Need help getting right stuff

[Clueless Mom]

Hi, I am a clueless mom trying to get my teenagers the right stuff for Christmas. Last year I got them a Wii U and the new Super Smash Brothers game with the new Gamecube-style controllers and they have been loving that game and the no-lag controllers.

Now for Christmas they are asking for good old Melee and original Gamecube controllers that they can hook up to their Wii/Wii U. So I have been looking on eBay.

Lots of the controller listings say "Japan" in the headline -- should I stay away from those? I'm in USA.

Also, one listing I am interested in says "All items are NTSC format, not PAL." What does this mean? Which one do I need?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Nintendo-Ga...197472?hash=item43e51574e0:g:st8AAOSwT5tWN9PJ

One listing says "controllers WORKING, but analog is worn down." What does that mean? Should I stay away from those? This listing also includes a GameStop-branded controller. I'm assuming original Nintendo ones are best?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Super-Smash...551876?hash=item235c8c44c4:g:KlkAAOSw7hRWO9wW


Do the wired controllers work better than the Wavebird wireless ones?

Anything else I should know before I sink $$ into equipment I likely will not be able to return?

Sorry for so many questions, and thanks in advance! As you can surely tell, my gaming knowledge is very limited.

 

[LovinMitts]

Lots of the controller listings say "Japan" in the headline -- should I stay away from those? I'm in USA.

Japanese controllers work perfectly fine with hardware from any other region. The same goes with any controller from any region. Controllers aren't region locked or anything like that. I also haven't heard of any sketchy business in regards to controllers shipped from Japan, so there shouldn't be much of an issue on that front either.

One listing says "controllers WORKING, but analog is worn down." What does that mean? Should I stay away from those? This listing also includes a GameStop-branded controller. I'm assuming original Nintendo ones are best?

The analog being worn down means that the left analog stick may be a looser than normal, making it less sensitive. This isn't a big deal unless it's reeeally badly worn, which isn't that likely. As for the GameStop-brand controller, it isn't a huge deal if you get this lot including it. If you have four kids and they're all gonna play at once, one of them may be stuck with a worse controller, but if you don't have four kids, or if they aren't likely to play all at the same time, it isn't a big deal. That lot has an amazing price for what you're getting in my opinion. The Nintendo-branded controllers and the game disc could've easily been in separate lots and been the same price.

As for the first lot of five controllers you listed, only one of them looks like a legit Nintendo controller. There's a really common knockoff going around that looks almost exactly like the real thing, but it doesn't have the logo. It also plays terribly. It looks like all but one of the controllers in that lot are that knockoff, so I'd recommend staying away from that one.

I hope I helped! Sorry for making this post so long.

 

[Stride]

Third party controllers are invariably of very low build quality compared to official controllers (they will break very quickly and while they do work they will be much worse); always use official controllers, which can be identified as such because they have "Nintendo GameCube" written above the start button. There have recently been new batches of GameCube controllers released, so you can find new controllers for low prices (similar to and often cheaper than 2nd hand controllers in good condition). Your best bet for buying them is Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Nintendo-Super-Smash-Classic-Gamecube-Controller/dp/B00O9GW8TC/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1446919360&sr=8-3
http://www.amazon.com/Super-Smash-GameCube-Controller-Wii-U/dp/B00L3LQ4B4/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1446919360&sr=8-4
http://www.amazon.com/Official-Nintendo-Classic-Gamecube-Controller-Wii/dp/B0017KIBAI/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1446919360&sr=8-8

All of the above links are to official controllers. There are 2 types of new batch controllers: the Japanese white versions (the bottom link), and the the Smash Bros. versions (the top 2 links; they come in black or white). There are slight differences between them, but which one is considered better is a mostly matter of preference. The Smash Bros. versions are currently less than half the price of the white controllers (and are currently on sale for some of the lowest prices they've ever been), so I would recommend those.

Because the USA is an NTSC region, your console and game must be the NTSC versions. Controllers are not region-restricted, so you can use a controller regardless of where you order it from; it may be cheaper overall to order controllers from other countries (In the UK, the cheapest new controllers that I've found have been from Japan despite shipping costs).

Wired controllers and WaveBirds are both the same in terms of functionality and build, but WaveBirds have several disadvantages which make wired controllers a better choice for most people's purposes:
• They don't have a rumble pack.
• They rely on batteries, which need replacing or charging.
• They can potentially be interfered with by other devices.
• They are vastly more expensive than wired controllers.
• They are not available new except as expensive collector's items.
• Tournaments often ban WaveBirds because of the potential of them interfering with each other or being accidentally left on and continuing to affect games when they shouldn't be.

