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The Gratuitous Rainbow Spectrum

Retro Fighters Wireless Brawler64 Overview

Retro Fighters Wireless Brawler64 Overview

Kris Randazzo
4 minute read

The Wireless Brawler 64 from Retro Fighters is here! All the modern controller goodness of the original, now without the wires!

Buy here: https://stoneagegamer.com/retro-fighters-brawler64-wireless-n64-controller-game-controller.html/?afmc=marketing

Transcript of the video:

A few years back, a company called Retro Fighters reinvented the Nintendo 64 controller with their Brawler 64. It was pretty well received, but was there room for improvement? Apparently so, because they've got a new model out and this time it's wireless. 

In case you're new to the world of Brawler 64, let's do a direct comparison between the new wireless one and the original Nintendo 64 controller. The original controller has gotten some due flack over the years for being very strangely shaped. You know, you've got one grip in the middle, you've got another grip on the left, there's a whole button on the back that isn't really accessible if you're using the D-pad without wrapping your finger around on the side. It was a brilliant controller in its day, but it is a little strange, especially by modern standards. 

So the Brawler 64 takes that whole formula and applies it to a more modern controller design. The buttons are a little bit flatter. They have a very similar feel as far as how you press them, how much they give, and you've got a brand new style of analog. It still has the the rigid corners on it, but it feels more like a modern analog stick than the old "Mario Party, Palm Ruiner."

The back of the controller is a little bit different. The original has an expansion port where you put your Rumble Pak, your memory card, or what have you. The Brawler 64 does not have that, but it is replaced with the receiver which you plug into your Nintendo 64 controller port. This is where your memory pack will go. However, It does not function with Rumble Paks, so there's no force feedback on the wireless Brawler 64. 

So as far as the other big important changes on this one, there are now two triggers on the back. These both function as the Z button, so you can now reach them with your left or right fingers if you are so inclined. There's also a turbo feature. 

So as far as comparisons to the original Brawler 64 go right off the bat, you can see the logo is embossed now. Other than that, they're incredibly similar. There's a slightly different feel to the buttons. The new ones don't seem like you need to push them in quite as hard as you did with the original version. They're it's slightly less clicking. The analog triggers also feel more like buttons. They have a little bit more of a click to him when you press them, whereas the original ones are very, very squishy, similar to like, say, the Dreamcast trigger buttons on the original Dreamcast controller. Other than that, it's the same modern feel and the same kind of situation here. 

So what if you are not into gray? What if you have one of those Funtastic Nintendo 64s? Well, they come in multiple colors. So, how do they function with multiplayer? Well, it actually works really well. All of these little guys get plugged into their respective ports however you want them to go, and each controller will link up to their specific dongle. So say you're playing a four player match in Goldeneye and then you decide you want to play the actual best multiplayer game on the 64, Dr. Mario. 64. When you turn your system back on no matter what order you press the buttons, they're going to sync up to the dongles that are connected to their specific colors, which is pretty darn nice. 

The Wireless Brawler 64 from Retro Fighters is available now at stoneagegamer.com in four different colors. 

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