We started work on the Panda controller a little over 2 years ago now.
We originally went into this project with the simple goal of providing the Smash community with a new GameCube controller alternative that would work well for competitive Smash right out of the box. But as our research continued, we realized just how many possibilities there were and how we could use the GC controller as a base to create something much more. Over time, we had a new goal: To make the last controller players would ever need.
I’ve talked with modders, community members, and pro players to make sure that we were on the right path. I made sure they thought this controller could really push things to the next level. All the info I gathered culminated in a project with so many new features it can take me 15 minutes just to explain everything - unless you’re a modder, then it might be a couple hours! There’s so much here that we’re applying for at least 6 different patents once we’re done development and testing. While I’d really love to share these features with you all, if I did now, then we wouldn’t be able to patent it in the future. I know, it sucks. Blame U.S. patent law.
But of course, if you’re just looking for an amazing controller that will work right out of the box, don’t worry, it’ll do that. We never lost sight of that, and understand that not everyone needs all the bells and whistles - it’s just that these particular bells and whistles are really, really cool.
Rest assured, the team and I are working hard every day to make this the best controller possible. We even brought on another engineer to help speed up timelines. Despite all the delays from COVID-19 and new design hurdles (plus my son was born a few months ago!), we’re making a lot of progress. Everything here is made from the ground up, from the circuit boards to the shells, which takes time to do right, but also gives us the opportunity to make something truly special. The Panda controller is all about customization, and we’re making something that will feel uniquely yours-- both in and out of the game.
The progress so far is unbelievable. Just check this out:
Yeah sorry, that’s about as much as we can show right now to keep our patents.
Right now we don’t know when exactly the controller will be ready for Kickstarter (it’ll be this year), or when we can reveal all the different features we have planned. All I can ask is that you stay patient knowing that we’re doing everything we can to make this product worth your money. Whenever I can give more updates I’ll do another blog post for you all. For now, back to work!
- Matt Samperi, President and Lead Engineer of PGhardware