Whatever game system you choose - console or PC, Xbox 360 or PS3 - you need to interface with it. That's the whole point of games: interactivity. Of course, by connecting your game system to your home theater, you've covered how your eyes and ears (and rear end, if you have a big enough subwoofer) interface with the system. The other key interface is, of course, your hands (and sometimes feet), which connect to your games with a controller.
All game consoles come with one or two basic multipurpose controllers that usually have enough buttons and joysticks and four-way pointers to drive adults crazy (though the kids seem to catch on to them right away). These controllers (sometimes called gamepads) allow you to play just about any game if you can twist your thumbs in the right direction and have the appropriate level of dexterity and coordination.
You might want to consider some specialized controllers if you have certain games that you simply love to play again and again. (You might save yourself from repetitive stress injuries this way - and increase your score!)
Some of the controllers you can buy include
- Wireless controllers: These controllers are usually just like the general-purpose controllers, but they connect by using radio waves, not wires. If you have dogs or small kids, or are simply sick of tripping over wires, pick up a pair of these wireless wonders.
- Wheel controllers: If you like Grand Turismo 3, you want to pretend that you're Colin McRae zipping through the World Rally Championship in your WRX. Thumb buttons don't cut it for this activity. Get a wheel controller that includes brake and accelerator pedals, a big fat racing wheel, and a nice short-throw shift knob. Racers, start your engines!
- Joysticks: Want to pretend you're "Cool Hand" Grafton's wing man in Flight of the Intruder? Well, then you need a joystick controller with enough buttons to "pickle" your bombs on target.
You can find a ton of controllers out there, just waiting for you to buy them, including some really funky ones. You can get a skateboard-shaped controller that you stand on for skating, surfing, or boarding games, and you can even find one that consists of a mat for replicating dance moves you see on-screen.
You can find a game controller for everyone, and groovy controllers are truly a way to maximize your home theater fun.
