Worst Control Pad Ever

[Raccoon Lad]

Choose the crappiest one based on any critera you want. There were many controll pads, and many poor/not so great designs. The NES pad is hard and square, and causes blisters. The SMS pad is lacking a bit in the pause button department, and the directional pad is designed to make pushing any direction exept a diagonal difficult. The hard to find (in the US at least)7800 pad had a mini joystick that not many people liked. And I'm adding anything else I can think of to fill out the poll.

[MankeyMan]

Out of the choices, the Xbox has the worst controller, however I hate the dual shock PS1 and PS2, the analogue ticks are far too rubbery.

[congobongo]

Though not on the list, the Intellivision II, IMO is the worst controller I've ever used. I think MankeyMan must have baby-hands if he doesn't like the xbox controller (It's solid, a good weight, and comfortably fits an adults hands).

[Captain Wrong]

Shoot I wanted to vote Intellivision also. 1 or 2, it doesn't matter to me. I find these to be the worst (yes, worse than the 5200) controllers of all time.

Shame, because other than that I like the system.

[Raccoon Lad]

Intellivision, Colecovision, Channel F, Atari 2600, Atari 5200, ect. don't count, they're not controll PAD's, they're all Joysticks, exept the Intellivision, which falls into it's own category of "what were they smoking when they designed this?"
I was gonna add a few more, but it seems the poll is limited to 10 choices, so I dropped PS2, Gamecube, and Dreamcast.

[Sniderman]

Haven't played an Xbox, so I can't comment. I always hated the NES pads though. It was like trying to hold a calculator sideways and using that. Very anemic...

[MankeyMan]

I think MankeyMan must have baby-hands if he doesn't like the xbox controller.

Nope, I just don't like it.

[jaydubnb]

Without a doubt, the original Genesis controller. I-hate- that piece of junk. No gamer should be unfortunate enough to play with it.

[NE146]

I dont have a problem with any of those pads with the exception of the SMS pad which always seemed real 'loose'...

I liked the nes pads quite a bit. It was the G&W control scheme brought to the home videogame front! Gotta give them credit for innovation that's for sure.

[ShinobiMan]

What's wrong with the SMS pad? It's really not much of a problem for such a simple controller. The one problem for me is the lack of a pause button.

For me, the Atari 7800 Joy Stick was absoloutely the worst thing I ever put in my hand. I still despise the little thing, and I use my SMS controller with the 7800 games instead.

[dhorgan]

The one I'd pick would be the Atari Jaguar. I -hate- that controller.

I think the Dreamcast would be my second choice. I play a game for over five minutes and my hands start to hurt.

[Mayhem]

Thank you... you missed out the JAGUAR!!!

Though from what you listed... X-box easily...

[buttasuperb]

the worst controller ive used alot is the dreamcast. the only thing i liked about it was the placement of the analog stick. ive only played xbox once or twice, and i dont really like that controller either. too big. cant comment on the newer smaller xbox controller.

[6502]

Nintendo 64's pad gets my vote. The three prong design was too cramped for me. I'd have preferred Nintendo simply dropped that third prong with the D-pad (almost useless anyway since few games used it) and went with a symmetrical two prong design. I saw a 3rd party N64 pad once designed like that (by Hori? I can't remember). Should have picked one up.

[tom]

I hate ALL joypads, the design is the wrong way around ('Control' left, 'fire' right). Nintendo has a lot to answer for. Bring back the joystick.

[CrazyImpmon]

I voted for XBox because it is way too big for comfort and you gotta shell out another $30 just for a smaller controller :P Bill Gate$ must have a very small "plaything" if he choose to make the XBOX and it's controller the size of a Greyhound bus.

I would have voted for Intellivision if they were listed.

[Achika]

I'm gonna go with Xbox. Even with these adult female hands, it's too big to handle. Even the controller S is too big around....Erm, anyway. I just don't like it. None of the third party controllers seem to help me out either and if the XBox-PSX controller convertors worked properly, I'd get one.


Anybody think that these controllers are kinda Falic?

[Felixthegamer]

I'd have to go with the Genesis controller. It just never felt right to me. I am not quite sure why. It is an okay controller, I suppose. I will also go on record, I like the Xbox controller. I have big meat hooks and a large controller is nice. My roommate hates it and bought the smaller controller S. She seems to like it.

