3D Control Pad
From Sega Retro
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The Sega Saturn Analog gamepad, also known as the 3D Analog Controller was the result of a redesign of the previous controllers in response to Nintendo 64's analog controller.
The controller features an analog thumb stick that allowed 360° of rotation, as opposed to the standard 8-directional input of the D-pad. The D-pad kept the same design of the original Sega Saturn controller. (Not the one present on the American version of the digital controllers.) The controller also featured analog shoulder triggers as opposed to the digital buttons. Although very few games that supported the controller utilized this feature. The controller also provided grips for comfort so the player could switch between the analog stick and D-pad with no trouble. The controller would also feature six face buttons making it compatible with every Sega Saturn game.
To avoid compatibility issues, the analog controller has a switch under the start button to swap between "Digital" and "Analog" modes. Switching to "Digital" mode disabled the analog thumb stick, and reverted the shoulder buttons to a binary mode of input. Switching to analog mode activated the analog stick and switched the shoulder button input to analog as well. However, if the game did not support analog features, the controller would not be compatible with the game, and as a result would not send input.
For storage purposes, the wire of the controller can be removed by holding down on the clip on the back of the controller and sliding the controller and the wire apart.
To help circulation in the Sega Saturn market, the controller made it's debut along with the first game that had compatibility with the accessory, NiGHTS into Dreams. Sega also released a bundle in the holiday season when the game came out that combined both the NiGHTS game and the controller. The bundle contained the game in a jewel CD case as opposed to the long box made standard for all Sega Saturn titles.
The design of the controller would be further realized with the similarly built Dreamcast Controller which also featured an analog stick and shoulder buttons. However it would lack the Digital/Analog switch and only have four face buttons as opposed to six and instead feature two slots for accessory units.
Physical Scans
US Manual
- 3dpad-1.jpg
Front Side
- 3dpad-2.jpg
Back Side