Editing Analog stick

{{short description|Input device for a video game controller}}
{{more sources|date=March 2024}}
[[File:GameCube Analog Stick.jpg|thumb|right|The [[GameCube controller]] analog stick]]
<!-- To a certain extent, this definition is speculative, based on personal experience. -->
An '''analog stick''' ('''analogue stick''' in British English), also known as a '''control stick''', '''thumbstick''' or '''joystick''', is an input method designed for [[video game]]s that translates thumb movement into directional control. It consists of a protruding stick mounted on a pivot, with movement registered through continuous electrical signals rather than discrete switches, allowing for greater nuance than traditional digital inputs.

Unlike [[D-pad]]s, which rely on fixed electrical contacts, analog sticks use [[potentiometers]] to measure their position across a full range of motion. Many models allow the stick to be pressed down like a button, allowing users to execute commands without removing their thumb from the stick. Since its introduction, the analog stick has largely replaced the D-pad as the primary directional input in modern game controllers.

==Usage in video games==
The initial prevalence of analog sticks was as peripherals for [[flight simulator]] games, to better reflect the subtleties of control required for such titles. It was during the fifth console generation that [[Nintendo]] announced it would integrate a small stick into its [[Nintendo 64 controller]], a step which would pave the way for subsequent leading console manufacturers to follow suit.

An analog stick is often used to move some game object, usually the [[Player character|playable character]]. It may also be used to rotate the [[Virtual camera system|camera]], usually around the character. The analog stick can serve a great variety of other functions, depending on the game. Today many analog sticks can also be pushed in like conventional face buttons of a controller, to allow for more functions.<ref>[[Giant Bomb|GiantBomb]]: [http://www.giantbomb.com/tank-controls/3015-4647/ Tank controls]</ref> With the prevalence of analog sticks, the aforementioned limitations of the D-pad ceased to be an issue.

===Dual analog sticks===
[[File:PSX-DualShock-Controller.jpg|thumb|The Sony PlayStation DualShock (1997) features two analog sticks.]]

Two analog sticks offer greater functionality than a single stick. Importantly, it allows for the direction of an [[Player character|playable character]] to be controlled by one stick and the orientation of the [[Virtual camera system|camera]] by the other, allowing players to look one direction, while moving in another. Sony's [[Dual Analog Controller|Dual Analog]] and [[DualShock]] controllers, released in 1997 were the first to feature two sticks, and the design later earned a [[Technology & Engineering Emmy Award]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.emmyonline.org/mediacenter/tech_2k6_winners.html |title=National Television Academy Announces Emmy Winning Achievements: Honors Bestowed at 58th Annual Technology & Engineering Emmy Awards |access-date=2008-01-11 |date=2007-09-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071216064342/http://www.emmyonline.org/mediacenter/tech_2k6_winners.html |archive-date=2007-12-16 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

On some modern [[game controllers]], the analog sticks are "staggered", such that the left stick is positioned to the upper left of the D-pad while the right stick is positioned to the lower left of the face buttons. The controllers of all [[Xbox]] consoles ([[Xbox controller]], [[Xbox 360 controller]] and [[Xbox Wireless Controller]]), as well as controllers for [[Nintendo]]'s [[GameCube]] and [[Nintendo Switch|Switch]] ([[GameCube controller]], the dual [[Joy-Con]] Comfort Grip and the [[Nintendo Switch Pro Controller]]), utilize a staggered analog stick layout. 