[Kidnemo]

The 5200 pad, and the original xbox controller are probably two of my least favorite pads of all time...

[Buyatari]

I vote a write in vote for the 5200.

I don't care if its not classified as such it sucks soo bad it wins anyway.

Adam

[den68]

the N64 controller gets my vote. It's friggin' huge (even more so with one of those memory card/tremor pak combos), has a glut of buttons, and it pisses me off that you have to hold it differently depending on what game you're playing.

[Ascending Wordsmith]

That N64 pad drives me bonkers. 'A' and 'B' buttons, directional pad, direction buttons, a mini joystick, and a trigger. Way to overdo it Nintendo! That joystick can turn your palm into a smoldering mass of decrepit flesh!

[Astro Lad]

Though I like the pad itself, the single worst button ever is the GameCube's 'Z' button, with the X-Box's black and white button (on either type of pad) being a very close second.

[Cryomancer]

Ps2 controller sucks the ass.

N64 is probably the best FPS controller on a console short of the dreamcast mouse/keyboard.

[Saabmeister]

Personally, almost all of the controllers have run across felt good in my hands. I've always liked the Intellivisions disc, I have no problem with the squareness of the original NES controller, I avoided using a Dual Shock for so long because I liked the original so much. The worst controller I've used is the original Xbox controller. It was just too damn big, and the button placement and use seemed just akward to me. The S did a much better job, good size, but still weird.

[EnemyZero]

n64 def gets my vote, I LOATHE it , stupid z button on the back, and the controll stick in the middle, what kinda crack were they on when they made that :o

[vintagegamecrazy]

Sorry to bring up an old topic but I like this poll. I just voted for the 7800 (US original) they aren't even the most uncomfortable but they just wore too quickly and got stiff and sluggish and useless.

Lets mull over this topic some more my fellow gamers.

[Sotenga]

I'm adept with most of those pads, though the N64 one was very unorthodox. That's a weird place to put the joystick, in my opinion.

[Daria]

I'm gonna go with Xbox. Even with these adult female hands, it's too big to handle. Even the controller S is too big around....Erm, anyway. I just don't like it. None of the third party controllers seem to help me out either and if the XBox-PSX controller convertors worked properly, I'd get one.


Anybody think that these controllers are kinda Falic?

Nothing's more phallic then the n64 design. Erm... except for joysticks anyway.

And I don't get the whole XboX controller rant. I mean yeah it's hefty, but size wise it's really no bigger thn a dreamcast controller. I mean I have small hands but I can use it without any problems, in fact I find the L controller more comfortable then the S.

Anyway my vote would go towards that NES controller with the circle you were supose to slide around with your thumb instead of a d-pad. I forget what it was called but I could never get the hang of using it.

[Azazel]

Definity the PSX controllers.

[Ninja Blacksox]

Anyway my vote would go towards that NES controller with the circle you were supose to slide around with your thumb instead of a d-pad. I forget what it was called but I could never get the hang of using it.

The NES Max.

But it did have turbo buttons. Thus, it was crucial for success in "Track and Field II." You can't take that away from it.

Give me the Max over the NES Advantage any day of the week and twice on Sundays. The joystick-ball-thingy kept falling off of the Advantage.

-A Boy

[Kroogah]

I hate to do this to ya Raccoon Lad, but just last night I was playin' OutRun on my SMS and after about 3 or 4 accidental shifts back down to first gear I turned it off.

[MarioAllStar2600]

Definatly N64. When you get used to it, it's a half decent controller. But when you are playing a different system then try and play a game on that system it sucks so bad. Plus there are buttonf you cant reach. Who the the hell designs a controller like that?

[Dahne]

Yeah, the N64 controller was terrible. I never could reach the C buttons, and after half an hour my poor thumb called the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Digits on me.

The Genesis' wasn't very good, either. The cord was too short and stiff, and the buttons take some serious effort to press.

[Raedon]

You don't know gaming PAIN till you've used the PAIN-LINE!! :smash:

[-hellvin-]

I'm going to have to go with the sega master system pad. It just seems to be the worst peice of shit controller I've ever used.

[Retsudo]

I voted for N64. And another vote for Dreamcast.

[dreamcaster]

Out of the ones listed here, I vote for the NES control pad. The directional pad is so uncomfortable and the design is too angular.

