Earlier this year, an intriguing project surfaced in the Land of Eternal Disappointment – or as it’s commercially known, Kickstarter. Intriguing, that is, if you were in the market for a new GameCube controller; a niche which has been more or less filled several times over by both Nintendo and assorted third parties ever since gamers got hooked in the Melee days and refused to move on. Wiimote? No ta. GamePad? Make me laugh. JoyCon? Not so joyful.
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To be fair, you can’t really blame them. The GCN pad remains one of the all-time greats, its comfort and button placement representative of an era when Ninty still made controllers intended for human hands. Then again, the fault could lie with us. Maybe we’ve all developed sausage fingers.
Regardless, the controller appeared, and made quite the wave. Under the name ‘Panda Controller’, it touted itself as the ultimate GameCube peripheral, compatible with the original system as well as the Switch, Wii, Wii U and PC via an arrangement of cables and dongles for each. It promised to pack in numerous ambitious features, including “additional buttons, custom-length triggers, a tactile/upgraded d-pad, braided cables, expansion packs, and subtle enhancements on the original design while keeping the core intact,” it says here.
Controller canned due to COVID-19
Before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, production was well underway, thanks in no small part to the Kickstarter raising almost $2,000,000 (!!!) in funding. It seemed reasonable to assume that, delays notwithstanding, we’d be clicking and clacking those tactile new buttons eventually. However, as Destructoid reports, that won’t be the case. The Panda project has been canned, and its developers are now in the process of issuing refunds n’ apologies. Ah, ye olde crowdfunding. What else is new?
“With all of the issues with global distribution (mainly the worldwide semiconductor shortage) and “ongoing rolling blackouts” at their distribution center, it wasn’t meant to be,” states the report. “In an update this week, the creators talk about how while the project was a labor of love for three years, that there is now no way they can make their intended December 2022 delivery date.” Considering that’s a year off from now, there must have been some serious problems going on at Panda HQ, but it’s probably the right thing to let down backers now rather than dragging it out for many more months, earning ire along the way.
Official statement from their Kickstarter
Here’s the official statement from the creators: “As of today, we’ll be canceling our Kickstarter early with all pledges fully refunded while we pursue outside investment to continue the project internally. We know how disappointing this is for many of you. We can’t thank you enough for the support you’ve given us to help make our dreams a reality.”
The mention of ‘continuing internally’ indicates there may yet be hope for the Panda, however. Who knows? I might still get to play Mario Sunshine on the Switch with a controller it was actually designed for. Or, y’know, just boot up the copy of the original I still own. Checkmate, Nintendo.
Are you saddened by this? Did you back the Panda? Let us know!
Via, Destructoid.
