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54-735: The original Rumble Pak, designed for the Nintendo 64 controller , was released in April 1997 in Japan, July 1997 in North America, and October 1997 in Europe. It requires two AAA batteries and is inserted into the controller's memory cartridge slot, which prevents simultaneous use of the Controller Pak . This does not significantly affect games that feature on-cartridge save functions, but

108-528: A Game Boy Player for the GameCube , utilizing its controller 's built-in vibration. Nintendo 64 controller The Nintendo 64 controller ( model number : NUS-005) 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

162-754: A built-in rumble feature that, when used in tandem with a SLOT-1 flash card on a Nintendo DS, can provide rumble as if it was an ordinary Rumble Pak. The Nintendo DS Rumble Pak is incompatible with the Nintendo DSi and Nintendo DSi XL , as both consoles lack a SLOT-2. However, none of the games supporting the Rumble Pak require it for proper operation of the game, meaning that the games themselves are still compatible with DSi (some software titles, such as Nintendo DS Browser and Guitar Hero: On Tour , have SLOT-2 peripherals that are required for operation, and are hence incompatible with DSi and DSi XL, although

216-428: A cartridge's battery-backed memory (such as Mario Kart 64 ' s ghost data). Whereas other console developers opted to plug the memory card directly into a console, Nintendo opted to have the card be plugged into the controller and thus transported as one unit, envisioning scenarios in which players would want to bring their own controller and memory card to play with other Nintendo 64 owners. In such scenarios having

270-406: A gimmick rather than an enhancement to the actual gameplay, Kelly Rickards and Sushi-X lauded its usage in games such as GoldenEye 007 and Star Fox 64 , and all four of them praised the low retail price of the unit, saying that at worst gamers risk little by purchasing it. At their 1997 Editors' Choice Awards, they named it "Best Peripheral". IGN's Levi Buchanan wrote an 11th birthday article on

324-838: A pack-in with the game Actionloop in the UK. Although the Rumble Pak works with both the Nintendo DS and the redesigned Nintendo DS Lite, it protrudes from the Nintendo DS Lite when inserted, as do GBA Game Paks, because of the Nintendo DS Lite's smaller size. For this reason, a smaller version of the Rumble Pak is available in Japan, which is flush with the system when inserted. It was initially available in just black, but other colors produced by unlicensed accessory manufacturer eWin, such as white (see picture), have been released. Other color variations have been released by eWin. Some GBA flash cartridges ( SLOT-2 flash cartridges ) have

378-455: A stand-alone purchase from Nintendo 's online store. The accessory was released differently in Europe due to a delay of Metroid Prime Pinball in that region. Various DS games supporting the Rumble Pak ( Metroid Prime Hunters , Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time , and 42 All-Time Classics ) had been released in Europe before the accessory was available. The accessory was eventually released as

432-533: A version of the Nintendo 64 controller compatible with its Nintendo Switch console in October 2021. The controller was released in conjunction with an additional tier of the company's Nintendo Switch Online service, called the "Expansion Pack", which gives customers access to a catalog of Nintendo 64 games. The new version makes a series of changes to the design including the addition of wireless functionality and

486-416: A vibrating joystick may sound lame - even a little naughty - but trust us: it's cool. The Pak's only drawback is that it slips into your analog stick's memory cartridge port and doesn't offer a through port." The magazine's "review crew" later reviewed the standalone release of the Rumble Pak, giving it an 8.5 out of 10. While Kraig Kujawa and John Ricciardi commented that its usage in games thus far had been as

540-546: Is Nintendo's external memory card , similar to those used on the PlayStation and other CD-ROM consoles. Though the Nintendo 64's cartridges can store battery-backed memory much like its predecessors, in supported games the Controller Pak allows save game data to be stored separately from the cartridge; for instance allowing save data to be used with a different copy of the game, or to store data that will not fit on

594-788: Is a puzzle video game developed by Mitchell Corporation and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS , It was released as part of the Touch! Generations series. It is based on Mitchell's 1998 arcade game Puzz Loop . The game was first revealed at Nintendo Japan's 2006 Conference. The European version came packaged with the Nintendo DS Rumble Pak . A version for WiiWare , titled Minna de Puzzloop ( みんなでパズループ , Minna de Pazurūpu ) in Japan, Magnetica Twist in North America and Actionloop Twist in PAL regions,

