Control Pad (Saturn)
From Sega Retro
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| Made for: Sega Saturn | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Manufacturer: Sega | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Sega Saturn Control Pad, later known simply as the Controller in North America, is primary method of user input for the Sega Saturn. It is an evolution of the Six Button Control Pad for the Sega Mega Drive and was originally seen in 1994 along with the Saturn console.
Contents
Hardware
It has a circular D-Pad, a START button, and six face buttons; 
, 
, 
, 
, 
and 
. New to the Saturn is the addition of two shoulder buttons, 
and 
, which replace the Mega Drive's "mode" button to bring the total number of buttons to nine. Like the Mega Drive Control Pad(s), it is ergonomically designed for maximum comfort.
The Saturn controller debuted in Japan in 1994 and remained largely unchanged throughout the lifespan of the console. In North America and Europe however, a different, much bulkier controller was released to supposedly accommodate for the "bigger hands" of western consumers. This "MK-80100" control pad is functionally identical to its Japanese cousin, but is slightly larger and has a peculiar concave D-Pad, not seen in a Sega console since. This particular model is often regarded to be worse than the Japanese variant, and was replaced entirely during the summer of 1996, cutting costs as the console was redesigned.
The Control Pad saw an "upgrade" in the form of the 3D Control Pad, which featured an analogue thumbstick. Its design is similar to the XE-1AP, a 1989 analogue thumbstick controller released for the Sega Mega Drive exclusively in Japan.
Media/transport control buttons
In addition to giving more control options for games, , , , and double up as "media control" (or "transport control") buttons:
: Repeat
: Stop
: Start/pause
: Previous track
: Next track
This was intended for the console's CD player, to save the user from navigating extra menus, however the layout was adopted by some games (at least in part), typically those with replay functions or video players:
Versions
There are many slightly different colour variations of the controller, mostly to match the colour of the console. Japan initially received grey pads, but eventually saw white and clear varieties as well as those designed for V-Saturns and HiSaturns. The transparent "Cool Pad" was sold in Japan for one month, between 20 June 1997 and 19 July 1997[1]. In the rest of the world (bar Brazil), only black controllers were released. It should also be noted that all versions of the Control Pad (Saturn) are Region Free and can be used on any Saturn console.
US/EU model (MK-80100/MK-80301)
US gray model (MK-80114)
US/EU model (MK-80116/MK-80313)
JP gray model (HSS-0101)
JP white model (HSS-0101)
JP Skeleton model (HSS-0101)
JP V-Saturn model (RG-CP5)
JP V-Saturn model (RG-CP6)
JP Hi-Saturn model (HSS-0118)
KR Samsung model (SATURN-0001)
KR Sega model (HSS-0101)
BR white/pink model
BR white/pink model
BR black model
Magazine articles
- Main article: Control Pad (Saturn)/Magazine articles.
Promotional material
Cool Pad JP TV advert
Physical scans
| Sega Retro Average | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
 |
100 |
|---|---|
| Based on 1 review | |
| Saturn, JP (Grey) |
|---|
   Cover
|
| Saturn, JP (White) |
|---|
  Cover
|
| Saturn, JP (Cool Pad) |
|---|
  Cover
|
| Saturn, JP (V-Saturn, RG-CP5) |
|---|
  Cover
|
| Saturn, JP (V-Saturn, RG-CP6) |
|---|
  Cover
|
| Saturn, JP (HiSaturn) |
|---|
 Cover
|
| Saturn, US (MK-80100) |
|---|
  Cover
|
| Saturn, US (MK-80114) |
|---|
  Cover
|
| Saturn, US (MK-80116) |
|---|
  Cover
|
| Saturn, EU (MK-80301) |
|---|
  Cover
|
| Saturn, EU (MK-80313) |
|---|
  Cover
|
| Saturn, BR |
|---|
  Cover
|
| Saturn, KR (Samsung Saturn) |
|---|
  Cover
|
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 http://sega.jp/fb/segahard/ss/pad.html (Wayback Machine: 2013-02-10 00:47)
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Sega FY 1997 Brand Review, page 10
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Computer & Video Games, "December 1997" (UK; 1997-11-12), page 67
- ↑ Ação Games, "Setembro 1995" (BR; 1995-09-16), page 10