The CX40 was so popular during its run that it became as iconic to Atari as the company's "Fuji" logo;[1] it remains a common staple in video game iconography to this day,[2] and is commonly referred to as the symbol of 1980s video game system design.[3] The CX40 has been called "the pinnacle of home entertainment controllers in its day",[4] and remains a staple of industrial design discussions.[5]
The CX40 had several well-known problems and was subject to eventual mechanical breakdown. A number of more robust third-party alternatives were available in a thriving market, but generally at much higher prices[6][lower-alpha 1] so they never achieved widespread popularity in comparison to the CX40.[citation needed]
An exploded view of the Atari CX40 joystick shows its basic construction. The top lid is not shown in this diagram.When the stick is moved, one side of the hemisphere (right) moves down to press on the buttons while the opposite side is forced upward (left) to provide a recentering force.
The Atari joystick works by connecting the ground pin to one of several pins in the Atari joystick port, thereby dropping the voltage on that pin and creating a signal that can be noticed by a controller in the computer.[8] For this reason, Atari-style joysticks are sometimes referred to as "digital joysticks", largely to differentiate them from the analog joysticks found on systems like the Apple II and IBM PC.[9]
The main structure of the CX40 is formed from a concave moulded thermoplastic base with a separate flat lid that covers the opening on the top of the base. Four cylindrical protrusions on the inside of the base hold a printed circuit board (PCB) above the bottom, roughly centered vertically. A conical post on the base passes vertically through a hole in the middle of the PCB.[10]
The PCB has five membrane switches mounted on top. Four of the switches are arranged in a cross pattern around the hole in the middle of the PCB; the fifth is offset near one of the corners. The PCB connects the switches to pins in the 9-pin D-connector that leads to the console via a cutout in the upper right corner of the base. The cutout is shaped to grip a moulded strain relief on the cable.[10]
The stick itself is a moulded polypropylene form consisting of a hollow vertical cylinder with a hemispherical dome at one end. The stick is placed on top of the conical post in the base, and the lid is placed over it. This clamps the stick between the post and the circular cutout in the lid. When pressure is applied to move the stick, it can rotate on the post by sliding the hemisphere within the circular cutout.[10]
The hemisphere has four small "fingers" at the bottom, which are positioned to lie over the switches on the PCB. Cutouts in the hemisphere make the fingers mechanically separate from the main section of the stick, allowing them to flex so they do not press too hard on the switches. When the stick is moved, the hemisphere rotates on its support post, bringing the fingers down to press on the appropriate buttons. At the same time, the opposite side of the hemisphere rises, where it comes into contact with short protrusions on the lid. These push down on the flexible section of the hemisphere, providing a centering force that returns the stick to the upright position when pressure is released.[10]
The stick is assembled by placing the PCB within the lower case and routing the cable out of the box. The stick is then placed on top of the post, and a flexible rubbery cover is placed over the stick. A red plastic button is placed over the fifth switch, providing the fire button; and the top lid is then placed on top of the entire assembly. Four machine screws inserted from the bottom of the case through the PCB support protrusions hold the lid on, holding everything in place through compression.[10]
Although the stick can be pressed in any direction, the four fingers on the hemisphere allow only two switches to be pressed at a time. This allows a total of eight directions: four for up, down, left. and right, and four more for combinations of neighboring switches: up-left, up-right, down-left, and down-right. The physical movement on the post prevents non-neighbouring switches from being pressed; one can not press up and down at the same time, for instance.[10]
The base and its cover are moulded with some roughness in the plastic. The portion directly around the stick and the fire button are smooth. Just around the opening for the stick are a series of rectangular embossings with the four cardinal directions indicated by small wedge shapes. The 12 o'clock position replaces the wedges with the word "TOP". These markings are all painted orange, but this tends to wear off over time.[10]
Problems
Right-handed users would normally hold the stick in their left hand by gripping the left side of the case with their thumb over the fire button, and fingers wrapped around the left side and bottom, while their right hand operated the stick. Some games allowed the stick to be rotated for left-handed users, or this could be done with some minor re-wiring.[11]
The ergonomics of the base and the need to hold it while pressing the fire button led to fatigue of the left thumb that became known as "joystick thumb".[12] This was especially common in games that required the user to fire repeatedly or hold down the button for long periods, like Eastern Front (1941). This led to various "autofire" attachments, available as do-it-yourself plans,[13] pre-assembled, or as parts of 3rd party sticks. These simulated rapid presses of the fire button as long as the button on the stick was held down.[12]