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648-418: Is a drawback with games that require the Controller Pak to save, as software by default was not designed to support hot swapping Paks, although some games support saving to a Controller Pak in a second controller. Nintendo remedied the situation in later games by offering developers the inclusion of special screens for hot swapping. The Rumble Pak is estimated to provide 50-60 hours of continuous rumbling before

702-421: Is extremely versatile and has enough buttons to take care of every possible contingency, now or in the future." GamePro ' s overview stated, "The N64's tri-handled controller may look weird, but it feels great." Third party developers were reportedly enthusiastic about the controller as well. Dave Perry called it "the big special move that [Nintendo] have gone for", while Jez San said that "The joystick

756-546: Is inserted into the Game Pak itself. The only two Game Boy Advance games that feature built-in rumble, Drill Dozer and WarioWare: Twisted! , draw power from the system itself and thus do not require an extra battery or a specially enlarged Game Pak. Twisted also rumbles weakly whenever its special built-in piezoelectric gyroscope for its motion controls are utilized. Other Game Boy Advance games, such as Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga , support rumble when played on

810-474: Is the successor to the Super Nintendo controller and is designed in an "M" shape and features 10 buttons, a "Control Stick", and a D-pad . The controller was designed by Nintendo R&D3 , under direction to try new ideas that would break from typical game controllers. With original visual designs having been mocked up in clay form, and extensive test group studies being performed before and during

864-565: Is unusual looking but I like the controls. The thumb control feels nice and strong and also sensitive." Stocks of extra Nintendo 64 controllers were sold out on the Japanese launch of the Nintendo 64, despite the fact that all three launch games are single-player only. Similar results followed in North America; retailers reported extremely high sales of the controllers despite only a handful of multiplayer games being available. Although its design and usability received praise by most reviewers,

918-471: The review aggregation website Metacritic . Nintendo Life said that although the DS version fails to impress with its visuals and audio, it is an excellent addition to anyone's Nintendo DS library whether a gamer is casual or hardcore. The Washington Post criticized the same console version's $ 35 price tag, which it said was a bit too much for a game that has nothing new to add. In Japan, Famitsu gave

972-475: The A and B Buttons are placed for easiest access on the new controller and why they are larger than the other buttons. They're the buttons that get high traffic." The controller was designed to be held in three different positions. First, it can be held by the two outer grips, allowing use of the D-pad, right-hand face buttons and the "L" and "R" shoulder buttons (but not the Z trigger or analog stick). This style

1026-723: The DS Rumble Pak was supported by 51 games in total. While there is no dedicated Rumble Pak for the Game Boy family ( Game Boy , Game Boy Color and Game Boy Advance), due to these more primitive systems lacking an expansion slot, there were several games released for the Game Boy's successors that featured built-in rumble. Game Boy Color games with built-in rumble, such as 10-Pin Bowling , Vigilante 8 and Star Wars Episode I: Racer , were released as bulkier Game Paks with an added rumble motor powered by an extra AAA battery that

1080-571: The Dual Analog/DualShock, such as the MakoPad and Hori Mini . Nintendo would largely follow suit with the stock controller for its GameCube console , but swapped the positions of the analog stick and D-pad. Such a layout would become dominant in gamepad design, as by that time the left analog stick had become universally accepted as the primary movement control on 3D games across all consoles. The controller has four "C-buttons" on

1134-478: The Nintendo 64's Rumble Pak, describing how its influence led to rumble being "an industry standard within a single generation". He said that it is bulky and heavy when attached to the Nintendo 64 controller, but that "the trade-off was actually worth it". More recently, in TWGNews's "Top 10 Controller Innovations" article, the Rumble Pak is listed as #8, saying "the Rumble Pak added a whole new level of immersion to

