Nintendo Wavebird Controller: "Lazy" is my boss
Written: Jul 13 '02 (Updated Jul 13 '02)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: -92.4 feet of freedom, first party durability, laziness.
Cons: -10 extra bucks and no more rumble feature.
The Bottom Line: Give up your rumble feature, and become lazy like me.
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| pavona21's Full Review: Nintendo GameCube Controller for GameCube, Game Bo... |
You can call me lazy
Let's all come to a quick mutual realization here in saying that "Pav is lazy". I bet all of you know "that guy" that doesn't like to get up from his couch and go to his fridge. You've all met the man who tells himself that he'll get in shape this summer, yet spends the entire time only shaping his mouth with those donuts and the aforementioned lies. We've all seen the person that pretends to have "chronic fatigue syndrome" just so he or she can get out of doing a little work. If you package all of those things into a box, you might just have half the laziness that I sport. I can assure you that Homer Simpson and I would be the best friends, except we'd both be too lazy to make the relationship work. Hell, I'm so lazy that I frequently submit reviews to W/O's 2 days late. With that in mind, the following 2 statements shouldn't surprise anyone. 1: This review is part of Ssgoku's Pie W/O, which was scheduled for 2 days ago. 2: When a first party wireless controller came out for my Gamecube, I was all over it like Elton John on men.
Layout: 9/10-Wow, this is the same as the original Gamecube controller!
The overall layout of the Wavebird controller is the backbone of its comfort. First of all, the controller isn't very oversized, and fits the shape of various hand sizes well. The grooves it features add greatly to the comfort as well, so it basically slides onto your hand. Second, the controller has an exceptional design layout, and for that Nintendo deserves great credit. The Wavebird controller has all of the buttons that the n64 controller had, only in different positions. The analog stick is on the far left of the controller, so that your left-hand can control the movement of various characters. Under the analog stick is the traditional D-pad. To the right of the D-pad and across the controller is the C-stick. Yes no more C buttons from N64, but a full-fledged stick. Above the C-stick is a small red B button, which isn't nearly as large as the one on the N64. To the right of the B button is the enlarged, green A button. This button was designed to be the "Action" button for most if not all games, and it works quite well. Both above, and to the right of the A button are the Y and X buttons. This time though, these two buttons are shaped like Kidney beans for easier accessibility. On the top of the controllers are the L and R buttons. These buttons are groove shaped and seem to hug your fingers. The shape of these two buttons is probably the best upgrade featured on the Wavebird controller. In front of the R button is the Z button. This time, the Z button is the "misfit button". I think that Nintendo placed it on the controller just to add another letter, or to mix things up. It really serves no purpose. And last but not least, right in the center of the controller, below the Gamecube text is the traditional start button.
Of course, I said "last but not least" just a few words ago, but I was just lying. Since the Wavebird controller is in fact wireless, Nintendo felt the need to add a couple more "selection" objects. First, and right below the start button, is the power button. When the button is pushed to the "on" side, the controller will be on and ready. When you turn it "off", it will no longer be usable. Now that you've received your basic rocket science training with those two sentences, you'll be able to understand the channel tuner. On the very bottom middle of the Wavebird controller, right below the power button, lies a channel dial. By moving this dial to the left and right, you able to browse through the 16 available channels that the Wavebird features. If I were you, I'd put some sort of child safety lock on this dial, because it can be dangerous. If you accidentally move it to the left or right, you'll have to "guess and check" until you get back to right channel. I’ve done it before, many a time, and it just isn’t any fun. That aside though, this controller is designed perfectly, but how well is it put together?
Durability: 10/10-Makes me miss Interact
Way back in the days of the grand PSX controllers and peripherals, I purchased a two pack of wireless controllers, which were made by Interact. The things worked just fine for a while, but slowly their range and signal began deteriorating until they didn't work at all 6 months later. I then decided to put them back in the back in the box and return them to an unnamed store saying that I received them as a birthday present 15 days before. Yes, I got my money back, but we have to get out of this flashback before the cops come a knockin'. That all aside, I have the highest confidence in the durability of the Nintendo made Wavebird controller. Take my strange twist of fate as a testament to the durability. After purchasing my Wavebird from the local Best Buy and unwrapping it completely, I opened my car door, and walked up to my house. Upon opening the door, my Wavebird and it's receiver fell, bounced like rubber, and landed on the cement front porch. After slapping myself and everyone else within 156.85 feet of me, I connected my Wavebird, hoping that all would still be well. Other than the small scratch on the receiver, everything worked like a charm, and all was merry. I really like stories...