Small rubbery pads on the bottom allowed for stick placement on a desktop. However, the torque needed to operate the internal switches was more than enough to flip over the lightweight stick. Some 3rd party replacements used a much larger base and/or a shorter vertical stick so the torque was reduced. Generally those with bases large enough for one-handed use tended to be too large to use two-handed. Modifications using suction cups, also found on some 3rd party sticks, were generally regarded as more trouble than they were worth.[12]
The CX40 was infamous for its eventual breakdown from one of two problems. One was that the control ring on the bottom of the stick moulding was not very robust, and either the ring itself or the four small tabs that connected it to the stick could be broken by applying too much force. The ring transmitted the force from the stick to the switches, so if it broke, the stick would no longer operate properly in that direction. This happened with "distressing regularity".[6] The other problem was that the switches themselves would eventually wear out due to repeated use, normally with the top membrane cracking or the tape holding it in place wearing off.[14][15]
A common modification was to replace the switches with miniature snap-action switches (microswitches). Some of these, however, have the problem that their actuation is non-linear; they require considerable force to start moving compared to the force needed to complete the motion. When used in an otherwise unmodified CX40, this caused it to be more difficult to move along the diagonals,[12] as one of the two switches being pushed would normally reach the threshold first, causing motion in that direction while the other was not yet pressed. In games that required fine control, like Jumpman, these solutions were generally unsuitable. Newer switches improve this action.[16]
Versions
CX10
CX10 Joystick
The original CX10 version was designed by Steve Bristow for the 2600[17] and produced only for a single year. Many of these[lower-alpha 2] had the word "ATARI" printed in white letters on a thin metal plate at the very top of the stick.[18]
Internally, the CX10 differed from the CX40 primarily in the switch mechanisms. In the CX10, a thin plastic plate was placed directly on top of the PCB, separated by a few millimetres. Cup-shaped protrusions on the top surface held a small metal spring, and opposite these on the bottom surface of the plate was a small metal bar. The plate was positioned so the bars on the bottom of the cups were positioned over similar bars on the PCB, although aligned perpendicularly. Slits cut into the plate on either side of the cup made that section of the plate flexible. When the stick was moved, it pressed on the spring, eventually providing enough force to bend that section of the plate down until the two metal bars made contact. The springs provided the recentering force.[17] This operation required more physical motion to depress the switches than on the CX40, and the CX10 is generally considered to be less suitable for gaming.[1]
CX40
The CX40 for the Atari XE series computer used a matching grey colour instead of the standard black.
The CX40 was designed by James Asher[10] to replace the CX10, with the aim of greatly improving its ability to be inexpensively mass-produced.[1] By 1983, one out of every five American homes had one.[19] This model accounts for the vast majority of Atari's production run.
The CX40 is nearly identical to the CX10 externally, but lacks the printing on the top of the stick, and replaced the uppermost wedge in the ring of embossing with the word "TOP". By 1986 the CX40 was difficult to obtain, and some dealers could only order it with software.[20]
A new CX40 using gray colored plastic for the base was released with the Atari XEGS computer. It also dispensed with the orange paint on the embossing on the base. It was otherwise identical to the earlier CX40, retaining the black plastic cover on the stick and the red fire button.[1]
Other joysticks from Atari
The CX40 remained popular throughout the run of the 2600 and Atari 8-bit computers, but by the end of their run many 3rd party improvements had appeared and Atari introduced new controllers of their own.
Released in the summer of 1983, the CX842 "Remote Control Wireless Joystick" was a rebranded version of the Cynex Game Mate 2. These were essentially CX40's on top of a radio device, so the bases were quite large as a result. A separate receiver box completes the connection to the console.[21]
Atari also advertised the CX43 "Space Age Joystick", the most radical change to the basic concept. This was essentially a very small version of the CX40 mounted on top of a trigger-style handle with a fire button on the front. The handle was intended to be held in one hand while the other operated the very short stick on top. The CX43 may be a rebranded version of the Milton Bradley HD2000, which was never released.[22]
The Atari 7800's CX-24 Pro-Line joystick was designed to be backward compatible with the 2600 and its games. The Pro-Line was originally advertised specifically for the 2600 in 1983,[23] but was not released until it was made the pack-in controller for the 7800. Its right fire button was designed to switch between functioning as a discrete button for 7800 games, and as a duplicate of the left fire button (which was functionally identical to the CX-40's lone fire button) for 2600 games. The Atari CX-78 Joypad, available in PAL markets in place of the CX-24, had the same compatibility as the Pro-Line stick.
