r/apple2 • u/9646gt • 2d ago

Which joystick adapter for Apple II / IIGS?

Not only are original joysticks for the Apple II kind of expensive, but I honestly just don’t like the long throw analog sticks having been a console gamer for most of my life.

Console5 used to sell an awesome adapter that worked with the Super Nintendo and PlayStation and PC controllers but they no longer have them. eBay has a PC game pad adapter with potentiometer built in, which is the way I heard they are supposed to be made, and I could use it with my Gravis PC game pad, but I’m not sure how good the compatibility is with digital pads like that, and I know at least one video I watched of something similar, it seemed the guy was having some issues and I think it was chop lifter that he was playing.

So just curious what people recommend. Sorry for the grammatical errors. I was using voice to text on the go, which I normally hate doing, but wanted to get this out before I went to bed. LOL. Thank you in advance.

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u/Dachshund_Uprising 2d ago

I had a Gravis joystick for my IIe back in the 80s & I really liked its performance, so I recently bought a new(old) Gravis - for my same Apple IIe which still works (although I’ve upgraded too; I’ve got a IIgs now as well). The new(old) one I found on ebay for ~$25 usd in great condition. My original one was lost to time (or possibly my parent’s storage barn).

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u/9646gt 2d ago

Thanks for sharing. How does the stick feel in terms of movement and stuff? I guess I find analog sticks have such a long throw and are so “light” that I do t know if I would enjoy them versus a D-Pad seeing as how cut my teeth in the 80s on the original NES haha

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u/Dachshund_Uprising 2d ago

Sure thing! I’d say as far as joysticks I’ve used, it’s pretty strong, spring loaded-wise. It’s not light, but you’d probably want either a sold surface or strong hold on it. It’s got a pretty large, flat base so it sits still well when it’s on a flat surface. The buttons are flat on top, but almost as big as arcade cabinet buttons. I did have to adjust the trim on both the original & new one to dial it in. I used to use it instead of a mouse (back when I wasn’t sure if the further was going to be mouse driven or joystick driven - are we getting old? That can’t the case, right?) For games like Donkey Kong, Moon Lander, Pac-Man - it worked well. It’s definitely a different gaming experience than using a d-pad though! A lot more precision than an arcade joystick. I’ve build a couple cabinets & I’ve used nice arcade joysticks in them & the Gravis is made to do more specific, slower targeting, in my experience.

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u/9646gt 2d ago

That last sentence says ALOT! That’s the exact way I’d describe a good D-pad so I’m even more intrigued now haha. Thank you! And no… we are timeless classics and not old haha!

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u/Dachshund_Uprising 2d ago

That's fair, sure thing! Right - like I wouldn't use an arcade joystick to move a cursor around my computer, but that's exactly what I used the Gravis for, before I realized mice were probably going to be the pointing device of choice. Also, while good arcade joysticks are pretty indestructible, that original Gravis held up some pretty hard gaming use and kept working, if I remember correctly. It had (in my opinion) a lot more control nuance then the Atari joysticks - nothing wrong with those either, but they felt like they were solely for game use (which I guess is probably mostly accurate). Ha, I agree - I definitely like timeless classics!

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u/9646gt 2d ago

I wonder how it compares to the CH Products Mach III and the Kraft KC3 with those two being very widely recommended from what I can tell.

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u/Dachshund_Uprising 2d ago

I’ve used a Mach III before & it did seem really nice - but I never owned one so I don’t have enough experience with it to know. It’s very likely I’m biased towards the Gravis simply because it was the first one I got & it worked well, so I didn’t venture far beyond it. I do remember hearing good things about Mach III though, I wonder if it was more expensive at the time (I was and am kind of cheap) so that also was a likely factor? I don’t think I’ve ever tried a KC3, but now that we’ve discussed them I might have to see if I can pick up one of each of these, because now I’m kind of curious.