# Can the SideWinder Game Pad, Microsoft’s first game controller, work on modern PCs? I bought three of them to find out

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/can-the-sidewinder-game-pad-microsofts-first-game-controller-work-on-modern-pcs-i-bought-three-of-them-to-find-out/
- Published: 2026-10-29T13:13:35+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-04T10:12:40+00:00
- Original publisher: Rock Paper Shotgun
- Original article: https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/can-the-sidewinder-game-pad-microsofts-first-game-controller-work-on-modern-pcs-i-bought-three-of-them-to-find-out
- Topics: Americas, Entertainment, Gaming, Research, Science

## Key points

- A 1990s SideWinder gamepad gets a modern PC trial.
- Its design foreshadowed features of later Xbox controllers.
- The writer finds several controls awkward to use.

## Summary

The writer bought three Microsoft SideWinder Game Pad 1.0 controllers to see whether the 1990s devices could be used with modern PCs. The experiment explores how an early Microsoft gamepad feels today and whether its place in gaming history makes it worth using.

The pad has an eight-way circular D-pad, three rows of buttons, macro software and a port for daisy-chaining up to four controllers. The writer finds its plastic shell awkward, its diagonal D-pad presses difficult and its buttons and triggers unsatisfying. The article also links its design to later Xbox controllers and notes that retro gaming enthusiasts often use adapters to connect original peripherals to modern hardware.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.