3rd party alternatives
The Commodore VC1311 was introduced after their clone of the CX40 was ordered off the market.
The CX40 was the only model in widespread use until about 1981, when the introduction of Space Invaders on the 2600 quadrupled that platform's sales.[24] This led to a thriving 3rd party market for better sticks for use on the 2600.[citation needed]
Many were almost identical copies of the CX40. Other examples of barely-modified sticks include the Gemini GemStick, which was essentially a CX40 with a somewhat larger base and the fire button replaced by a larger yellow version. The Gemstick 2 added a second button in the upper right. The Suncom Slik-Stik was slightly more modified with the case rounded off and a large red plastic ball at the tip of a shortened stick. The shorter stick made it more suitable for single-handed use. Suncom later introduced the TAC-2, essentially a larger Slik-Stik with buttons on both sides, for left-handed users.[25]
For the VIC-20, Commodore International introduced a joystick that was essentially identical to the Atari model with the exception that the top plate on the base was white instead of black. This prompted Atari to sue for patent violations.[26][27] Commodore responded by introducing the 1311, a modified version that made the case more rectangular, changed the stick from a cylinder to a triangle, and replaced the single round fire button with a larger one running across the top of the stick, making it suitable for use in either hand. These changes also rendered it painful to use and it was widely panned.[28][29]
Happ's Competition Pro used microswitches in place of Atari's membrane switches. The stick (red) presses on the switch actuators (white part on blue components).
The Wico Command Control was one of the earliest examples of a stick that differed radically from the Atari pattern in mechanical terms. Wico was a major supplier of arcade game joysticks and adapted these mechanisms for home use.[12] These replaced the membrane switches with leaf switches that were much more robust and provided the recentering force internally. A large rounded-corner square block of plastic provided the moving surface similar to the hemisphere in the CX40, but was shaped to provide more obvious directions when pressed, sliding along the edges of the square. The stick, a steel tube covered in a bat-like red plastic moulding, featured a button on top that pressed a shaft running through the center of the stick to another switch below the main assembly.[30]
The base was greatly enlarged with the specific intent of making it useful in one-handed play, which operated in concert with the stick-top button. A switch on the base selected whether the button on the handle or the base was active. The case also featured moulded indents in the bottom that made it easier to hold in two-hand use. The result was a system that was significantly more robust than the Atari sticks, but also much more complex and expensive. Later versions added a switch for "autofire" that caused the fire button to be repeatedly pressed while held down, and even later the bat-like handle was replaced by a ball like those found on arcade sticks. A flightstick-style handle with finger grooves was also offered. It was consistently rated very highly.[6][25]
The Epyx 500XJ was a radical restyling of the basic CX40 concept. This version, for the NES, has additional buttons.
The Epyx 500XJ[lower-alpha 3] was among a very few designs that broke from the Atari mould completely. Like the Competition Pro, the 500XJ's mechanism was based around a steel shaft pressing on microswitches and offered a similar feel. Unlike the Command Control, the 500XJ's shaft pressed directly on the switches, making it harder to press into the diagonals. More importantly, the base of the unit was completely changed, consisting of a moulded form that was designed to be easily gripped by the left hand with the index finger naturally positioned over a fire button located on the bottom right side of the case. Both robust and unique, the 500XJ garnered widespread praise and was the only other joystick of the era to achieve widespread popularity to the point of becoming a standard of sorts.[31][failed verification]
Early gamepads were essentially CX40s with the base exposed to the user and the joystick on top removed. Sega's Master System and Genesis/Mega Drive controllers are compatible with the 2600, although the console can only read one fire button on the Sega controllers – the 2 button on Master System controllers, and the B button on Genesis controllers. The Sega Control Stick[32] was the only Sega-made controller actually marketed for its compatibility with Atari and Commodore systems. Due to the unique setup of the 7800's fire buttons, Sega controllers are not compatible with 7800 games that require two fire buttons, although they can be used with 7800 games that only use one fire button.