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1188-501: The Rumble Pak, such as the Tremor Pak , followed. Some draw power from the controller instead of batteries, but the lower power makes them less effective. The TremorPak Plus allows a memory card to be inserted simultaneously, eliminating the need to switch between two accessories. The Nyko Hyper Pak Plus contains internal memory and allows the user to adjust the amount of feedback between "hard" and "too hard". Though it does not allow

1242-482: The Z-trigger is used to lock focus onto enemies and center the camera behind the player. One game, Robotron 64 , allows one player to use two controllers to control an avatar . This way, the game plays like its predecessor, Robotron 2084 . Star Wars Episode I: Racer , GoldenEye 007 and Perfect Dark also use this set up for slightly different gameplay experiences (in terms of control, at least) compared to

1296-482: The ability to use the player's own Miis in the game. Control is done by twisting the Wii Remote left or right to turn the marble cannon, and an ability to lob marbles over others has been added. The game features the challenge and quest modes of the DS version, but omits the puzzle mode. Extensive statistics are also kept for each player. Magnetica and Magnetica Twist received "average" reviews according to

1350-622: The batteries must be replaced. Originally named "Jolting Pak", it was announced as what IGN called "the biggest surprise" of the 1996 Shoshinkai show. The Rumble Pak was introduced bundled with the game Star Fox 64 (known as Lylat Wars in the PAL region ) and made available as a separate purchase two months later. Rumble Pak support soon became a standard for N64 games. Wave Race 64 and Super Mario 64 were re-released in Japan in July 1997 with Rumble Pak support. Several third party versions of

1404-434: The cartridge port on the controller would allow individual players to each use their own distinct game settings and controller configurations while playing simultaneously on the same system. The original Rumble Pak, designed for the Nintendo 64 controller, was released in April 1997 to coincide with the release of Star Fox 64 and requires two AAA batteries . It provides haptic feedback during gameplay, intending to make

1458-542: The center and left-hand grip, allowing for a combination of the D-pad, L shoulder, analog stick, and Z trigger, as was implemented in GoldenEye 007 . Additionally, though the controller was not designed with this setup in mind, one controller can be held in each hand with a thumb on each analog stick and index fingers on the Z trigger. This setup allows dual-analog control on some first-person shooters such as Perfect Dark . In some games such as Mortal Kombat Trilogy ,

1512-406: The competing PlayStation , it retained the original controllers' two-handled ergonomics, placing the analog sticks below and inside the primary D-pad and face buttons, allowing the player to quickly switch from the D-pad and face buttons to the analog sticks without letting go of the controller. Several third-party manufacturers would produce aftermarket Nintendo 64 controllers with similar layouts to

1566-403: The control stick and directional pad are interchangeable. Very few games use the directional pad exclusively, such as Tetrisphere and Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards . This design is controversial, as by its nature it generally prevents the use of all of its features with the player's hands in any one position; the D-pad, L-shoulder, analog stick and Z-trigger cannot, generally, all be used at

1620-583: The controller did have some mechanical issues that could be detrimental to users. Overuse of the analog stick could cause it to become loose, hampering controllability, and intense rotating of the analog stick reportedly resulted in friction injuries to the hands of some players of 1998's Mario Party . As a result of a settlement with the New York Attorney General, Nintendo offered protective gloves to prevent injuries. In Q1 2000, Nintendo reported that out of more than 1 million copies sold in

1674-471: The controller. The magazine said that it is "a little wider than the Super NES controller, but it felt very comfortable and the control elements were exceptionally well-placed. Large and small hands alike found it easy to manipulate." In their overview of the controller, Electronic Gaming Monthly commented, "All in all, Nintendo has made the most advanced and easy-to-use controller we have ever seen. It

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1728-472: The controller. The sculpted shape of the radical new Batarang -like controller was so complex that it couldn't even be modeled on a computer. During development, the first mock-up was created out of clay. — Nintendo Power , December 1995 Nintendo of America's head designer, Lance Barr, said that the design studies revealed that "most games use a few buttons for most of the main controls, such as jumping and shooting, or accelerating and braking. That's why

1782-407: The correct neutral position). While the optical encoding disks are mostly digital and provide very accurate relative movements, third-party controllers and joysticks often use cheaper potentiometers instead. These allow the controller to track the absolute position of the joystick, but since the signal is analog, it is very noisy and can fluctuate even if the joystick is not moved. The Controller Pak

