Controller Design

Abstract

The focus of this design process is to create a fully functional, ambidextrous, and comfortable one handed controller for use with the Wii U gaming entertainment system. Our team has realized the need for more nontraditional gaming peripherals, and we think that we have designed something truly special that can fill that need for anyone of any disposition to use.

(May 2015)

This design was created, inspired, and built by:

The Only Team

Clinton Huish

Sonny Liu

Mike Miller

Nicholas Zoshak

Introduction and Design Purpose

As video games become an ever more popular hobby for people, there are constantly arising needs for those players. One of which is ease of play for anyone who might be disabled or otherwise inclined. We have decided to focus our efforts on designing a one handed controller option for the Wii U gaming system. We feel that because of the built-in motion sensor and extreme adaptability that the Wii U already has, that we could implement our design most effectively with this system. There are many genres and types of games available on the Wii U and we wanted to give our controller the best chance to succeed with the established titles of the Wii and Nintendo in general. We have designed our controller in a way that will be comfortable for the wearer, whether left or right handed, while still being fully functional for the games they want to play.

Sonny’s Inspirations

What inspired my idea for a portable controller is the world we live in today. Everything has been made easier and more accessible thanks to the internet and the portability of the devices that are able to connect to the internet. If it were possible I could have attempted to think of a realistic design for a portable console but I do not think that is possible at the moment. Sooner or later I think portability be in everything we see and do. I think gaming controllers or consoles are no exception to that.

Michael’s Inspiration

My inspiration for a lap based design came when trying to play Counter Strike on Xbox360.

The controls felt so sluggish and clunky that after only 5 minutes I put the controller down and wished for a better design. My first thought was obvious, I need my mouse. The mouse and keyboard combination are a tried and true way of getting precise movement out of a control design. That is why we use a mouse for AUTOCAD and not an Xbox controller. Well thats not why, but that is why we haven't switched. It’s just more precise and concise than a thumbstick configuration.

“On a control pad, my Titanfall scores are unimpressive. I typically land somewhere in the middle of the pack with a kill-to-death ratio that hovers around 1:1. But with a keyboard and mouse under my fingers, my Xbox One is transformed into a killing machine. Headshots come easy, and my ratio climbs into the double digits.” - John Engen

Sonny’s Inspiration

My main inspiration for my personal controller design, and what I brought for my team’s design, was to have the controller made especially for the Wii U entertainment system. I have always regarding the Wii as the most adaptable and easy to use system of the current generation and thought this platform would be a perfect fit for our design. While the Wii has titles from nearly every genre of gaming, I felt the general family friendliness of the specific Nintendo titles (Mario, Zelda, Metroid, etc.) would be a great avenue of approach for our team to design this controller around.

“For people who like to play games with their kids or non-gamer friends, the Wii U is the obvious choice. It’s easy for anyone to join in thanks to its pick-up-and-play controls…” - Justin Dennis, 2014

Clinton's Inspiration

Whether it is the past, future, or present science fiction controllers have one thing in common they all use hands. Now, I don’t mean that oh yes a controller fits in your hand so I must use my hands I mean there actual hands, for example the entire system from the movie Gamer (Gamer, 2009) is based on how the player moves his hand as well as voice controls. However, we can’t ship a gaming room to every player so how do we allow the game to be played by hand and not by learning the layout of buttons, from a glove. It is as simple as moving your fingers forward and back.

Jose’s InspirationWhen I started looking for Inspiration to design a controller I started looking to the past and to the present. Generation after generation of controllers have gotten more complicated due to how the video game industry has grown, our games have grown to need more than just a single joystick with a few buttons to having touch pads, cameras and much more. While searching for that one perfect controller I must have went through every single controller I’ve ever used, but I kept coming back to the Wii remote. Its easy to use, has can be used in multiple ways and what I found that was really unique is the fact that the Wii remote is natively ambidextrous. For any person who uses this controller in their right or left hands the button layout will be the same. David M. Ewalt describes the Wii mote in another way, he states “It’s connected to the console wirelessly, and more important, it’s equipped with an innovative motion sensor that detects movement and rotation in three dimensions.” (David M. Ewalt, PP 3). So this also got me thinking of how to make an ambidextrous controller with easy to use button layout, easy for people to past to their friends that have a different dominant hand, or easy to use if the player only has one hand. So the Wii remote grew over time to become my inspiration.