At least on the SMS they rounded the corners a little, made it a bit smaller and made the directional pad more comfortable.

The one that isn't listed here is the GameCube. I consider this to be one of the least useable controllers ever created. It's like the designers thought: "It's great for Mario - f#ck any other type of game!"

The button array is totally useless. This should've been just a standard 'two-over-two' array. The analogue-click trigger buttons are a nice idea, but when it comes to gameplay, they don't serve any useful purpose. The z-trigger is just a tacked on after thought.

It is a very comfortable to controller to hold when you're not playing anything. It's just when I start using it, all these flaws become apparent and I can't stand using the thing.

[FantasiaWHT]

The one that isn't listed here is the GameCube. I consider this to be one of the least useable controllers ever created. It's like the designers thought: "It's great for Mario - f#ck any other type of game!"

The button array is totally useless. This should've been just a standard 'two-over-two' array. The analogue-click trigger buttons are a nice idea, but when it comes to gameplay, they don't serve any useful purpose. The z-trigger is just a tacked on after thought.

It is a very comfortable to controller to hold when you're not playing anything. It's just when I start using it, all these flaws become apparent and I can't stand using the thing.

I disagree, the GC controller is great for what it was designed for- 1-2 button games where you can do 90%+ of what you need to do with A and B. I love it.

As for analogue click trigger functions, how about Pikmin?
Z trigger is nice because you don't need to use it when action is hot and heavy for the most part. It's not easily accesible, sure, but it doesn't really need to be.

[MegaDrive20XX]

What about GameCube? No offense to fans, but jesus age christ..CVS2 had no business on Cube.

I agree with Dreamcast having a horrible setup as well..

7800, oh ya...god I hate that thing.

[swlovinist]

The 5200 by far is my least favorite......as for voting, I hate the 7800 controller. I think my hand cramps up just thinking about holding it. I think I have alot of issues with the three consoles that are out now. The "hamburger" Xbox controller very much for the new consoles...my big problem and question is...was it too had to ask for 6 face buttons lined up correctly O_O What makes it worse is that Microsoft bragged that they went out and questioned "hardcore gamers" to ask for their imput on their controller design LOL If it was so great, why did they release a newer controller so quickly? Not to leave Nintendo out of the frustration, what the hell? The Gamecube controller the more I play with it...just sucks. It should be called "push the green button" controller. It does not have the durability and quality of the golden years of the Nes and Snes. The PS2 is a great controller, but is it to hard to ask for a dam actual D pad O_O . I think its nappy time for me, any more ranting and Ill be considered an asshole

[Nesmaster]

i dont hate the xbox controller, but i do hate the controller S, but since theres no option for that xbox gets my vote :D

[TEXASGAMEPLAYER]

SMS when it first came out the cord was attached to the right side instead of the top. So you had to play with the cord stuck between two of your fingers on your right hand!!!! And then it had a mini joystick you could attach to the middle of the pad. Still don't know anyone who can use it with the joystick attachment.

[Push Upstairs]

N64 Controller

No Sir, I didnt like it!


That analog stick needed to be farther on the left side of the controller to be confortable.

And that trigger button...I won't even go there.

What the hell happened Nintendo? You had a fine controller with the SNES then things went sour after that.

[potatobob]

I hated the N64 controller.

It always hurt my hand if i played for a long time becuase i never held it the right way.

[Ernster]

Xbox is the worst. Huge, heavy, buttons are too close together and they hurt your fingers after a while.

N64 the worst? You guys are crazy..I love that control @_@

[Aussie2B]

I have to agree with Ernster here; I don't think I'll ever understand all the hatred for the N64 controller. I guess it just goes hand-in-hand (haha, bad pun) with the fact that many people hate the N64 period. Anyway, I found it extremely comfortable and natural from day one, and even if I don't play N64 for years, it takes me absolutely no adjusting to get used to it again (which is much more than I can say for a lot of controllers). It's a shame that it doesn't have a very good D-pad, though, and I will admit that it can be painful with games that have stupid control schemes like Mischief Makers.