Other controllers instead have the two analog sticks in a symmetrical configuration with a D-pad on the left thumb position and face buttons at the right thumb position, with analog sticks below and closer to the center on both sides. [[Sony Interactive Entertainment|Sony]]'s [[PlayStation]]-series analog controllers&mdash;the [[Dual Analog Controller]], [[DualShock#DualShock|DualShock]], [[DualShock#DualShock 2|DualShock 2]], [[Sixaxis]], [[DualShock#DualShock 3|DualShock 3]], [[DualShock#DualShock 4|DualShock 4]] and [[DualShock#DualSense|DualSense]]&mdash;all use this configuration, with the remainder of the controller layout closely resembling the original digital [[PlayStation controller]].  The [[Classic Controller]] for the [[Wii]] also uses this configuration. The original configuration of the [[Wii U GamePad]] controller had twin analog "Circle Pads" positioned symmetrically above the D-pad and face buttons, but was reconfigured to have twin clickable analog sticks several months ahead of the system's planned launch.<ref>[http://e3.nintendo.com/hw/#/about] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120407221417/http://e3.nintendo.com/hw/#/about|date=April 7, 2012}}</ref>  This setup also carried over to the [[Wii U Pro Controller]].

With genres such as [[action game|action]], [[adventure game]]s, [[platform game|platforming]], and [[shooter game|shooting]], the left stick normally controls the character's movement while the second stick controls the camera. The use of a second analog stick alleviated problems in many earlier platform games, in which the camera was notorious for bad positioning.  The right stick not only allows for camera control in third-person games, but is almost essential for most modern [[first-person shooters]] such as ''[[Halo (video game series)|Halo]]'', where it controls the player's gaze and aim, as opposed to the left stick, which controls where the player moves. In Namco's ''[[Katamari Damacy]]'' and its sequels, both analog sticks are used at once to control the player's character.

In spite of widespread adoption of dual analog sticks, a few modern video game systems are designed without a second analog stick, namely the Wii's standard controller (whose lone analog stick is implemented in the [[Wii Remote]]'s [[Wii Nunchuk|Nunchuk]] attachment), Sony's [[PlayStation Portable|PSP]] and Nintendo's [[Nintendo 3DS|3DS]].  While the Wii's abovementioned supplemental Classic Controller accessory and its initial [[backwards compatibility]] support of the GameCube controller [[List of Wii games with traditional control schemes|allow for dual-stick control schemes in certain games]], the PSP's complete lack of a second analog stick<ref>{{cite web|last=Nix|date=2004-09-24|title=TGS 2004: Ape Escape Academics Hands-On|url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2004/09/24/tgs-2004-ape-escape-academics-hands-on?amp=1|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120322001708/http://psp.ign.com/articles/550/550797p1.html|archive-date=March 22, 2012|access-date=2007-12-14|publisher=[[IGN]]}}</ref> and later the 3DS' initial lack of such feature have been criticized.  Nintendo has since released an add-on for the 3DS that adds, among other things, a second analog "circle pad". The follow-up to the PSP, the [[PlayStation Vita]], features dual analog sticks. It is the first handheld game console to do so. The [[New Nintendo 3DS]] line of systems added a second analog controller, known as the "C-Stick" to the right side of the device.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://kotaku.com/how-the-new-nintendo-3dss-c-stick-works-in-super-smash-1647031397|title=How The New Nintendo 3DS's C-Stick Works in Super Smash Bros.|last=Ashcraft|first=Brian|date=October 16, 2014|website=[[Kotaku]]|language=en-US|access-date=2016-02-16}}</ref>