Atari joysticks on other platforms
The Atari joystick was so popular that adaptors for its standard of connector were available for platforms like the Apple II and IBM PC.[33][19] There were even factory modified CX40s, notably the Trisstick from Big Five Software, that placed the converter electronics inside the CX40 case and replaced the cable with one suitable for the TRS-80.[34]
While its single-button configuration makes it unsuitable for general use with Sega's consoles, an Atari joystick can be used in the player two port for certain two-player games with minimal controls, so long as a standard Sega controller is plugged into the player one port. For example, a CX-40 can be used to control Tails in two-player mode in Sonic the Hedgehog 2, as all three Genesis fire buttons are mapped to the same jump/spin-dash function (and with the Master System for the 1 and 2 buttons), although player two cannot pause the game due to the absence of a Start button.
Notes
↑ CX40s were widely available for under $10.[6][7]
The Atari 2600 is a home video game console developed and produced by Atari, Inc. Released in September 1977 as the Atari Video Computer System, it popularized microprocessor-based hardware and games stored on swappable ROM cartridges, a format first used with the Fairchild Channel F in 1976. The VCS was bundled with two joystick controllers, a conjoined pair of paddle controllers, and a game cartridge—initially Combat and later Pac-Man. Sears sold the system as the Tele-Games Video Arcade. Atari rebranded the VCS as the Atari 2600 in November 1982 alongside the release of the Atari 5200.
The Atari 5200 SuperSystem or simply Atari 5200 is a home video game console introduced in 1982 by Atari, Inc. as a higher-end complement for the popular Atari Video Computer System. The VCS was renamed to the Atari 2600 at the time of the 5200's launch. Created to compete with Mattel's Intellivision, the 5200 wound up a direct competitor of ColecoVision shortly after its release. While the Coleco system shipped with the first home version of Nintendo's Donkey Kong, the 5200 included the 1978 arcade game Super Breakout which had already appeared on the Atari 8-bit computers and Atari VCS in 1979 and 1981 respectively.
The Atari 7800 ProSystem, or simply the Atari 7800, is a home video game console officially released by Atari Corporation in 1986 as the successor to both the Atari 2600 and Atari 5200. It can run almost all Atari 2600 cartridges, making it one of the first consoles with backward compatibility. It shipped with a different model of joystick from the 2600-standard CX40 and Pole Position II as the pack-in game. Most of the announced titles at launch were ports of 1981–1983 arcade video games.
A joystick, sometimes called a flight stick, is an input device consisting of a stick that pivots on a base and reports its angle or direction to the device it is controlling. A joystick, also known as the control column, is the principal control device in the cockpit of many civilian and military aircraft, either as a centre stick or side-stick. It has various switches to control functions of the aircraft controlled by the Pilot and First Officer of the flight.
A game controller, gaming controller, or simply controller, is an input device or input/output device used with video games or entertainment systems to provide input to a video game. Input devices that have been classified as game controllers include keyboards, mice, gamepads, and joysticks, as well as special purpose devices, such as steering wheels for driving games and light guns for shooting games. Controllers designs have evolved to include directional pads, multiple buttons, analog sticks, joysticks, motion detection, touch screens and a plethora of other features.
The Atari XE Video Game System is an industrial redesign of the Atari 65XE home computer and the final model in the Atari 8-bit computer series. It was released by Atari Corporation in 1987 and marketed as a home video game console alongside the Nintendo Entertainment System, Sega's Master System, and Atari's own Atari 7800. The XEGS is compatible with existing Atari 8-bit computer hardware and software. Without keyboard, the system operates as a stand-alone game console. With the keyboard, it boots identically to the Atari XE computers. Atari packaged the XEGS as a basic set consisting of only the console and joystick, and as a deluxe set consisting of the console, keyboard, CX40 joystick, and XG-1 light gun.
A gamepad is a type of video game controller held in two hands, where the fingers are used to provide input. They are typically the main input device for video game consoles.