Design Method

Our Design process as a team took us through three distinct steps, as seen by our pictures. The first of these steps was the rough draft of a lap based system. Simple, yet a strong base. From here we began to pick and chose the functions or ideas from our various controllers. This process created the device we see in our second picture. In which we can see the various intricate parts that we brought together from each individual design and how they fit together. From there we attempted to make a rough prototype for the controller so that we can see how people would react and how well the system works.

Schematic Diagrams

B Button

Left Trigger

X Button

Right Bump

Right Trigger

Y Button

A Button

Motion Sensor

Analog Stick

Left Bump

Hand Strap

Hand Strap

Schematic Diagrams

Modular Buttons

Motion Sensor

Hand Strap

Hand StrapModular Buttons

Modular Station

Modular Buttons Modular Buttons

Schematic Diagrams

B Button

Left Trigger

X Button Right Bump

Right Trigger

Y Button

A Button

Motion SensorAnalog Stick

Left Bump

Hand Strap

Hand Strap

Adjustment System Adjustment System

Schematic Diagrams

Hand Strap

Motion SensorModular Buttons

Hand Strap

Adjustment System Adjustment System

Modular Buttons

Modular Buttons

Modular Station

Modular Station

Modular Buttons

Clinton’s Design Assumptions

The main and almost sole aspect from my controller that I transferred over was the glove aspect. I transferred this aspect over because it allows for ease and comfort. Setting the controller up in this format that allows for the user to keep a hold of the device and not require the player to worry about h0lding and reaching all of the buttons. All in all I feel that because of the glove like attachment to the controller we were also able to implement the motion tracking for the Wii U.

Michael’s Design Assumptions

From my design I brought over the “lap based” controller theme. The reasoning for a lap based controller in my original design was for the ability to fit all of the needed components as well as provide a stable base. This still holds true the one handed controller design. I believe we still need a solid base to work from and with the many features we will be including the base works as the center hub of this design.

Nick’s Design Assumptions

My main aspect of design I brought to the team’s design was that the platform we would be working for was the Wii U. That being said I focused on making sure that we brought nearly every functional part of the Wii U controllers into our design, besides the touch screen to keep the controller compact. The three biggest ideas I gave the team for the controller were the side by side A, B, X, Y, right trigger and left trigger buttons, the movable joystick to accommodate left or right handed players, and the left and right bumper buttons that are on the side of the movement joystick.

Sonny’s Design Assumptions

The design assumption that I brought to the table is portability and conventionality. While SONY and Microsoft has the more powerful console system compared to the Wii U, I believe Nintendo separates itself from the big 3 through it’s portability and immersiveness. Nintendo has always dominated the handheld department and I thought it was only fitting that the same kind of handheld feature should be kept in our controller design. Every button is easily accessible and should not require too much adaptation. We tried to keep everything about the controller as conventional as possible by retaining similar features of controllers existing today as well as incorporating new ideas that will not turn away players because it seems too out of this world.

Jose’s Design Assumptions

The Wii remote influenced my design for an ambidextrous controller. The Wii remote is easy to use and it has multiple ways of using the controller to play. It doesn’t matter what hand your dominate with because the Wii remote is perfectly symmetrical. By making our controller symmetrical or at least having the ability to change positions we are enabling anyone who uses our controllers to have the option of using it in either hand. This controller design would be more beneficial to people who don’t have full control of both of their hands, or people who are missing limb. This controller design will provide full functionality while being compatible with the Wii U.