===Neutral position and drifting===
To operate properly, an analog stick must establish a neutral position, a special, unique position which the stick must maintain that the controller would interpret as an intentional cessation or absence of in-game movement.  Ideally, this would be the stick's very center when it is not touched or moved.  Whenever the controller is activated or the system it is connected to is powered on, the current position of its analog stick(s) become the established neutral position.  If the analog stick is moved away from its center during a time while it is established, the neutral position would shift to some place away from the center of the stick, causing the controller to interpret the center motionless position of the stick as in-game movement, since it is not the neutral position as it should be.  This phenomenon, commonly called ''drifting'', causes undesired gameplay effects, depending on the current game's controls, such as constant movement of the player character in a single direction or the game camera being skewed towards one particular angle while the affected stick is unmoved, and can only be corrected by performing particular actions that would restore the affected analog stick's neutral position back to the center of the analog stick.  For Nintendo controllers with analog sticks, this would involve holding down a certain combination of buttons while the affected analog sticks are untouched.<ref>{{cite web |title=Nintendo 64 Accessory Troubleshooting |url=https://www.nintendo.com/consumer/systems/nintendo64/trouble_accessory.jsp |website=Nintendo of America Support |publisher=Nintendo of America |access-date=15 January 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Nintendo GameCube Accessory Troubleshooting |url=https://www.nintendo.com/consumer/systems/nintendogamecube/trouble_accessory.jsp#Won't%20Move |website=Nintendo of America Support |publisher=Nintendo of America |access-date=15 January 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=''Metroid Prime'' Instruction Booklet|url=https://www.nintendo.com/consumer/gameslist/manuals/GCN_Metroid_Prime.pdf |website=Nintendo of America Support |publisher=Nintendo of America |access-date=15 January 2021 |pages=3}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Wii Operations System Manual |url=https://www.nintendo.com/consumer/downloads/WiiOpMn_EN_setup.pdf |website=Nintendo of America Support |publisher=Nintendo |access-date=15 January 2021 |pages=8}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=How to Reset the L and R Control Sticks to a Neutral Position on the Wii U Pro Controller |url=https://en-americas-support.nintendo.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/1107/~/how-to-reset-the-l-and-r-control-sticks-to-a-neutral-position-on-the-wii-u-pro |website=Nintendo of America Support |publisher=Nintendo of America |access-date=15 January 2021}}</ref>

==History==
===Analog joysticks===
[[File:Cromemco JS-1 joystick.jpg|thumb|Cromemco JS-1 analog joystick, the first known for microcomputers]]

Shortly after the introduction of the first [[microcomputer]]s, [[Cromemco]] introduced a [[S-100 bus]] card containing an [[analog-to-digital converter]], and shortly after, a card with two of these and an associated analog joystick, the JS-1. This is the first known example of such a device for personal use.<ref name=ahl>{{cite magazine |magazine=Creative Computing Video & Arcade Games |first=David |last=Ahl |date=Fall 1983 |page=115 |title= Game Controllers And Accessories |url=https://www.atarimagazines.com/cva/v1n2/updatecontrollers.php}}</ref>

The first consumer games console which had analog joysticks was the [[1292 Advanced Programmable Video System|Prinztronic/Acetronic/Interton series]], launched in 1978. This system was widely cloned throughout Europe and available under several brand names. The 2 sticks each used a pair of potentiometers, they were not self-centering in most models <ref>{{cite web|url=http://arcadesushi.com/great-controller-firsts/|title=10 Great Controller Firsts|last=Dargenio|first=Angelo|date=October 12, 2013|website=Arcadesushi.com|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180123230232/http://arcadesushi.com/great-controller-firsts/|archive-date=January 23, 2018|access-date=November 20, 2019}}</ref> but some, such as those of the Interton VC4000 models did self-center.

When the [[Apple II]] was released, it shipped with an analog [[Paddle (game controller)|paddle controller]] as a standard input, but these failed to meet [[Federal Communications Commission|FCC]] emissions guidelines and [[Apple Inc.]] was forced to stop selling them. This left hundreds of games unable to be used, and this problem was quickly rectified by 3rd party suppliers. Not long after, these same companies began producing analog joysticks for the system, but these took some time to become popular.<ref name=ahl/>

In 1982, [[Atari]] released a controller with a potentiometer-based analog joystick for their [[Atari 5200]] home console. However, its non-centering joystick design proved to be ungainly and unreliable due to the filing,<ref>{{Cite web|title = AtariAge - 5200 Hardware and Accessories |url = https://atariage.com/5200/archives/hardware.html|website = atariage.com|access-date = 2016-02-16 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170801124431/http://atariage.com/5200/archives/hardware.html |archive-date = 2017-08-01|url-status = dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=The Atari 5200 Super System |url=http://www.atarimuseum.com/videogames/consoles/5200/A5200.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120723080219/http://www.atarimuseum.com/videogames/consoles/5200/A5200.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=2012-07-23 |website=www.atarimuseum.com |access-date=2016-02-16 }}</ref> alienating many consumers at the time. During that same year, General Consumer Electronics introduced the [[Vectrex]], a [[vector graphics]] based system which used a self-centering analog thumbstick.

