Controller Cords

Picture from flickr.com by CadDad

Having owned a Wii for a year truly has spoiled me. Not only is the Wii Remote a fantastic controller, it's wireless, so I don't have to worry about ever tripping over attachments. Sure, it uses batteries, but hey, you got make some sacrifices. I recently hooked up my Saturn, Nintendo 64, SNES and was faced with the rather harsh realization that comes with gaming on older consoles: you've got to deal with controller cords.

I'm used to only seeing a cord mess every time I look behind my systems. In the past where controller cords were the norm, I didn't mind it all that much, but as I said, the Wii really made me appreciate wireless controls. It's just about impossible to keep controller cords from crossing over into other cords and getting tangled up. Everytime I go to play something on the the N64, I've got to untangle some cords (which is a great reason for me to download more N64 games on the Wii's Virtual Console).

Oh and then there's always the possiblity of tripping over a cord. Generally, I'm pretty good about avoiding it, but it does still happen and I get irked whenever it does. At least cord controls don't use batteries and I know it sounds like I'm hating on cord controls, but I'm not. Some of the greatest controllers ever made use cords, such as the SNES controller and Sony's Dual Shock, which was so awesome a control that the company has used it for three console generations.

The best way to cut down on a cord fiasco is to either keep only a single control plugged into a port at a time, or unplug the controls when you aren't playing the system. Most gamers tend to wrap the cord around the controller when it isn't in use, but I've heard this isn't the best method as it just leads to tangels and it some cases, can result in shortages in the wiring. Do you remember how your controller came packaged when you originally got your system? The cords were bound with what looked like a smaller brand of trash bag ties or rubber bands in some cases. This seems to be the best way to store cord controllers since they unwind much easier over time. Controls with cords may be a hassle sometimes but I still like to take good care of them.