Hardware What are the odds of seeing a third party GamePad?

[BornInBlack]

Something i found myself wondering, since the gamepad is more an extension of the system than just a controller- Do you think Nintendo will allow ThirdParty versions???
I noticed Madcatz had their own Wii U Pro Controller and Gamepad accesories, but no alternative to the gamepad. not that i'd prefer any other maker's quality over Nintendo's..

 

[Clarky]

does a bear shit in woods and wipe his arse on a rabbit?

 

[Walker D]

Inevitable thing probably

 

[loco365]

It's likely, but I'd say that it's more unlikely than likely. Nintendo has had issues with getting the controllers to work in the first place (Remember when devs had the wireless connection issue and had to temporarily use wired controllers?).

The fact that it was hard enough for them to get a working wireless version of the gamepad will probably make it difficult to make a third-party alternative to be made that isn't entirely bug-free.

 

[shengtian]

Oh,my god.

 

[Kikirini]

It'd probably be difficult for third parties to make, but it'll happen eventually. There's third party versions of everything.

 

[Sychophantom]

I think it may be more likely to see an app for Android/iOS to allow tablets/iPads to be used as a gamepad. Depending on how the gamepad connects, via bluetooth or IR, and how fast that protocol is cracked/deciphered, that seems more plausible.

I doubt it will be easy, and at least for iOS, would require a jailbreak.

 

[BornInBlack]

My thought is it probably wont happen since Nintendo shows the Gamepad off more than the system [example: E3 2011.. and most of E3 2012]
To me it would be like Nintendo allowing third parties to make their own Wii U consoles

 

[mysticwaterfall]

I'm sure we'll see one eventually, considering there are even fake balance boards.

 

[Maxternal]

considering there are even fake balance boards.

Around here, at least, there's not even any third party wiimote+'s or motion+ addon accessories. You can only get those first party. Something as complicated as the game pad that will be included with every console anyhow (and only a few games will ... probably optionally ... support a second pad) will not be something it's worth the third party company's time to produce.
These on the other hand:

I can see them producing.

 

[Dingoo-fan 32]

I thinks it's possible. A smaller version of gamepad would be nice.

 

[Pleng]

It's likely, but I'd say that it's more unlikely than likely.

oh... ouch! which one is it?!

 

[chris888222]

Third party gamepads MIGHT happen, or they might just be additional peripherals for the accessory dock.

The chances of seeing one would probably be when dual GamePad games are more robust.

The true GamePad has NFC, pretty far range, Bluetooth, IR and more. It's not easy making one, even if third party. You also need to make sure the Wii U recognizes that controller too.

However, it might be just peripherals (such as battery extenders), since the GamePad battery life isn't that astounding.

 

[Taleweaver]

I'm kinda amazed I'm pretty much the only one who voted for "Probably with the arrival of dual GamePad Games " thus far.


I wasn't here when the wiimote was announced, but I bet people thought it was technologically advanced than it was.

The same thing applies here: gyrosensors, buttons, camera, touchscreen, AR receiver, IR sensors...I'm probably even forgetting one or two things. By itself, none of those things are hard*. So can it be done? Yes.

The question is: can it be done in a way that is profitable? Every wiiU comes with a gamepad, so as long as wiiU games can only handle one gamepad, the demand is pretty much nil (remember: broken gamepads fall under the warranty).
That demand will rise once games not only allow for multiplayer, but ALSO a multiplayer where it pays of to have two screens**. A head-to-head FPS, for example (though it'll take some serious processing power). Until then, I'm pretty sure people will, at best, buy wiimotes for their friends and guests.

SychoPhantom's remark is also important. It's certainly not impossible that gamepad emulation will be achieved on a tablet/smartphone. And that will make third parties wary. Because once that becomes possible...their market will drain to zero (those who don't already have either will have a reason to consider getting one).



*assuming the signal isn't encrypted somehow...but I seriously doubt that: the time needed to decrypt the data would cause either lag or advanced (and thus expensive) technology.
**I remember posting a few ideas in a thread with creative ideas, but I've gotta be honest: those are quirky ideas.

 

[TripleSMoon]

I have no doubt that this will show up at least within a few years. I mean, there's third party versions of pretty much every other Nintendo controller/peripheral, including the Wiimote and nunchuck. Heck, some third party versions of legacy controllers are direct clones in design...

 

[bowser]

I say we'll first see cheap Chinese knockoffs/clones.

 

[Ace Overclocked]

considering there are even fake balance boards.

Around here, at least, there's not even any third party wiimote+'s or motion+ addon accessories. You can only get those first party. Something as complicated as the game pad that will be included with every console anyhow (and only a few games will ... probably optionally ... support a second pad) will not be something it's worth the third party company's time to produce.
These on the other hand:

I can see them producing.

Sure, i never saw a 3rd party wii motion plus accessory, but i sure did see third party wii remote +'s around here.

 

[lovewiibrew]

That is an excellent point. It would be cool as hell to use my android phone on my wii u.

 

[mysticwaterfall]

The question is: can it be done in a way that is profitable? Every wiiU comes with a gamepad, so as long as wiiU games can only handle one gamepad, the demand is pretty much nil (remember: broken gamepads fall under the warranty).
That demand will rise once games not only allow for multiplayer, but ALSO a multiplayer where it pays of to have two screens**. A head-to-head FPS, for example (though it'll take some serious processing power). Until then, I'm pretty sure people will, at best, buy wiimotes for their friends and guests.

There are numerous reasons somebody would want a cheap new gamepad, so the demand would hardly be nil. Things such as kids being hard/careless with toys, accidents happening( I'm sure there are numerous people here who have lost a phone in the water, by dropping it, etc), you name a scenario. Stuff such as this usually isn't covered under warranties unless you have a protection plan.

 

[LightyKD]

I say we'll first see cheap Chinese knockoffs/clones.

Agreed but if those cheap Chinese knockoffs had a button to switch over to Android OS mode and could be used like an actual tablet when away from the Wii-U, that would be more than worth it!