If you’d like to make your own custom arcade controller, you’ll need some way to get the on/off signals from your buttons and joystick into a format your computer can understand, i.e USB. This adapter system from Tynemouth Software presents an interesting option for this need, and is recognized , and Linux computers as a standard USB game controller by Windows, Mac.
Where it really shines is in the wide range of input options it has available. The board provides connections for a four way joystick, along with eight fire/action buttons to keep your character properly participating in whatever is happening onscreen, but can grow far beyond that button count.
The device also features an optional A-Z keyboard extension, giving it another 64 input points. This would of course be useful for other options like adding coins, game menu selections, etc., though one could see this used for other creative endeavors—perhaps an entire keyboard make out of arcade buttons?
The device was designed when its creator wasn’t happy with the interface that came with an arcade kit, and is now available for others that would like this functionality. Providing a market for this kind of specialized innovation is, in my humble opinion, what makes Tindie such a unique platform!