Shovel KnightGenre: Side Scrolling/Platforming

Shovel Knight is a retro style action adventure platformer that is unique by challenging the player to fight enemies while being able to leap from platform to platform. As the Shovel Knight you are able to use various items, and special moves to fight enemies and find secret areas. the inspiration for this games comes from other classic games such as Mega Man, Super Metroid, and Castlevania. With Shovel Knight’s easy controls we believe that it is possible for our controller to be compatible with this game.

Since our controller has a D-pad module included (directional pad), and Shovel Knight has simple controls it is very easy to create a controller layout for this game. We can have the A and B buttons as jump, the Y and X button as attack. From this simple layout the player can move the character with the D-pad and be able to fight and jump where they need to go. And if the player simply pushes up on the D-pad while pressing Y or X they can activate their one of there many items they have equipped. Our Start and Select buttons will function as normal to pause and save your game with the Start button, and to pick out what item you will like to use using the Select button. The left bumper button next to the joystick is used to switch between different suit visors, and the right bumper is to cast Hypermode. Lastly the start/select/home buttons will serve the same function as intended, notably to pause the game and return to the home screen.

Mario Kart 8Genre: RacingMario Kart is a go kart style racing game. It’s uniqueness that separates it from other racing games is it’s use of Nintendo’s iconic characters and the use of many tools and weapons in order to stop their opponents during races. Over the years each iteration of the game has been highly successful. Mario Kart 8 for the Wii U is the latest iteration of the franchise and it comes with several new features such as anti gravity racing. However, even with it’s new features we believe the controller that we have come up with is playable with Mario Kart.

Our controller has a joystick that is 100% playable with Mario Kart. The joystick is placed so that it can be used to it’s fullest potential whether the player is left handed or right handed. The two buttons on the sides of the joystick can be used to drift and the A button can be used to accelerate and the B button can be used to activate items you pick up. There is no need for camera control since most racing games take care of the camera on it’s own by simply turning the car/go kart. UI navigation is done through the use of the joystick and the start/select/home buttons.

Metroid Prime 3: CorruptionGenre: First Person ShooterMetroid Prime 3: Corruption is Samus Aran’s third and final foray into the Prime universe. She finds herself pit against Dark Samus, a supposedly dead Metroid, and must travel to the planet Phazon to stop her evil twin’s plans. This is a pretty standard First Person Shooter game with the player controlling Samus Aran. The game features many platforming levels that include jumping, shooting enemies with lasers and missiles, grapple hook swinging, turning into a small ball with your suit to navigate tiny corridors, and puzzles. Throughout the game the player receives many upgrades to types of laser beams and missiles, can upgrade the armor, health, and functionality of their suit, and more.

The control scheme from our controller to a more standard Wii controller is not really different at all, besides a couple key factors. Our movement is still controlled by the thumb joystick but our camera movement is attached to the motion sensor on the front of our controller. The A button will still be used to fire the main cannon, confirm menu selections and interact with objects. The B button will make Samus jump, as well as exit menus. Since we do not have a C or Z button, instead our left trigger will lock on to targets, and the right trigger will fire missiles. The Y button will activate Morph Ball mode and the X button will handle the grapple lasso, grabbing and pulling objects/targets.

Create a Simple Prototype

B Button Left Trigger

X Button

Right Bump - Button

Right Trigger

+ Button

Home Button

Y Button

A Button

Motion Sensor

Left Bump

Analog Stick

Conduct a play testing session

Through out the play test we were able to find that while on the player's lap the controller functioned easily with the exception of the size of a player's hand, which brings up making the controller so that it is adjustable. However, the controller became nearly impossible to use even with a glove when trying to move the system around. after realizing how big of an issue this was we began to look for a solution, which resulted in adjustable straps. This easily fixed the problem. All in all the pay test showed us our design flaws when it comes to one size fits all, but also revealed that the user finds it easy and comfortable to use no matter the age.