In general, I'm not much of a controller hater. I have few problems with most I've used. The square shape of the NES controller doesn't bug me much, and the SNES and N64 are my two favorites. I'm not too crazy about the GameCube controller (mostly because it looks kind of stupid), but it's still pretty comfortable. The PSX original controller and Dual Shock are both good, and the PS2 controller, being a near copy of the PSX Dual Shock, is also nice. If I had to pick my least liked controllers, I'd go with the uber-small GBC/GBA controls, the annoying 3-button line-up of the Genesis controller, and the painful bicycle handles that are known as a Dreamcast controller.

Probably what gives me the most problems, as much as I love it... is the Neo Geo arcade button set-ups. I'm sorry SNK, but I'm a chick with small hands. It is NOT possible for me to stretch my hand apart wide enough to cover all four buttons at once. Even if I could, it wouldn't help me much because my ring finger and pinky are so small and delicate that they lack to the strength and dexterity to make for efficient button-pressers.

[PhoeniX]

Dude the Intellivision controller needs to be on that list, I love the system but man the controller sucks!
Of the options given I gotta go with the TG16 controller... I know I'm aparently the only one but I freeking hate the two-foot cord length, sure at the age of ten I sat that close to the tv, but whereas my taste in video games hasn't changed much my seating requirements have.

BTW... I LOVE THE (BIG) XBOX CONTROLLER!!!... sorry, I just had to say that.

[charitycasegreg]

I love ps controllers and nes ones...dang. I voted for x boxif its the old huge ones. The smaller ones are ok and the n64 controller is bad too. Its ok for some stuff like 007...but sucks on a lot of games.

[thegreatescape]

N64 easy. I never really liked it much, but when i saw a stick that felt like it was going to drop out from sheer looseness i just gave up @_@

Its a shame that 3rd party n64 controllers are so uncommon.

[scorch56]

Nintendo 64's pad gets my vote. The three prong design was too cramped for me. I'd have preferred Nintendo simply dropped that third prong with the D-pad (almost useless anyway since few games used it) and went with a symmetrical two prong design. I saw a 3rd party N64 pad once designed like that (by Hori? I can't remember). Should have picked one up.

Couldn't agree more. I HATE that thing. Did you ever notice how 90% of the game manuals had you hold the damn thing in that awkward-assed way where you only utilized half the pad anyway? What the hell was that?

[Neonsolid]

Gone.

[Kamino]

where is nintendo 64's three pronged piece of crap in this poll? god, i hate those things. I'll take a colecovision controller over that crap.

[demented-yoshi]

Since when was the nes controller bad? I devised my on little way of holding it most people I play nes hold the area where the sholder buttons would be I dont maknig it a extreamly comfortably controller the snes is great and the n64 what the hells wrong with the N64 everyone I know loves it.a bad controller is the first genesis one i hate it big and uncomfortable the buttpn organization is ok though I hated xbox the buttons are to cloce together and theirs to many buttons the play station controllers are ok except the anologes i hate those things and last off everone loves the dreamcast onn well its my personal opinion here i hate it can't stand it it gets slipper with sweat sometimes if its hot out and so on dreamcast is my last choice for controller no joke.

[Kamino]

Since when was the nes controller bad? I devised my on little way of holding it most people I play nes hold the area where the sholder buttons would be I dont maknig it a extreamly comfortably controller the snes is great and the n64 what the hells wrong with the N64 everyone I know loves it.a bad controller is the first genesis one i hate it big and uncomfortable the buttpn organization is ok though I hated xbox the buttons are to cloce together and theirs to many buttons the play station controllers are ok except the anologes i hate those things and last off everone loves the dreamcast onn well its my personal opinion here i hate it can't stand it it gets slipper with sweat sometimes if its hot out and so on dreamcast is my last choice for controller no joke.
ow.
punctuation is your friend.
was anybody able to read that!?!?!?!
ow, head hurting...must go now...

[max 330 mega]

the xbox controller was the most worthless controller ive ever tried to play with.im not very picky about my controllers, in fact xbox is probably the only one ive never liked. x_x

[Ed Oscuro]

CD-i..."it's a pad?"

[Psycho Mantis]

the N64 control pad was bad. it's in a bad spot and too slippery

[briguy578]

I would have to say that the saturn is probably my favorite 2D control pad ever. Oh, lone person why did you vote for it? Why? :hmm:

Least favorite of any system I have has to be the Atari 7800. Man that joystick sucks. 5200 is probably worse, from what I've heard, but I've never owned or played one O_O

I don't know what you guys have against the Genesis controller. I think its pretty great.