In 1985, [[Sega]]'s [[Third-person shooter|third-person]] [[rail shooter]] game ''[[Space Harrier]]'', released for the [[Arcade game|arcades]], introduced an analog flight stick for movement. It could register movement in any direction as well as measure the degree of push, which could move the [[player character]] at different speeds depending on how far the joystick is pushed in a certain direction.<ref>Levi Buchanan, (September 5, 2008), [https://www.ign.com/articles/2008/09/05/space-harrier-retrospective?amp=1 Space Harrier Retrospective], [[IGN]], [https://web.archive.org/web/20120314223853/http://uk.retro.ign.com/articles/906/906935p2.html Archived] from the original on March 14, 2012</ref>

Sega's analog Mission Stick was released for the [[Sega Saturn|Saturn]] console on September 29, 1995.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://sega.jp/archive/segahard/ss/mission.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071017180618/http://sega.jp/archive/segahard/ss/mission.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2007-10-17|script-title=ja:[セガハード大百科] アナログミッションスティック|language=ja |trans-title=The Sega encyclopedia - analog mission stick |publisher=[[Sega]]}}</ref> On April 26, 1996,<ref name="maruchang">{{cite web|url=http://maru-chang.com/hard/scph/index.php/english|title=SCPH|publisher=maru-chang.org}}</ref> Sony released a potentiometer-based analog joystick for use in Flight-Simulation games. The Sony Dual Analog [[Sony Flightstick|FlightStick]] featured twin analog sticks and was used in games such as ''[[Descent (video game)|Descent]]'' to provide a much greater degree of freedom than the typical digital joysticks of the day.

===Analog thumbsticks===
The [[List of Nintendo Entertainment System accessories|NES Max]], released in 1988, is the first instance of a thumb pad-based joystick controller. The Quickshot Chimera 2 is another example of an early thumbstick controller available to the NES.

In 1989, the Japanese company Dempa released an analog thumbstick controller called the XE-1 AP for the [[Sega Mega Drive]] console and several Japanese computers.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://segaretro.org/XE-1_AP|title=XE-1 AP|website=Segaretro.org|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171103154145/http://segaretro.org/XE-1_AP|archive-date=November 3, 2017|access-date=November 20, 2019}}</ref> It was intended to replicate the [[HOTAS]] controls found in Sega’s arcade games at the time, such as [[After Burner II]]. This controller included a thumb-operated control stick which allowed for varying levels of movement and near-360-degree control, translating into far more precise movements than what is possible with a D-pad. It was released twice, with a price drop upon its re-release in 1994. A few games on the Mega Drive (as well as the [[Sega CD]] and [[32X]] add-ons) supported the controller’s analog stick functions, including some of Sega’s first-party games for the system.

