Controller:Nintendo 64 Controller
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| XInput support | |
|---|---|
| Connection method | |
| Wired adapter | |
| Predecessor | |
| SNES Controller Virtual Boy Controller |
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| Successor | |
| GameCube Controller | |
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The Nintendo 64 Controller is a game controller released by Nintendo on June 23, 1996. It was released alongside the Nintendo 64.
Unlike most game controllers, the N64 have a triple-grip controller design, with a single, hall-effect-based joystick on the middle. However, the joystick rarely have the full range of 360 degrees.[1]. On the front bottom of the controller is a memory cartridge slot, which can be used to slot in accessories such as Rumble Pak.
A variant of the N64 controller made specifically for the Nintendo Switch was released in October 2021. This particular model has built-in vibration motors and have USB and Bluetooth connectivity.
The controller requires a wired adapter to be able to be used on PC (See Hardware), and even then, depending on the adapter used, it can work as either an DirectInput device or an XInput device. The N64 Controller for Switch can be connected to the PC via USB-C and Bluetooth, but only work as a generic DirectInput controller and requiring the use of a XInput wrapper (see XInput wrappers) for games that only use the XInput API.
Inputs
- 1 × analog stick
- 10 × digital buttons: 𝐀, 𝐁, 𝐂 ▲, 𝐂 ▼, 𝐂 ◄, 𝐂 ▶, 𝐋, 𝐑, 𝐙, sᴛᴀʀᴛ
- 4 × digital directional buttons (d-pad): ↑, ↓, ←, →
Controller variations
Nintendo 64 Controller for Switch with additional screenshot button, home button, pairing button, and ZR button, which serves as the - button.
- The Nintendo 64 Controller for Nintendo Switch Online is a variant of the N64 controller made specifically for the Nintendo Switch. It has a USB Type-C port for wired connectivity and Bluetooth for wireless connectivity. Unlike the original, the N64 controller for Switch have rumble motors built-in. Being made for the Switch, the ⧇ ᴄᴀᴘᴛᴜʀᴇ button, ⌂ ʜᴏᴍᴇ button, sʏɴᴄ button and the ZR button (which also serves as the - button) can be found on the controller. It also comes with a 6 ft charging cable. [2]
Use with PC platforms
Windows
| Supported features | reWASD | Steam | Gamepad Phoenix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Virtual Xbox controller emulation | ✓ [N 1] | ✓ | ✓ |
| Virtual Nintendo controller emulation | ✓ [N 2] | ✗ | ✗ |
| Vibrations | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| Bluetooth connection | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| LEDs | ✓ [N 3] | ✗ | ✗ |
| Dead-zone adjustment | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Multiple controllers | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Keyboard & Mouse input emulation | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| Virtual DualShock emulation | ✓ [N 4] | ✗ | ✗ |
| Retro DInput/WinMM compatibility | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
- ↑ Allows using controller as Xbox 360 and Xbox One virtual controllers.
- ↑ Allows using controller as virtual Switch Pro Controller.
- ↑ LED shows which config slot is active at the moment.
- ↑ Allows using controller as DualShock 3 and DualShock 4 virtual controllers.
XInput wrapping
- With certain adapters and/or software, the original N64 Controller acts as a DirectInput controller, making it possible to use any of the generic wrappers. See the controller article for those.
- On the other hand, the N64 Controller for Switch Online is a native DirectInput Controller via USB and Bluetooth.
reWASD
- Supports Nintendo 64 Controller via Bluetooth adapter or USB cable, does not require manual driver installment.
- reWASD does not work with third-party drivers. Unsupported yet adapters have to be reported on official forum to implement their support.
- LED shows which config slot is active at the moment.
- Can emulate the DualShock 4 to play PS4 Remote Play, PS Now or Dualshock 4 compatible games. Including gyro and accelerometer control.
- Can emulate the Xbox 360 controller to play XInput-compatible games.
- Not free of charge. 14-days trial.
- Custom configs for Nintendo 64 Controller can be found in official Community Configs Library maintained by reWASD users.
Management tools for raphnet USB adapters
- The management tool can perform a vibration/rumble test, can update an adapter's firmware and perform read/write operations on N64 mempaks. The built-in mempak editor supports common .N64 and .MPK mempak image file formats. Downloading cheats from gamefaqs and using them on the real N64 system is therefore possible! The editor also supports importing and exporting individual saves (notes) in separate files. All features:
- Adapter version display
- Adapter firmware update
- Displays the type of controller connected
- Vibration test (N64 Rumble Pak and Gamecube vibration)
- Read/Write N64 Controller Pak ("memory paks"), memory pak editor
- N64 Transfer Pak support:
- Read ROM from ROM-Only, MBC1, MBC2, MBC3, MBC5 and POCKET CAMERA gameboy cartridges.