Really now, does it work?: 10/10-Yeah, it works.
One of the 65.87 great things about the Wavebird has to be its ease of use. Take the "console gray" colored controller out of its packaging, hook the receiver into one of your controller ports, turn the controller on, and game. You see, the Nintendo Wavebird controller works off of two basic types of magic; battery power and radio frequency. You insert two AA batteries into the back of the controller, match up the radio channels on the controller and the receiver, and it Magically it works. The battery life itself is also exceptional. I've put somewhere around 100 hours into my controller's batteries, and the batteries that came packaged with the controller are still working great. While I can't say that I've sat there with a stopwatch for every second of game time, I can tell you that Nintendo, and the Internet, has advertised 150 hours of great gaming Wavebird battery life. And if there were only 2 things in this world that I know and trust, they would that Nintendo and the Internet never lie. So, the batteries work for a long time, but does the controller have "long range"?
The Lazy Test: 10/10
Being as though I'm the self proclaimed laziest man in the history of all non third world countries, I decided to develop the lazy test. Basically, the more range the controller had, the more lazy I could I be, and of course I was aiming for full laziness. So, I had my friend pull out the 100 ft long tape measurer and begin measuring.(of course I was on the couch watching while all of this was happening) We began testing the controller's signal every five feet. After testing a whopping 6 times, I became too lazy for 5 feet, so we moved up to ten-foot intervals. We made it all the way up to 90 feet, and all was perfect. But, at 100 feet, there was some interference. Since I'm too lazy to type up the rest of the story, I will just tell you that in the end, the range measured at a perfect 92.4 feet. Better yet though, that is 92.4 feet of sheer uninterrupted signal. That 92.4 feet can span through heads, walls, buildings, trees, keebler elf houses, you name it. And let's face it people, who wouldn't want to be able to play games in bed, on the crapper, or at the dinner table? When it comes down to it, Wavebird in Japanese is spelled performancechiwa, and in Russian, it's spelled L-A-Z-Y-O-V.
The Con: If it sounds to good to be true, it isn't!
Of course after all the merry stories, and unbelievable lazy measurements, there must be a con. I will not lie to anyone(right now), there are 3 small cons that come with this controller. First off, this controller is retailed at 35$, which is ten bucks more than the regular "wirefilled" filled controller. Secondly, what you gain in range you lose in feel. Essentially, because of battery issues, Nintendo had take the rumble feature out of this wireless controller. I know, it sounds like a total atrocity, but in the end, it’s hard to tell that the rumble feature isn't there. Lastly, this controller is wireless(no way!), and wireless has its problems. I lose my remote control all the time, and often times I wish it had a wire so I could find it. The same thing goes with the new Wavebird controller. If you lose the thing, it may take you a good while to find it again. There is no cord to pull on, no annoying beeping sound to follow, and no page button to page. Know where you put the controller, end of story!
Overall: 9.5/10-Once you go wireless, you'll never go back
When you think about it, this is a marvelous idea that has been ashamed so many times in the past, but now has been put into motion with perfection. Sure, you lose an extra 10 bucks, the precious rumble and vibrating of the controller, and maybe even the Wavebird itself if you aren't careful, but it's all worth it. The freedom of 92.4 feet is almost endless. Add in the first party design and durability, the easy setup, and the huge battery life, and you have something that you can't do without. The 99.65 percent of Americans who are lazier than sin want and need this controller! Just listen to one that you should trust, an admittedly and overly lazy person, this is the controller for you!
This is my late, lazy contribution to SS3GOKU’s profile called the “Games that are better than Pie W/O”. After reading my late, lazy review, check out the reviews from these fabulous writers.
ChromeKiller
32_Footsteps
kenshin-guy
Rock_On
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pavona21(Yeah Toast!)
netnut746
jeremy1456
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skater6446
dark_cheeseboy
ss3goku(The one, the only, the host)
-Eric "The lazy one" Pav
Recommended:
Yes
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pavona21
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Member: Eric Pavona
Location: Scenic Michigan
Reviews written: 105
Trusted by: 67 members
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Well Friends, it'll soon be GTA4 time.
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