[[File:N64-Controller-Gray.jpg|thumb|The [[Nintendo 64 controller|Nintendo 64 Controller]] popularized the thumbstick.]]
Initially announced in late 1995,<ref name="Nintendo Power #79">{{cite magazine|date=December 1995|title=Out of control: Nintendo 64 Arrives In Japan|url=https://archive.org/stream/Nintendo_Power_Issue001-Issue127/Nintendo%20Power%20Issue%20079%20December%201995#page/n11/mode/2up|magazine=[[Nintendo Power]]|publisher=Nintendo|issue=79|page=12}}</ref> [[Nintendo]] released their [[Nintendo 64 controller]] on June 23, 1996, in Japan.<ref>{{cite book |last=Ryan |first=Jeff |title= Super Mario: How Nintendo Conquered America |year=2012 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9_JvDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA182 |publisher=PORTFOLIO/PENGUIN |page=182 |isbn=978-1-59184-405-1}}</ref> The new controller included a thumb-operated '''control stick''' which, while a digital stick<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.1up.com/do/feature?pager.offset=3&cId=3143627|title=Controller's History Dynamite|publisher=[[1UP.com]]|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160105072217/http://www.1up.com/features/controller-history?pager.offset=3|archive-date=2016-01-05|access-date=2019-01-16}}</ref> (the analog stick operated on the same principles as a [[Computer mouse#Mechanical mice|mechanical ball-type computer mouse]]), still allowed for varying levels of movement and near-360-degree control, translating into far more precise movements than were possible with a D-pad. For three generations, Nintendo's control stick was distinguished from analog sticks used in other major consoles by its surrounding [[octagonal]] area of freedom that assisted players in perfectly aligning the stick with any of the eight directions achievable with a D-pad. Nintendo would eventually change this octagonal area to the circle widely used in other console controllers during the [[eighth generation of video game consoles|eighth generation]] starting with the Nintendo 3DS and [[Wii U]].

On July 5, 1996, [[Sega]] released ''[[Nights into Dreams]]'' for their [[Sega Saturn|Saturn]] console in Japan; bundled with it was the Saturn 3D control pad which featured an analog pad intended to give the player more fluid control over that game's [[flight]]-based gameplay. The analog pad used magnet-based [[Hall effect sensor]]s, which was a unique implementation of the technology that was carried forward into the design of the [[Dreamcast]] controller as well.{{Citation needed|date=May 2015}} The Saturn's analog controller was previously mentioned in the June 1996 issue of ''[[Computer and Video Games]]'' magazine.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://archive.org/stream/Computer_and_Video_Games_Issue_175_1996-06_EMAP_Images_GB#page/n107/mode/2up|title = Computer and Video Games - Issue 175 (1996-06)(EMAP Images)(GB)|date = June 1996}}</ref>

On April 25, 1997, [[Sony]] introduced the world's first dual stick controller for its game console, [[PlayStation (console)|PlayStation]]. Based on the same potentiometer technology that was used in the larger Dual Analog Flightstick, the Sony [[Dual Analog Controller]] featured rumble (removed in overseas versions), three modes of analog (Flightstick, Full Analog and Analog-Off), and dual plastic concave thumbsticks.<ref name="maruchang"/><ref>[[Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition]], pg. 73, Hit Entertainment, 2016.</ref> It also added two new buttons, L3 and R3, under the thumbsticks, which could be used by pressing down on the sticks.

On November 20, 1997,<ref name="maruchang"/> Sony released their third analog controller to the market: the [[DualShock#DualShock|DualShock]]. The controller featured similar twin analog sticks to the Dual Analog, although they featured convex rubber tips rather than concave plastic ones. It also removed the third analog (Flightstick) mode and added two rumble motors.

In 1999, Sony's ''[[Ape Escape (video game)|Ape Escape]]'' became the first video game in history to require the use of two analog sticks.

In the console generations that [[History of video games#Sixth generation consoles (since 1998)|followed]], many [[video game console]] [[game controllers|controllers]] have included two analog sticks, with the exception of the Sega [[Dreamcast]] controller and [[Nintendo]]'s [[Wii Remote]] controller. Other exceptions to this dual-stick rule are Sony's [[PlayStation Portable]] and [[Nintendo]]'s [[Nintendo 3DS|3DS]] [[handheld game consoles]] aside from the [[New Nintendo 3DS|New 3DS]] (although the former may be upgraded to dual-stick functionality through the use of an accessory), which both feature only a single small, flat sliding analog "nub".

==See also==
*[[D-pad]]
*[[Wired glove]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
''[[How Stuff Works]]'' articles on:
* [http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/n643.htm Nintendo 64 control pad]
* [http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/dreamcast3.htm Dreamcast control pad]
* [http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/ps23.htm PlayStation 2 control pad (Dual Shock 2)]

{{Game controllers}}

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[[Category:Joysticks]]