We're so used to modern systems having wireless controllers that we've all forgotten that controller ports used to be a major differentiator when it came to home consoles.
While there was some degree of crossover in the early years (the Master System and Mega Drive both had the same 9-pin DE-9, for example), before long, manufacturers realised that they could make a tidy profit from ensuring that each of their systems came with a totally unique port, thereby forcing customers to upgrade their pads every time a new generation came around.
As a result, controller ports were, for a time, a key way of picking out one system from another, as this was the conduit through which the player's actions would be acknowledged by the system itself.
But how well do you know your controller sockets? That's what this quiz will determine; we've included some easy ones here – examples that will be ingrained in your memory from years of fumbling with ports in pitch-black bedrooms (oo-er) – to ones which are perhaps less well-known if you didn't actually own the system in question.
It's time to test your controller port knowledge!
Comments 22
Well, not terrible. But not great either. Lol
11/18. I'm just glad the ones I missed were from systems I didn't own.
Harder than I imagined it would be...
17/18. The PSOne screwed me over XD some were more obvious to me than other where i had to double guess without looking in San Google.
I own that 3DO model! How did I get that wrong.
The rest were Atari systems - clearly topic I need to study more.
Somehow I missed the N64 but got the Amstrad one. I think my mind might be too far into the obscure console rabbit hole...
i rage quit at #6 ngl
I have room for improvement.
Also, the Panasonic Q is a Gamecube, as stated sooooo…
8.5 is my score.
This was fun, and thank you!
I got eight . "Yeah , not bad !"
15. I've watched a ton of retro content in addition to owning a bunch of these. I'm really interested in hardware and mods, so this was a fun quiz.
Great quiz! Never came across something like this before. Didn’t do too well but it was all those ports that looked the same!
7/18, there's just too many de-9 port that I didn't know what console it is, lol.
@Sketcz Don’t sweat it! I got a couple wrong i should have gotten right too. It was a long quiz!
15
Got tripped up mostly by the second gen consoles.
...and the Master System II a console I OWN !!
I got no excuse for that other them ehm ehm its sunday morning ?
Baaahh all those 9 pins and the blimmin PS1 one was well cheeky!
I got like 7 or 8 of them, all those 9 pins kept tripping me up.
That was a great quiz, I enjoyed that with my Sunday morning coffee!
You guys need to seek help over the DE9 obsession. 😉
I got 10. Not bad as I haven't owned most of those consoles. The older consoles caught me out.
Why did SO MANY of these have DE9 pins?!
Looking at the material, the other ports/switches, the edges (lined/gapped parts on the console really helps narrow it down). Even the ethernet or some sort of other cable on the Amstread helped. Let alone the S video looking port on PC Engine for me. 9 pins make it hard but the writing for Jaguar, 3DO FZ10 and the colour being original versions helped.
Coleco/Intellvision are really tough to work out. Their designs are clear, but where the ports are for the consoles makes it really hard unless owned one to know how they connect as I always assume they are cabled inside, meaning it's an addon port for the Atari 2600 or voice modules or something not controllers. The coleco black and no one I've seen in videos/images while the different versions of Intellivision kind of complicated things.
1.Knew
2.Knew
3.Knew
4.Really tripped me, the NG and MG/G for sure look similar from that angle. Restarted but did fool me.
5.SG and Mk3 for sure is very close to be confusing there. Restarted but did fool me.
6.Very tricky, but knew by the rounded edge and console colour it wasn't the others, and they are Original consoles not variations either.
7.That edge/line gaps for sure made it clear and yeah not surprised it's the revision.
8.The controller port looked like a S video port to me and I was like wait what. That and with how small it is, up close it's a hmm I guess it is like that then the addons or the other regional versions looking different.
9.Tricky, I knew the Coleco/Fairchild had more connected controls but wasn't sure if for additional controllers for some reason or an expansion port for the Coleco. Also never seen them in white ever so that narrowed those down. I know the Wii one. Never looked at a Saturn controller port that closely before but went hmm yeah makes sense I guess.
10.Made sense, the 5200 knew (also no white console I'd seen before), the PC Engine I was like would a Duo RX have a different port I assume not and the Odyssey hides them at the back so much (making it hard to see in videos/images when people cover them) and didn't have typical ports in later consoles. I have only seen the PC FX in videos (as with most people) but yeah forgot it had the port there as hadn't watched a video on it in a while.
Part 2
11.CDX assumed as Genesis/Mega Drive would be similar. Vectrex because it's hidden deeper you don't see it as much. Intelli/Coleco it was clear due to how odd connected to the console they were back then. Very sneaky that one.
12.I know that revision, I know those blue LED rings around those obvious ports anywhere. Not fooling me with that one.
13.Thought was 7800, MD/G is very clear but 7800 is more underneath. How it's Coleco made me confused as you can barely see in there for controllers/addons. Fair one there Time Extension. XD I'll leave this one as a fooling me.
14.Amstrad, C64GS and SG1000 really threw me off then I went hang on the more computer like systems have those ports, then the spacing of the ports, then narrowed it down. Too many 9 pin ports too that's for sure.
15.Knew was what it was, the others hadn't been the case in a while, the computer Atari ones sure but the console ones were clear by this point even though knew there differences. The 1 port with daisy chaining and it being the FZ 10 version not the other 3DO consoles made me go hang on same port, different edges of the rest of the other consoles by the rest of the images/photos.
16.Very good but knew there was something about it as no others have that detail on them compared to simple 1 or 2 or controller port here or whatever. Yeah obscure/failed consoles are very much a thing only collectors or those that actually bought those systems know but for the rest of us that don't know them or do research them but haven't memorised all their details as commonly as other systems it is a challenge, but a fun one to guess them.
17.Ah the mostly Atari consoles question and Intellivision. Well the designs have their details but for sure I was like hmm don't know about that detail but maybe and then went yeah the way the ports, material/shape, switches being on the top or something that looks like a switch next to the port seemed off to me.
18.Easy at the end.
Really good quiz.
Even if I failed 2 early on the rest I was really looking going hmm what details can I pinpoint. So this round with cheating 2 restarts I got the correct with I got only 17/18 with those two if I wasn't restarting I'd have gotten a 15/18. If I wasn't looking too close at the images and guessed I'd probably get in the other two worse off ones.
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