8BitDo's 64 Bluetooth Controller redesigns the original N64 pad into a conventional two-handed layout with modern ergonomics. The controller uses a Hall-effect thumbstick and includes built-in rumble, turbo mode, and button remapping for customizable play. The pad targets the Analogue3D FPGA console but pairs with PCs, smartphones, Nintendo Switch and Switch 2 via Bluetooth. Compatibility enables play of original N64 cartridges on Analogue3D and the digital N64 library on Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack. Some limitations include lack of out-of-the-box pairing with Switch 2 requiring repeated pairing between sessions, a firmware update tool that is not straightforward, and a D-pad that feels overly twitchy.
The Nintendo 64 was a fantastic console, home to generation-defining games such as Super Mario 64 and GoldenEye 007. With its four built-in controller ports, it revolutionized multiplayer gaming in front of the TV, and it was the first mainstream console to introduce an analog stick, essential for navigating the burgeoning 3D worlds the medium was starting to deliver. Unfortunately, the controller it did all that with was an abomination, an unholy three-pronged monstrosity that earned my lifelong disdain.
8BitDo's pad is chiefly designed for the Analogue3D, an upcoming field programmable gate array (FPGA) console set to play original N64 cartridges, but it can be paired to practically any Bluetooth-enabled device, from PCs to smartphones to Nintendo Switch and Switch 2 consoles, where it can be used to play the digital N64 game library included for Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack subscribers.
Collection
[
|
...
]