Cover art for Joysticks to Haptics
Published
Farshore, October 2025
ISBN
9780008713577
Format
Hardcover, 240 pages
Dimensions
25.2cm × 19.5cm × 3cm

Joysticks to Haptics A Visual History of Video Game Controllers

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Due October 28, 2025.
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Joysticks to Haptics is the ultimate compendium of gaming controllers and retro peripherals from the world of gaming.

As video games are played, memories are left in the grooves of their controllers. Atari joysticks still remember being pushed to the limit from afternoons spent playing Frogger, GameCube controllers echo with the clatter of intense Super Smash Bros bouts, each gesture with a Wii Remote is a story to be shared, and every haptic rumble inside of the DualSense is a reminder of the bond between player, hardware, and game.

From Joysticks to Haptics revisits all the key points in history that shaped video game controllers. Head back to the very early era of console gaming, when dials and keypads were king, then read stories of standardisation, as innovations like D-Pads and analogue sticks became the model that every hardware maker followed, and revel in the weird and wonderful. This comprehensive collection features insightful retrospectives and personal essays, facts and stats, plus stunning photography of rare and retro favourites in a journey through the most iconic and inventive corners of video game history.

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