[devilman]

I hate ALL joypads, the design is the wrong way around ('Control' left, 'fire' right). Nintendo has a lot to answer for. Bring back the joystick.

At least they're not *all* like that -
http://image.lik-sang.com/images//large/ps2-left-hand-fighter.jpg

I'd second the vote for the Jaguar pad personally, although I'm about to get an Xbox so maybe I'll change my mind soon. ;)

[jdc]

I'm going to be different. I'm going to say that the one that could use the most improvement is the Sony Dualshock controller. It's outdated. I have small hands....and I find the controller to be too damned small. It works....but the slightly larger size of the Cube and XboX "S" controllers are better IMO. When are they going to get with the program and switch the positions of the left stick and D-pad? Both the Cube and XboX controllers have the left stick in a more natural position than on the dualshock. Sony will still be using the same old controller with the PS3 no doubt.

[James]

Where is the Dreamcast option? You know the fucking controller that has the CORD coming out of the wrong end!! And on top of that it's missing an analog stick!

[SuperNES]

Falic?

Phallic.

anyways i voted for the N64 controller. it looks like aliens would use it for something. plus it's just uncomfortable to use for pretty much any game.

[jchesser]

Okay in a way i sort of disagree with what the votes are because the newer Xbox controller better than some and the only reason i voted Xbox was for the origional controller that came with the first few. It was just like a sega dreamcast only bigger and heavier.

[jchesser]

Okay in a way i sort of disagree with what the votes are because the newer Xbox controller better than some and the only reason i voted Xbox was for the origional controller that came with the first few. It was just like a sega dreamcast only bigger and heavier.

[Puppetmaster]

I dont like the NES powerglove. Im left handed, and I enjoy playing the NES with it, but it can get frustrating.

[Famidrive-16]

I don't like the Saturn controller much. Not to mention the analog is really awkward. But it does help.

[Teo]

NES max might be one of the worst designs ever... I experienced it for too long a time suffering through that shoddy "high tech" control pad that sent me into "gift resentment rage" that I still shudder from time to time on occasion. Let it be a warning, shun the Max!

[AlexKidd]

Of those ones I picked the 64 one. Not a big fan of the system in the first place and those weird contollers don't make it any better. I think the jaguar one is the worst. The thing is huge and most of it is the keypad which is very hard to use if you dont have the overlays. I don't own an intellivision but I can imagine that one is pretty bad too. Controllers shouldn't have any keypads.

[Archenemy]

From my point of view, NES, SMS and TG16 come down to the same "rectangular one pad two buttons" Scheme, so the control pad feature is really not so important. It makes you bend your hands and end up with endless hours of pain specially when you reach my age.

I hate the DualShock. WHERE IN HELL did they believe someone can handle that thing when all main games use the Analog stick over the Control pad?

But the winner is...

THE JAGUAR CONTROLLER!!!

Is big.
Is ugly.
Is heavy.
Is frustrating (even the Pro Controller doesn't help much) specially with the Numerical pad in the middle.
Try to play a little with it and you will earn a nice wristle pain. Seriously.

The third place goes for the 5200. No autopositioning? Well I have to admit it is nice for games like Pole Position 2, but no Auto-centering? Sucks!

I find the first XboX controller most useful. Anytime I get frustrated with the gameplay I can always throw it through the window and won't break- the controlller, the window glass does break with that massive thing :D

[Elusive]

I really dislike the PS2 controller because of its horrible, rubbery thumbsticks and the almost useless D-pad. The N64 controller and the NES controller come close joint second, though.

By contrast, I loved the Mega Drive's 'Soldier' pad, manufactured by (IIRC) Capcom - the way you could hold the D-pad on one prong and tap the trigger buttons with your right digits was a gem for racers.

[daminmancejin]

i don't like the XBOX or PLAYSTATION 2 controllers

[GLASSJOE]

Sega master system controllers are horrible

[drewbrim]

I too voted for the xbox as my least favorite, a close second would've been teh dreamcast. The R and L needed to be at an angle as opposed to parallel to the d-pad.

[DTJAAAAMJSLM]

The Nintendo 64 controller is the one I hate the most. I didn't like the fact that you could rarely use the d-pad to control movement and hated the little yellow buttons. I also missed the Select button...