Turbotronic is a joystick marketed by Camerica in the late 1980s. The joystick has two connectors: One with seven pins for the Nintendo Entertainment System, and one with nine pins for several Atari and Commodore home computers and game consoles, as well as the Master System. [1]
The Turbotronic closely resembles the NES Advantage, a joystick released by Nintendo of America in 1987. In 1988, Camerica released Freedom Stick, a wireless, consumer IR version of Turbotronic exclusively for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). [1] Nintendo brought legal action against Camerica because of the products' similarity to the NES Advantage.
Camerica later redesigned Freedom Stick with an unorthodox triangular base intended for both right- and left-handed players, and called the product Supersonic the Joystick. The bottom of the joystick's base is fitted with suction cups to stabilize it on a tabletop.
Freedom Stick and Supersonic the Joystick were among the first game controllers to communicate via infrared beam. They were contemporaneous with Broderbund's U-Force, a game controller that made innovative use of consumer IR technology.
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.
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System, commonly shortened to Super Nintendo, Super NES or SNES, is a 16-bit home video game console developed by Nintendo that was released in 1990 in Japan and South Korea, 1991 in North America, 1992 in Europe and Oceania and 1993 in South America. In Japan, it is called the Super Famicom (SFC). In South Korea, it is called the Super Comboy and was distributed by Hyundai Electronics. The system was released in Brazil on August 30, 1993, by Playtronic. In Russia and CIS, the system was distributed by Steepler from 1994 until 1996. Although each version is essentially the same, several forms of regional lockout prevent cartridges for one version from being used in other versions.
The Master System is an 8-bit third-generation home video game console manufactured and developed by Sega. It was originally a remodeled export version of the Sega Mark III, the third iteration of the SG-1000 series of consoles, which was released in Japan in 1985 with graphical capabilities improved over its predecessors. The Master System launched in North America in 1986, followed by Europe in 1987, and then in Brazil and Korea in 1989. A Japanese version of the Master System was also launched in 1987, which features a few enhancements over the export models : a built-in FM audio chip, a rapid-fire switch, and a dedicated port for the 3D glasses. The Master System II, a cheaper model, was released in 1990 in North America, Australasia and Europe.
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 NES Advantage is an arcade style controller manufactured by Asciiware and released by Nintendo for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1987. The device is meant to rest on a flat surface at a comfortable level, such as a tabletop or the floor, with the player seated behind it. This way, it can be used like an arcade game joystick—with the left hand using the joystick and the right hand operating the buttons.
The Zapper is an electronic light gun accessory launched within the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) in North America on October 18, 1985. It is a cosmetic redesign by Nintendo of America's head designer Lance Barr, based on Gunpei Yokoi's Video Shooting Series light gun (光線銃シリーズガン), which had been released in Japan for the Famicom on February 18, 1984. The Zapper requires compatible NES games, such as Duck Hunt, Wild Gunman, and Hogan's Alley. Its internal optical sensor allows the player to aim at a television set and accurately shoot at in-game targets.
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.
The U-Force is a game controller made by Broderbund for the Nintendo Entertainment System. It employs a pair of perpendicular consumer IR sensor panels to translate the user's hand movements into controller signals.
In video game parlance, a famiclone is a hardware clone of the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), known in Japan as the Family Computer or Famicom. They are designed to replicate the workings of, and play games designed for, the NES and Famicom. Hundreds of unauthorized clones and unlicensed game copies have been made available since the height of the NES popularity in the late 1980s. The technology employed in such clones has evolved over the years: while the earliest clones feature a printed circuit board containing custom or third party integrated circuits (ICs), more recent (post-1996) clones utilize single-chip designs, with a custom ASIC which simulates the functionality of the original hardware, and often includes one or more on-board games. Most devices originate in China and Taiwan, and less commonly South Korea. Outside China and Taiwan, they are mostly widespread across emerging markets of developing countries.
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.
Camerica was a Canadian video game company founded in 1988. It released various unlicensed video games and accessories for the Nintendo Entertainment System, such as the Game Genie, and was the North American publisher for British developer Codemasters.
1988 saw many sequels and prequels in video games, such as Dragon Quest III, Super Contra, Super Mario Bros. 2, Mega Man 2, Double Dragon II: The Revenge, and Super Mario Bros. 3, along with new titles such as Assault, Altered Beast, Capcom Bowling, Ninja Gaiden, RoboCop, Winning Run and Chase H.Q.
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.
The WaveBird Wireless Controller is a radio frequency-based wireless controller manufactured by Nintendo for use with the GameCube home video game console. Its name is a reference to Dolphin, the GameCube's codename during development. The WaveBird was available for purchase separately as well as in bundles with either Metroid Prime or Mario Party 4, which were exclusive to Kmart in the US.
Home Entertainment Suppliers Pty. Ltd. is an Australian company that distributes computer games and gaming equipment. HES' offices are based in Riverwood, Sydney. HES's founder and managing director is Sebastian Giompaolo.
The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is an 8-bit home video game console produced by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan on 15 July 1983 as the Family Computer (Famicom). It was released in US test markets as the redesigned NES in October 1985, and fully launched in the US the following year. The NES was distributed in Europe, Australia, and parts of Asia throughout the 1980s under various names. As a third-generation console, it mainly competed with Sega's Master System.
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.
NES Classic Edition is a dedicated home video game console by Nintendo, that emulates the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) and Family Computer (Famicom). Originally launched on November 10, 2016, the console aethetically is a miniature replica of the NES, and it includes a static library of 30 built-in games from the licensed NES library, supporting save states for all of them.
The Atari CX40 joystick was the first widely used cross-platform game controller. The original CX10 was released with the Atari Video Computer System in 1977 and became the primary input device for most games on the platform. The CX10 was replaced after a year by the simpler and less expensive CX40. The addition of the Atari joystick port to other platforms cemented its popularity. It was the standard for the Atari 8-bit computers and was compatible with the VIC-20, Commodore 64, Commodore 128, MSX, and later the Atari ST and Amiga. Third-party adapters allowed it to be used on other systems, such as the Apple II, Commodore 16, TI-99/4A, and the ZX Spectrum.