Discontinuing the "cool" versions when they weren't even limited edition is such a bullshit move companies make these days, I hate it.
Was the transparent blue controller the most popular version? I just assumed the other ones vastly outsold it, but honestly in hindsight it was the coolest. The one I bought with multi-colored face buttons, magenta shoulder buttons, and a translucent gray plastic looked a lot better in the pictures than it does in person. It's just a mismatched mishmash of kindergarten colors. I still love the controller, I just wish I would've bought the transparent blue version instead. And since the buttons are identical to the Genesis 2.4 GHz controllers, I wish they would have sold extra receivers separately, but I would have settled for a $2 price hike to get an extra Genesis receiver. I don't have my old model 3 Genesis anymore, but I've had eyes on the Analogue Mega SG for a while- I just need to find people who would play co-op Genesis games with me to justify the cost.
Nice! I agree, the Saturn pad ergonomics best those of the Genesis 6-button pad, but growing up on the latter makes it my preferred pad most of the time. I even modded mine with the D-Pad and buttons from my original Genesis controller -- it's definitely cool playing modern games and systems with the same inputs I was mashing decades ago. If you can stomach a (slightly less egregious) markup, Amazon.de has a buying option for new transparent blue Saturn pads. I ordered one back in January, and they delivered it stateside the same week with standard shipping.
That sounds like a pretty good combination! The Saturn D-pad doesn't provide as much resistance as you might be used to from SNES and PS1-5 D-pads, but the Genesis D-pad is a happy middle ground between the Saturn and SNES. A 2x markup (including shipping) is better than a 3x markup, but I don't think I'm anymore tempted to buy than you are. This is arguably still a good deal, but if I'm going to buy anything I really need an analog Saturn controller so I can play Panzer Dragoon Zwei and Burning Rangers the way they were intended. I would greatly prefer a brand new controller over a used OEM analog controller, but the only option is the RetroFighters 2-in-1 Saturn/Genesis controller. It has an analog stick, but the stick maps to 8-way directional input; it doesn't actually use an optical sensor or at least a potentiometer. Unless I buy one of these controllers and modify it myself, I'm just plain outta luck: https://www.amazon.com/Retro-Fighters-BrawlerGen-Saturn-Genesis-Controller/dp/B082XHRXC1 For all those who might read this, I will emphasize again: the RetroFighters BrawlerGen Saturn controller is NOT A REAL ANALOG STICK. Buyer beware!
Well I never had a Saturn so I grew up with Genesis 6 button, and the moment I saw the Saturn pad I assumed it would be simply better. I have a cheap chinese pad because importing a RetroBit one to Argentina costed me 15$ on import and 35$ on taxes (yes, 35$ taxes over a 20$ product, this country is lovely) but yes, the Saturn pad is just a natural evolution of the Genesis. Perfect for playing The Lost Vikings on the the gens by using R as Mode (as the original was) and obviously Saturn games. But also I find it comfortable to play Need For Speed on PSX because it only lacks one button that I don't use anyways.
What's the story with the white Saturn pads? I was going to pick one up, but looks like they are sold out everywhere except for one guy on ebay selling them for $500!?!
They're most likely still coping with supply chain issues across the product line. They said as much in reply to a recent tweet, while also indicating that they're planning another run of the blue Saturn pads -- a model they previously said they did not plan to bring back. Fwiw, the black Saturn pad released alongside the white was out of stock everywhere stateside for months before becoming widely available at normal MSRP, so I'd imagine you'll be able to score a white pad in time.
Preorders for the BIG6 -- Retro-Bit's take on an OG Genesis/MD pad with six buttons -- are up. The wired console port/USB versions are expected to drop October 2022, with a 2.4 GHz wireless version (with USB-C charging!) following in November. Kinda wish they'd opted for Model 1-style red accents on these, but I suppose this distinguishes them further from the Nintendo Switch 3-Button Pad.
I'm glad they are still continuing the range (and I hope this means that the Saturn 3D pad and Dreamcast pads are still coming), but I don't think I'm interested in this one. I have the 3 button pad from the Mega Drive mini, a wired 6 button pad from the Japanese mega drive mini, and a wireless retro-bit 6 button pad already. I also think I prefer more authentic controllers rather than re-imagined ones too.
Same here. Looks like a nice option for those who favor the original pad, at the expense of the 6-Button Pad's legendary D-Pad. The 3-Button Pad that came with my Genesis was always relegated to Player 2, so I don't have a ton of nostalgia for it either.
Last I heard, the chip shortage had delayed the thing. I don’t think there’s been any news since early spring.
The controllers were supposed to come out like 5 years ago lol. Retro-bit is just unreliable, covid or not.
2.4 GHz versions of the Sega Saturn controllers with analog sticks are being demoed today by consumers. [LINK]
Those sticks look tiny, useless, and hard to reach. I can't see much use for them in any scenario. Maybe they're better when it's actually in your hand, though.
I'm not going to lie, I'm disappointed they can't just release the actual 3D controller in the identical fashion the way they did with the model 2 gamepad. I think the whole Saturn community would appreciate that a lot.
Is that not on the cards anymore? I thought they teased a prototype of that a while back and had assumed it might still be coming,
I'm guessing they'd think it's redundant to do that and release a six-button Dreamcast controller with the handles/triggers remodeled closer to the Saturn 3D pad. A two birds with one stone approach. ....that said, where the fuck is that controller? It's almost been four years now. LOL
Amazon has both the 2.4 GHz wireless and wired Sega port versions of the "BIG6" pad available to order in the U.S. The wired USB version will arrive at a later date, per their community manager. Don't really anticipate getting one of these myself, but I'd like to open one up and see how they handled the D-Pad pivot here vs. one of the original 3-Button pads. Also an update regarding their 2.4 GHz wireless Saturn and Genesis/MD pads: They should be back in stock soon featuring new "V2" IC chips. Retro-Bit acknowledged that supply issues with the "V1" chips hindered their ability to keep these in stock. Apparently, the V2 chips feature tweaks such as additional button macros and improved latency. That had better include a fix for the solvable-but-egregious battery-drain issues the originals had.
