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The Story Behind a Melted Joystick

 

Ever played a game so much, so vigorously that you melted a joystick on your controller? Chances are, probably not. But we know someone who has.

 

The year is 1997, Nintendo Power has just issued a challenge – beat a time of 1:30:00 on the Mario Circuit in the just-released Mario Kart game and 1000 lucky winners will receive an exclusive “gold” N64 controller. Even if you had a controller you cherished already – even a snazzy blue one – the chance to win an exclusive controller, especially for a game you like to play so much already, is just too good to pass up.

 

To put things in perspective, the N64 controller wasn't going to win an beauty contests. A bit on the bulky side, it looked like a big M with the analog stick right in the middle, as the D-pad era was not quite finished. That analog stick was key to Mario Kart, as you had to utilize it for the all-important power slide, which essentially meant waggling it back and forth over and over again. As a result, any controller used in this fashion would be subjected to a lot of wear and tear over time.

 

Now back to the contest. For someone who was adept at beating all the ghosts, getting 1:30 on the Mario Circuit wasn’t that tough. You’re going to get good putting in 100+ hours on any game. But when times were posted in issue #96 of Nintendo Power, well, they were outrageous! In days long before Twitter or even widespread Internet use, it wasn’t apparent at first that these miraculous times were not the work of a great racer, but a dirty cheat. To someone bound and determined to have the best time without cheating, well, he would just have to play a level over and over and over.

 

Let’s just say that when plastic dust particles start coming out of your controller, it’s not a good sign. How many power slides does it take to melt a controller? Tens of thousands? Hundreds of thousands? Like the Tootsie Pop commercial says – we may never know. But soon enough, you realize that turning right is becoming a major issue – controls are sluggish, and soon your once-prized blue controller is now the black sheep.

 

You could buy a new one, but money is tight in high school, so you keep nursing it along – maybe using the old “best player uses worst controller” tactic. It’s not just Mario Kart, either. It’s amazing how good you can be at Goldeneye using only left turns in multiplayer.

 

It’s true that the owner “claims” the controller was in some way defective. So what if he’s used plenty of other controllers in the same way and never had another one melt. It’s a nice theory, but somehow I like the idea that it was dedication to gaming, not manufacture error, that leads to earning a melted joystick.

 

Times up,
~ The MeltedJoystick Team

 

 

What is MeltedJoystick.com

  • One of the fastest growing pure play entertainment websites exclusive to gaming
  • A point of purchase website for games on popular platforms
  • A site dedicated to people who share video game opinions and buy/rent games based on fellow community members’ recommendations

Visit our contact us page to request more information.

 

 

 

The MeltedJoystick Team

Advisory Board

The advisory board has been instrumental in the guidance and future success of MeltedJoystick.com. The following people have dedicated their time to helping MeltedJoystick succeed.

Kevin Davis
Currently: CEO, Investigative News Network
Past: VP, Variety.com | COO, Hollywood.com | COO, theWrap.com

Kevin is a senior executive with over 14 years experience in the strategic management and growth of digital and traditional media businesses undergoing digital transformation. Kevin has extensive experience in leading and managing large teams across sales, product management, business development and editorial/content production areas.

More About Kevin +

MeltedJoystick Owners
  Alex
Gamer
Alex
 
 
Name: Alex
Position: Co-Founder, CEO
Favorite Hobby: (Non Gaming) Baseball
Alex's dream job would be hanging out in a corner office in which he can watch sports and play games all day.
 
  Nick
Gamer
Nick
 
 
Name: Nick
Position: Co-Founder, CTO
Favorite Hobby: (Non Gaming) Sports Cars, Cycling
Nick works hard and plays hard. He enjoys beer whenever not working, but when it comes to work, he is a serious coder.
 
  Chris
Gamer
Chris
 
 
Name: Chris
Position: Community
Favorite Hobby: (Non Gaming) Reading Novels, Star Wars, Zombies
Chris is a copywriter waiting to happen. His skills are very well documented all over this site.
 
  Nelson
Gamer
Nelson
 
 
Name: Nelson
Position: Community, Blogger
Favorite Hobby: (Non Gaming) Greek Mythology
Nelson is an avid gamer who isn't afraid to voice his opinion. He hopes to eventually tackle his backlog.
 
A very special thank you!
We would like to make an extended "Thank You" to all of our volunteers. With out them this site would not be possible and would not be functioning as it is now. Our sincere thanks goes to all of our members who continue to crave more games!  
 
 
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