- Read/Write save RAM for MBC1, MBC2, MBC3, MBC5 and POCKET CAMERA gameboy cartridges.
- Gamecube to N64 adapter management (firmware update, version display)
RetroUSB's N64 Tool
- This beta app to test Rumble Paks and upload/download save files on Controller Paks
- Rumble Paks does not work in games yet. Application owner is asking for help "program device drivers", as he "needs something like XBCD to add rumble support in games".
Hardware
Adapters
Mayflash N64 Controller Adapter
- Directly compatible with PC. No driver needed, just plug and play.
- Two players can play simultaneously.
- Compatible with PS3 console.
- No extra power supply required.
USB N64 RetroPort
- Works with authentic Nintendo controllers. Many common third party controllers have been tested working but are not officially supported.
- Beta "N64 Tool" allows test Rumble Paks and upload/download save files on Controller Paks.
- No drivers to install or update.
Bliss-Box Gamer-Pro
- Directly compatible with PC. No driver needed, just plug and play.
- A wide variety of controllers are fully supported right out of the box. See the Compatibility List.
- Global Button Mapping - starting with 3.0 this layout has changed for modern gaming. The internal button mapping is set up so that buttons on different controllers match each other's layouts as closely as possible.
- Adapter can update firmware and be used on PC, PS3 (up to 4 players), Xbox (single player only) or Switch (up to 4 players). Each controller port has its own firmware chip so multiple firmware versions can be used if desired. See more.
- Allows to use special API to communicate with applications (eg. RetroArch). See API tool documentation.
- A 12v power supply is completely optional and simply allows the HUB to be self-powered and supplies additional power for a stronger Playstation Force Feedabck effect only.
- Adapter work on Windows, OSX, Linux, Raspberry Pi, most all Android device.
- Controller hot swap support that allows user to swap out the controller. If Auto Pause is enabled (default setup), the adapter will pause the game while user disconnect their controller.
- Auto Pause: when the adapter senses the controller has become unplugged, it presses the pause button.
- Single-Player Mode, the adapter can be switched to Single-Player Mode. This will allow for some advance features like using the adapter on an Xbox with special firmware, or up-linking to other future Bliss-Box add-on accessories.
- Native Support, adapter have the ability to allow communication from the emulated game directly to the controller and back with any of the supported controllers.
- Do not natively support Xinput. It can do so however, with the use of 3rd party software (ie. x360ce or XOutput).
- Hotkey: Pressing and holding sᴛᴀʀᴛ will trigger a Hotkey combo. User may configure this combo for a hot key in front-ends like RetroArch.
n64 Arduino Switch
- By connecting an original N64 controller to an Arduino UNO R3 running this code, and plugging the USB from the Arduino into a Nintendo Switch, user can use original N64 controller as a Switch controller on PC.
- The button mappings were made using The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time on Nintendo Switch Online and the buttons are mapped 1:1.
- Controller is converting the joystick x/y axis. Based on an article talking about how joysticks rarely have the full range and how developers should only rely on about 1/2 of the full axis range. To fix this, developer added logic so the joystick will start at 2x sensitivity and auto-scale sensitivity per-side of each axis to allow even old joysticks to get full range.
Expansions
Controller Pak
- Used for saving extra data.
Rumble Pak
- Removable device which provides force feedback while playing video games. Games that support the Rumble Pak cause it to vibrate in select situations, such as when firing a weapon or receiving damage, to immerse the player in the game.
- It requires two AAA batteries and is inserted into the controller's memory cartridge slot, which prevents simultaneous use of the Controller Pak.
- The Rumble Pak is estimated to provide 50-60 hours of continuous rumbling before the batteries must be replaced.
Transfer Pak
- Used for data transfer between supported Nintendo 64 and Game Boy (Color) games.
List of Transfer Pak supported games
Steam
- Can be recognized as Xbox 360 controller but after manual assignment. Controller cannot be found in Supported Controller Database, so Steam recognizes it as standard DirectInput device.
Steam Link compatibility
- Works partially over Mayflash N64 Controller Adapter.[10]
- Works without any drivers on any operating system that supports Steam.
