90s. I just happen to own a few of them. Let us know what you think are the 156 00:10:57,040 --> 00:11:01,240 weirdest controllers, and maybe I can convince Linus to do another video like 157 00:11:00,040 --> 00:11:06,720 this one. But I don't need to convince him to let me do a sponsor segway to iFixit. 158 00:11:05,320 --> 00:11:10,200 Thanks to iFixit for sponsoring today's video. iFixit makes it affordable to fix 159 00:11:08,960 --> 00:11:14,360 or upgrade your devices using their custom fix kits. The Nintendo Switch has 160 00:11:12,520 --> 00:11:18,240 an all-in-one kit to fix Joy-Con drift for only $19.99 US. They also have 161 00:11:16,800 --> 00:11:22,040 iPhone screen replacement kits from $74.99 US. All the kits come with all 162 00:11:21,040 --> 00:11:26,920 the parts you'll need to do your repairs. They include their precision bits, opening tools, and suction cups to 163 00:11:25,640 --> 00:11:31,000 make the installation as easy as possible. And you get repair guides by 164 00:11:29,520 --> 00:11:34,920 iFixit with clear photos and instructions to prevent getting lost 165 00:11:32,680 --> 00:11:38,040 when getting deep into the repair. Check out our link to iFixit down in the 166 00:11:36,040 --> 00:11:41,480 description to buy your kit today. Thanks for watching, guys. This was a 167 00:11:39,839 --> 00:11:44,920 different kind of video, so I don't really have a related video for you to 168 00:11:42,880 --> 00:11:48,680 look at. You know what? All of these should work 169 00:11:46,880 --> 00:11:51,760 in Linux with adapters. So, go check out my how to install Linux video because 170 00:11:50,280 --> 00:11:55,480 it's getting way more relevant as the Steam Deck gets closer to release.