Post Mortem

What happened correctly:

- In one relatively short meeting the team was able to decide upon the platform the controller would be used on- Everyone had the same sense of the basic design the controller would be- Ideas were constantly arising from all team members; all ideas were received openly with no whining/complaining if a

certain person’s idea wasn’t chosen- Team members worked seamlessly on assigned areas of interest, as well as helping anyone that required assistance

What happened incorrectly:

- There was some confusion on the specifics of the design as team members were not always at every meeting- The team did struggle at first to come up with a design that incorporated every member’s design aspects- Slight problems in communicating as a whole; mostly due to scheduling concerns

What we would do differently:

- Set finite times and dates for meeting that everyone can attend- Be more clear on what exactly is required from each specific team member

References

● David M. Ewalt (November 13, 2006) Nintendo’s Wii is a Revolution was retrieved on June 10, 2015 from http://www.forbes.com/2006/11/13/wii-review-ps3-tech-media-cx_de_1113wii.html

● Daveynin (December 8, 2007) Three generations of Wii Wrist Straps was retrieved on June 10, 2015 from https://www.flickr.com/photos/daveynin/2095333483/in/photolist-4ca8Dn-d9zMY5-aGZK7Z-bhaBst-263NJ9-3VqDKo-yaNh2-3SCC8Y-5ehJup-DTL7Z-sEe5i-5TBcBy-7utRNH-3SCyrf-4ojL5j-4Zu3S2-6A1LMx-6A5QW1-6A5QSW-p3dyBq-5AFi1x-4U8NC7-G2f33-uZP6t-2hEaLD-3kbgfL-gV1wqf-3kbgDS-3k6NhD-3kbf43-3kbdmG-4h1Hvs-3k6Prr-3kbfrC-3kbdLh-adcjSJ-3hDSRW-344Z4K-3zUXRJ-4gM7X5-7iz6aT-349Ca2-4Vbbic-4PLoqs-KupqR-4U4zsX-4U4z36-4U4zfx-4U8NoJ-4U4yNZ

● 7 Ways The Wii U Is Better Than The Xbox One And PS4. (n.d.). Retrieved June 14, 2015, from http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/x-ways-wii-u-better-xbox-one-ps4/

● Super Smash Bros for Wii U: Nintendo Wants You to Forget the 3DS Version. (n.d.). Retrieved June 14, 2015, from http://www.usgamer.net/articles/super-smash-bros-for-wii-u-nintendo-wants-you-to-forget-the-3ds-version

● Explore more beautiful alien worlds, now with extra cheese | Metroid Prime 3: Corruption | VideoGameGeek. (n.d.). Retrieved June 14, 2015, from https://videogamegeek.com/thread/1044283/explore-more-beautiful-alien-worlds-now-extra-chee

● Mario Kart 8. (n.d.). Retrieved June 14, 2015, from http://www.gamespot.com/mario-kart-8/ ● Shovel Knight Review Roundup. (n.d.). Retrieved June 14, 2015, from http://www.gamespot.com/articles/shovel-knight-

review-roundup/1100-6420761/

References Cont.

● (n.d.). Retrieved June 14, 2015, from https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-UrD9ZSCgAME/TXfKnD1ogaI/AAAAAAAAAhM/8rKawlREzxc/s1600/screenshot-lrg-12.png

● Gamer. (n.d.). Retrieved June 14, 2015, from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1034032/ ● Turn Your Android Phone Into a Gaming Console With PhoneJoy Play. (n.d.). Retrieved June 14, 2015, from http:

//drippler.com/drip/turn-your-android-phone-gaming-console-phonejoy-play ● The ergonomics of the controller is the main reason console is better than PC. where is your god now? (n.d.). Retrieved

June 14, 2015, from http://9gag.com/gag/aDwK4KG/the-ergonomics-of-the-controller-is-the-main-reason-console-is-better-than-pc-where-is-your-god-now

● Is Using a Keyboard and Mouse on a Console Cheating? (n.d.). Retrieved June 14, 2015, from http://geekparty.com/is-using-a-keyboard-and-mouse-on-a-console-cheating/