A D-pad is a flat, typically thumb-operated, directional control. D-pads are found on nearly all modern gamepads, handheld game consoles, and audiovisual device remote controls. Because they operate using four internal push-buttons, the vast majority of D-pads provide discrete, rather than continuous, directional options—typically limited to up, down, left, and right, and sometimes offering intermediate diagonals by means of two-button combinations.
An analog stick, also known as control stick, joystick or thumbstick, is an input device for a controller that is used for two-dimensional input. An analog stick is a variation of a joystick, consisting of a protrusion from the controller; input is based on the position of this protrusion in relation to the default "center" position. While digital sticks rely on single electrical connections for movement, analog sticks use continuous electrical activity running through potentiometers to measure the exact position of the stick within its full range of motion. The analog stick has greatly overtaken the D-pad in both prominence and usage in console video games.
An arcade controller is a collective set of input devices designed primarily for use in an arcade cabinet. A typical control set consists of a joystick and a number of push-buttons. Less common setups include devices such as trackballs or steering wheels. These devices are generally produced under the assumption that they will be used in commercial settings, such as in video arcades, where they may be heavily or roughly used. Durability is one of the distinguishing characteristics of "authentic" arcade parts when compared with numerous, low-cost arcade imitations designed for private use in the home.
The Atari Flashback series are a line of dedicated video game consoles designed, produced, published and marketed by AtGames under license from Atari SA. The Flashback consoles are "plug-and-play" versions of the Atari 2600 console. They contain built-in games rather than using the ROM cartridges utilized by the 2600. Most of the games are classics that were previously released for the 2600, although some Flashback consoles include previously unreleased prototype games as well.
The Atari 2700 is a prototype home video game console that was developed by Atari, Inc. to be a wirelessly controlled version of Atari's popular Atari 2600 system. Intended for release in 1981, the 2700 was one of several planned follow-ups to the 2600, but the system was never put into full production. While It is unclear how many of these systems exist, former Atari employee Dan Kramer has stated that at least 12 consoles were made, plus extra controllers.
The Totally Accurate Controller MK2 (TAC-2) is an Atari 2600-compatible digital joystick game controller. It was commonly used with 1980s microcomputers such as the TI-99/4A, Atari 8-bit computers, Atari ST, Commodore 64 and Amiga. It was manufactured by Suncom in Illinois.
Midnight Magic is a pinball video game written by Glenn Axworthy for the Atari 2600 and released by Atari Corporation in 1986, although on-screen it displays a copyright of 1984.
The Nintendo 64 controller is the standard game controller for the Nintendo 64 home video game console. It was first manufactured and released by Nintendo on June 23, 1996, in Japan; in September 29, 1996, in North America; and March 1, 1997, in Europe. It is the successor to the Super Nintendo controller and is designed in an "M" shape and features 10 buttons, one analog "Control Stick" and a directional pad.
The Arcade is a joystick that was produced by Suzo International, usually marked as S.T.C. Rotterdam, for the European market. It distinguished itself from the competition because of its robust construction as the stick had a reinforced inside made of steel and used microswitches for the controls.
Atari 8-bit computer peripherals include floppy drives, printers, modems, and video game controllers for Atari 8-bit computers, which includes the 400/800, XL, XE, and XEGS.
The Atari 2600 hardware was based on the MOS Technology 6507 chip, offering a maximum resolution of 160 x 192 pixels (NTSC), 128 colors, 128 bytes of RAM with 4 KB on cartridges. The design experienced many makeovers and revisions during its 14-year production history, from the original "heavy sixer" to the Atari 2600 Jr. at the end. The system also has many controllers and third-party peripherals.
The Atari joystick port is a computer port used to connect various gaming controllers to game console and home computer systems in the 1970s to the 1990s. It was originally introduced on the Atari 2600 in 1977 and then used on the Atari 400 and 800 in 1979. It went cross-platform with the VIC-20 in 1981, and was then used on many following machines from both companies, as well as a growing list of 3rd party machines like the MSX platform and various Sega consoles.
USexpired 4124787,Gerald R. Aamoth&John K. Hayashi,"Joystick controller mechanism operating one or plural switches sequentially or simultaneously",published 1978-11-07,issued 1978-11-07, assigned to Atari Inc
USexpired 4349708,James C. Asher,"Joystick control",published 1982-09-14,issued 1982-09-14, assigned to Atari Inc
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