1836-418: The current position of the joystick is the center position. The Nintendo 64 controller was one of the first game controllers to incorporate analog stick technology as a main feature, intended to provide the user with a wider range of functions such as mobility and camera control. The stick is designed to detect 360 independent directions, compared to the 8 independent directions detected by a D-pad , allowing

1890-538: The design phase, the Nintendo 64's controller design was eventually solidified in tandem with that of Shigeru Miyamoto 's gameplay mechanics in Super Mario 64 . Though Miyamoto tested the controller while developing Super Mario 64 , the controller was not designed around the game, while it did influence its mechanics like movement. Lance Barr, the head designer at NOA, worked with the NU64 design team in Japan on

1944-419: The fifth generation of video games". The Rumble Pak for the Nintendo DS is an official DS Option Pak shaped like a Game Boy Advance Game Pak and is designed to be inserted in the system's GBA game slot (SLOT-2). It is the first Nintendo DS accessory to have utilized the slot. In North America, it was first made available bundled with Metroid Prime Pinball , but was later sold through other promotions or as

1998-526: The former already has an alternative version made specifically for the Nintendo DSi and later consoles). Although Nintendo DSi and Nintendo DSi XL lack the SLOT-2, some Nintendo DS titles released after the Nintendo DSi's launch do support the Rumble Pak accessory, likely due to the fact the Nintendo DS Lite console was sold concurrently with the Nintendo DSi and Nintendo DSi XL. The Nintendo DS Rumble Pak

2052-610: The gaming experience more engaging. It was designed to be inserted into the controller's memory cartridge slot, which prevents the use of the Controller Pak . The insertion of a Controller Pak is prompted at every point of save in case one was not already in place. In 1999, LodgeNet and Nintendo released a controller and game playing service for various hotels in the United States. It is a slightly modified Nintendo 64 controller featuring an improved GameCube-style analog control stick, and LodgeNet TV control buttons. It attaches to

2106-548: The hotel television and is not compatible with a standard Nintendo 64 console. It functions as a secondary remote control for the television, with up and down on the D-pad able to change channels, and as a controller for available Nintendo 64 games on the LodgeNet service. Customers could choose from a large library of Nintendo 64 games, including most first-party Nintendo 64 games, and play at a rate of $ 6.95 for every 60 minutes. Nintendo's own magazine, Nintendo Power , reviewed

2160-543: The incorporation of a rumble feature without the need for an additional accessory like the Rumble Pak. The Switch version also adds additional buttons to allow players access to the home and capture buttons that correspond with Switch functionality that was not available on Nintendo 64. Magnetica Magnetica (known in Japan as Shunkan Puzzloop ( 瞬感パズループ , Shunkan Pazurūpu ) and in Europe as Actionloop )

2214-505: The potential for Nintendo 64 games to more accurately emulate 360° of motion. Analog joysticks prior to the Nintendo 64 include those used by the Atari 5200 , Sega 's arcade systems , Sega's analog Mission Stick for the Saturn (1995), and Sony 's PlayStation Analog Joystick (1996). The Nintendo 64 controller distinguished itself from these precursors by using an analog thumbstick, which

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2268-518: The rate the marbles advance or cause all marbles of a color to disappear. In addition to the main survival mode of play, the player can take part in a quest mode, where they must clear boards under certain conditions, and a puzzle mode, where a fixed arrangement of marbles around the board must be cleared using only the few marbles made available to the player. The WiiWare version of Magnetica supports up to four players simultaneously in either co-operative or competitive multiplayer modes, in addition to

2322-492: The same time as it typically requires the player to switch hand positions, taking the hands off of the key directional controls. Some, though, realized they can hold the controller with the outer grips and use their index fingers for the R and L triggers, middle fingers for the Z-trigger, right thumb for the right-hand buttons, and left thumb for the D-pad and (stretching) analog stick, without changing hand positions. When Sony released its Dual Analog and DualShock controllers for

