lextorias
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Update: Controller Layouts
🕑 Added 2024-02-19 23:02:16 +0000 UTCHey everyone!
After working hard on research for my last few videos, I've decided to take it easy for a bit and make some lighter, shorter, filler content. So I started looking into why different controllers have different layouts.
This turned out to be a mistake.
We all know that the PlayStation, XBox, and Nintendo controllers have pretty much all the same general buttons, just labeled differently. The X button is in a different location on every console. So I wanted to find out why. And researching why these 80s console designers decided on their very arbitrary button layouts is very difficult. I've read dozens of articles, several books, and reached out to games historians in search of answers.
As usual, this small project I wanted to get done quickly is turning into a full deep dive into some obscure piece of history. So I just want to give this quick update before diving back into research.
If anyone could tell me why in 1983 Masayuki Uemura or Gunpei Yokoi decided to put the A & B button on the Famicom backwards, I would love to know!
Comments
Admiral
Fascinating quandary, my best guess is that the controller is held differently than any other of the other ones of the time, making the outward button easier to press, and thus designated the primary button?
Domi Schell
Everytime I switch from PC to the Nintendo Switch, I would like to travel back in time to 1983 and kick those guy in the butt for switching the button layout π€¬π€ͺπ
T Peter
I think Scott the Woz has a video going over the entire history or every controller. Iβd recommend giving it a watch if you havenβt already
Graham Naquin
The only controller that matters is the GameCube controller. I play JRPGS with a GC controller plugged into my PC because mashing A through dialogue is superior with that big ass green button
Tyler Moore
I think Lowspecgamer on yt has a pretty well researched video on it. His content focuses mainly on the hardware behind a lot of early consoles.
Lextorias
The Sega Genesis uses ABC left to right, and the Donkey Kong Game & Watch that the Famicom controller was based off of has Game A and Game B left to right as well
Jeff
This is going to be a fun one (for us)
Bean
My uneducated guess is that it's because japanese is read right to left, therefore it looks 'correct' in that placement to their eye
TheJadedMieu
Godspeed boss π«‘
SoulZaku
That sounds like a fun deep dive
