The Language of the Joystick

• Without a good joystick, even the best arcade games would be difficult to enjoy. Joysticks make playing a great game possible by taking the movements of your hand and translating them into the digital readouts that make something happen in the world of the video game. If the game and the joystick are in perfect sync, there will be little to no lag when making this translation, and the controls will be deemed responsive by game players and critics across the country.
  
  

Basic Joystick Design

• For most basic joysticks, whether for use in an arcade game, a computer, or an early video game console, the design was mostly the same. The stick itself--the part visible to the player and held for game play--is actually the least interesting and least important aspect of the design. Below the table (or inside the base of a hand-held joystick) is where the science is. Below that table is a simple circuit board made up of flat wires that connect to various contact terminals. This is the interface through which the joystick movements communicate with the game.
  
  

How a Joystick Works

• The printed wires in the circuit board beneath the stick each connect to a different terminal and are bringing electricity from one part of the circuit to another. When the joystick isn't being pushed in any particular direction, all but one of these circuits are detached, thus not conducting electricity. The other sections are covered with a small button. When the joystick is pressed to the left, for example, it presses down on that button, thus making a circuit connect. Electricity then runs through that printed wire to the computer game, which then translates what that means in terms of action in the context of the game. When a joystick stops responding, it's usually because the buttons aren't being depressed any more, and no circuits are being completed.