Rumble Pak

A Nintendo 64 gamepad with Rumble Pak attached.

The Rumble Pak is a force feedback device released in April 1997 for the controller from the Nintendo 64 video game console. When attached to the controller, it would vibrate to reflect the action in selected games, such as the player crashing into the ground or being shot. At the time, the Rumble Pak was quite innovative and revolutionary. It ran off of two AAA batteries. The Rumble Pak was first introduced and came bundled with the game Star Fox 64 (known as Lylat Wars in PAL territories) for easy distribution. It was Goldeneye 007, however, that truly established the device and demonstrated its ability to enhance the playing experience. Rumble Pak support soon became a standard for N64 games and in Japan launch titles Wave Race 64 and Super Mario 64 were re-released with Rumble Pak integration.

As with all other accessories, there were various third-party versions. Some versions eschewed the batteries altogether and ran directly off main power through the controller, although this limited their effectiveness. Another variation included memory card functionality (replacing the need for two separate accessories). A third variation was the feature of being able to turn up or down the amount of feedback from the device. The Tremor Pak was the most popular third-party rumble device. It featured AA batteries instead of AAA; later versions supported Controller Pak functionality as well.

Later that year, the N64's competitor, the PlayStation, released their DualShock, a controller with a built-in rumbling device. The DualShock housed two vibrating motors within it. Both the DualShock and Rumble Pak accessories led to the standarization of rumbling in the next generation (sixth generation era) of consoles. The only exception was the Sega Dreamcast, which used an N64-style vibrating cartridge inserted into the controller.

Origins and Future of Rumble Pak

Although many felt that the Nintendo 64's rumble pak was the first of its kind, it has recently been discovered that the so-called force feedback technology was released in March 1997 (1 month before Nintendo's rumble pack) by CH Products

Today, this technology is now considered standard on all gaming consoles and can be found in PC, PlayStation 2, Xbox, GameCube, as well as the Xbox 360 and Wii. The Playstation 3 is the only seventh generation game console to not utilize the feedback in the official controllers.

Nintendo DS Rumble Pak

The rumbling system can also be found on Nintendo DS, in the form of a GBA cartridge. It was included with Metroid Prime Pinball, for easy distribution. From May the 2nd, Nintendo also made the rumble pak free with selected Metroid Prime Hunters [1] It is also available online as a separate purchase at [2] So far the Nintendo DS rumble pak can only be used in Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time, Metroid Prime: Hunters, Mario Hoops 3-on-3, Star Fox Command, Super Princess Peach and

Metroid Prime Pinball. The DS Lite also has its own rumble pak available, since GBA cartridges protrude from the front of the system. [3]