2376-440: The same type; marbles of the same color are magnetically attracted to each other over any length of wide open space, and allowing for chains of disappearances to occur. The game is over if any marble reaches a specific point, usually near the center of each level, but using the magnetic properties of the marbles can allow one to pull marbles away from this point. Bonus items attached to marbles can, for example, temporarily slow down

2430-600: The standard single-controller option. The controller initially came in six colors (grey, black, red, green, yellow and blue) but other colors were released later, many of them coinciding with the release of a similarly colored or designed system. Some of these others include smoke black, watermelon red, jungle green, fire orange, ice blue, grape purple, and special edition colors like gold, atomic purple, extreme green, " Donkey Kong 64 " banana bunch yellow, " Pokémon " blue and yellow, and "Millennium 2000" platinum. Players would often take apart Nintendo 64 controllers to mix-and-match

2484-464: The system relative changes in the position of the analog stick, the system assumes that the stick is centered during power-on and tracks relative movements from there. If things get out of sync, or if the control stick was not centered during power-on, the center position can be reset by pressing the left and right shoulder buttons (L and R) at the same time as the Start button (or resetting the console with

2538-475: The top, which were originally intended to control the camera in three-dimensional game environments. However, since the pad only contains three other face buttons, the C-buttons was often assigned to alternate functions. An example of this is The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time , where three of the C-buttons can be assigned to secondary items and the upper C-button is used to call Navi for assistance, while

2592-416: The tops and bottoms of the shell, creating bi-color controllers. When the Nintendo 64 is switched on, the joystick on each controller is automatically calibrated by recording the current position as the center position. That works assuming the hands are off the joystick when the Nintendo 64 is powered on. The joystick can also be recalibrated while the Nintendo 64 is on, by pressing L+R+START to indicate that

2646-507: The use of rumble and memory functions simultaneously, users can toggle between the two functions by flipping a switch, instead of having to swap accessories. Atomic Dawg's review of the Rumble Pak in GamePro described it as "cute, gimmicky - and actually kind of fun." When reviewing Star Fox 64 , IGN praised the Rumble Pak, stating that it "adds an unusual burst of arcade ecstasy to the game". Electronic Gaming Monthly commented, "Sure,

2700-754: The year since the game's release, the company had received about 90 complaints, none serious. Tim Weaver, editor of the UK's N64 Magazine , said his staff experienced no problems with the controller, adding that the entire investigation was "ludicrous" and "could only happen in America", although blister injuries were common, especially in Mario Party mini-games such as "Pedal Power" and "Tug o' War". Some aftermarket controllers have since sought to remedy both issues, including rubberised analog sticks with steel construction underneath, often employed by speedrunners and/or retrogaming enthusiasts. Nintendo released

2754-447: Was initially met with criticism as reviewers pointed out the limited number of games compatible with the card (at the time only four were compatible). Reviewers also pointed out the annoying "squealing noise" or "electronic chirp" that the device made when 'rumbling'. IGN stated that "Good thing it's free, because at this point we wouldn't bother buying it as an extra." Up until the removal of the expansion slot from later Nintendo DS models,

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2808-455: Was intended to optimize play in 2D games by emulating the setup on the Super NES controller. It can be also held by the center and right-hand grip, allowing the use of the single control stick, the right hand-buttons, the "R" shoulder button, and the Z trigger on the rear (but not the "L" shoulder button or D-pad). This style was intended for 3D games. Finally, the controller can be held by

2862-571: Was predated only by the Mega Drive 's XE-1 AP, designed by third-party manufacturer Dempa in 1989. The Nintendo 64 controller was released contemporaneously with Sega's 3D Pad for their Saturn system, and was followed during the fifth generation of video game consoles by Sony's Dual Analog and DualShock controllers for the PlayStation console. The analog stick uses a pair of optical encoding disks to determine its position, similar to how ball mice work. Since optical encoding disks only give

2916-420: Was released in 2008 for Japan on April 22, on June 6 in Europe, and on June 30 in North America. In the game, marbles roll down a twisted path toward the goal and the player must stop them by launching new marbles into the oncoming ones. The DS touchscreen is used to 'flick' the marbles from their launch point to their destination with the stylus. The marbles disappear if player matches three or more marbles of

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