- Can be used just to send input from a controller to a PC. Go into Streaming options, hit 𝗖 and disable video and audio streaming.
- Won't work great unless the streaming device is connected to LAN or a low latency Wi-Fi.
Support in games
- Support for some controller features may be only available on certain systems. Refer to game-specific articles for details.
Games with Dual Controller Style
Dual controller style with two Nintendo 64 controllers.
- Nintendo 64 Controller has only one stick, so to have control on movement and camera, game GoldenEye 007 has implemented dual controller support. Dual controller style are designed to be played with a hand on the center grip of each controller. They allow for analog movement, turning, looking, and strafing whereas only two of those can be available at a time on a single controller.
- Two analog sticks support is a standard for PC controllers, so using controllers in Dual Controller Style allows to play PC games in more natural way than using one controller.
- Emulated game GoldenEye 007 supports Dual Controller Style. See more.
- Emulated games Perfect Dark, Robotron 64, Sin & Punishment and Star Wars Episode One Racer allows to control camera and movement in Dual Controller Style. See more.
- ReWASD application allows to merge two controllers into one virtual, what will allow to achieve Dual Controller Style for two Nintendo 64 controllers.
- ReWASD application does not support Nintendo 64 controller yet. But support is planned[11].
Other information
Technical information
Mayflash N64 Controller Adapter:
| Controller button | Button label and axis |
|---|---|
| A | Button 2 |
| B | Button 3 |
| L | Button 5 |
| R | Button 6 |
| Z | Button 7 |
| Start | Button 10 |
| Left stick | X-axis, Y-axis |
| C | Z-rotation |
| D-pad up | POV up |
| D-pad down | POV down |
| D-pad left | POV left |
| D-pad right | POV right |
Bliss-Box Gamer-Pro Adapter
- Firmware 3.23 and greater.
- Standard mapping:
| Controller button | Button label and axis |
|---|---|
| A | Button 2 |
| B | Button 1 |
| L | Button 7 |
| R | Button 8 |
| Z | Button 5 |
| Start | Button 6 |
| Left stick | X-axis, Y-axis |
| C up | Button 9 |
| C down | Button 4 |
| C left | Button 3 |
| C right | Button 10 |
| D-pad up | POV up |
| D-pad down | POV down |
| D-pad left | POV left |
| D-pad right | POV right |
- Alternative mapping:
| Controller button | Button label and axis |
|---|---|
| A | Button 1 |
| B | Button 3 |
| L | Button 9 |
| R | Button 10 |
| Z | Button 5 |
| Start | Button 10 |
| Left stick | X-axis, Y-axis |
| C up | Button 7 |
| C down | Button 2 |
| C left | Button 4 |
| C right | Button 8 |
| D-pad up | POV up |
| D-pad down | POV down |
| D-pad left | POV left |
| D-pad right | POV right |
References
- ↑ Does the N64 joystick really allow 360 degrees of control? - last accessed on June 2023
- ↑ imore - Is the N64 controller worth it for Nintendo Switch? - last accessed on June 2023
- ↑ "Nintendo Still Cooking Cabbage". IGN. April 4, 2000. http://www.ign.com/articles/2000/04/05/nintendo-still-cooking-cabbage. Retrieved February 25, 2014.
- ↑ IGN Staff (January 29, 1998). "64DD: The Games". http://www.ign.com/articles/1998/01/30/64dd-the-games. Retrieved January 25, 2015.
- ↑ Miyamoto, Shigeru; Itoi, Shigesato (December 1997). "A friendly discussion between the "Big 2"". Translation. p. 91.
- ↑ Gantayat, Anoop (August 21, 2006). "Miyamoto Opens the Vault". IGN. http://www.ign.com/articles/2006/08/21/miyamoto-opens-the-vault. Retrieved January 28, 2015.
- ↑ "What's DT, you ask?". IGN. August 27, 1999. http://ign64.ign.com/articles/069/069944p1.html. Retrieved January 3, 2015.
- ↑ Schneider, Peer (August 27, 1999). "Mario Artist: Talent Studio (Import)". IGN. http://www.ign.com/articles/1999/08/28/mario-artist-talent-studio-import-2. Retrieved January 25, 2015.
- ↑ The N64 Mario Games The West Never Got: Mario Artist Creative Suite - Region Locked Feat. Dazz - last accessed on 2022-12-12
- ↑ List of Steam Link compatible controllers, adapters etc. - SteamCommunity - last accessed on June 2023
- ↑ About N64 controller support - last accessed on June 2023