10 Nintendo Gaming Innovations That Changed Everything

6. Wireless Controllers

Nintendo were not the first company to release a wireless controller; that honour goes to Atari, who released wireless joysticks for the Atari 2600 back in the 1980s. Atari's efforts were generally unsuccessful, with the CX-42 gamepads proving cumbersome and having a terrible battery life. Nintendo dabbled with the idea themselves for the NES but could not get them to work reliably, so the idea of wireless controllers was shelved for years.

Then Nintendo released the Wavebird for the Gamecube. The Wavebird was larger than a normal Gamecube joypad but retained the original's design and was light enough to use easily. It used radio frequency technology like the CX-42 gamepads, and the success of the Wavebird led to all future consoles embracing wireless controllers as standard. No more having to untangle the cables before playing your favourite games. Pure bliss.