In order to use GameCube controllers on a WiiU, you will need an adapter. You do not need an adapter for a Wii because they have GameCube controller ports in them (although some of the very late models don't; you can check by simply looking at the console, under the flap on the top). The 2 models of adapter which I know of that are confirmed to be of good quality and lagless are the official Nintendo adapter, and the 4-port Mayflash adapter; so you should get one of those if you need the game to be played on a WiiU:
http://www.amazon.com/Super-Smash-G...1FI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1446920200&sr=8-1&
http://www.amazon.com/Mayflash-GameCube-Controller-Adapter-Port/dp/B00RSXRLUE/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1446920200&sr=8-2

You can expect copies of Melee to go for about $35-55. In my opinion, you would be better off buying a copy of Melee individually for that price and then buying brand new controllers separately (for just over $20 each) than buying one of the bundles you linked. It would only be slightly more expensive, but the controllers would be in much better condition (and therefore last much longer) so it would be a better investment overall.

 

[Clueless Mom]

Y'all are awesome and soooo helpful! I really appreciate the advice!

When you say a copy of Melee, is that a download or something copied to a disk? Where would I get one? eBay or Amazon or somewhere like that?

 

[LovinMitts]

Y'all are awesome and soooo helpful! I really appreciate the advice!

When you say a copy of Melee, is that a download or something copied to a disk? Where would I get one? eBay or Amazon or somewhere like that?

When we say a copy of Melee, we mean the physical game disc. As far as where to get it, the second eBay link on your original post comes with Melee along with the 4 controllers. But if you decided to go with another seller, yeah, you'd get it off of somewhere like eBay or Amazon.

 

[Clueless Mom]

Third party controllers are invariably of very low build quality compared to official controllers (they will break very quickly and while they do work they will be much worse); always use official controllers, which can be identified as such because they have "Nintendo GameCube" written above the start button. There have recently been new batches of GameCube controllers released, so you can find new controllers for low prices (similar to and often cheaper than 2nd hand controllers in good condition). Your best bet for buying them is Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Nintendo-Super-Smash-Classic-Gamecube-Controller/dp/B00O9GW8TC/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1446919360&sr=8-3
http://www.amazon.com/Super-Smash-GameCube-Controller-Wii-U/dp/B00L3LQ4B4/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1446919360&sr=8-4
http://www.amazon.com/Official-Nintendo-Classic-Gamecube-Controller-Wii/dp/B0017KIBAI/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1446919360&sr=8-8

All of the above links are to official controllers. There are 2 types of new batch controllers: the Japanese white versions (the bottom link), and the the Smash Bros. versions (the top 2 links; they come in black or white). There are slight differences between them, but which one is considered better is a mostly matter of preference. The Smash Bros. versions are currently less than half the price of the white controllers (and are currently on sale for some of the lowest prices they've ever been), so I would recommend those.

In order to use GameCube controllers on a WiiU, you will need an adapter. You o not need an adapter for a Wii because they have GameCube controller ports in them (although some of the very late models don't; you can check by simply looking at the console, under the flap on the top). The 2 models of adapter which I know of that are confirmed to be of good quality and lagless are the official Nintendo adapter, and the 4-port Mayflash adapter; so you should get one of those if you need the game to be played on a WiiU:
http://www.amazon.com/Super-Smash-G...1FI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1446920200&sr=8-1&
http://www.amazon.com/Mayflash-GameCube-Controller-Adapter-Port/dp/B00RSXRLUE/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1446920200&sr=8-2

.

Thanks so much for all the info, I really appreciate it. We have an adapter and 4 of the new Super Smash Brothers controllers that look like classic Gamecube controllers but I am told they only work on the 2014 Wii U SSB and will not work on any other game? I would love to use those or get new controllers vs. used but as I understand it, old original Gamecube controllers are the only ones that will if we want to play Melee? We don't have a Gamecube, only a wii and wiiU if that makes any difference. Sorry I am so dense, lol. Thanks for your patience and hand-holding!

 

[Clueless Mom]

When we say a copy of Melee, we mean the physical game disc. As far as where to get it, the second eBay link on your original post comes with Melee along with the 4 controllers. But if you decided to go with another seller, yeah, you'd get it off of somewhere like eBay or Amazon.

OK thanks, I think I misunderstood, I was thinking y'all were recommending a "copy" (of an original) that someone had burned or ripped or downloaded or something.

 

[Pauer]

It would help tremendously if you could add pictures of the items you are describing. Especially of the 4 controllers that you have.
From your description it seems as if you are describing the first two controllers from Stride's list (reference: 1, 2). If that is the case, they work perfectly fine.

All gamecube controllers can be plugged into a wii and gamecube to play any gamecube games (including melee) and certain wii games.

A wii will play both gamecube and wii games. This can be seen by the fact that they have gamecube controller slots on their top:

Thus, if your controllers are fine, all you still need is a melee disc which you can get off ebay.

 

[Stride]

Thanks so much for all the info, I really appreciate it. We have an adapter and 4 of the new Super Smash Brothers controllers that look like classic Gamecube controllers but I am told they only work on the 2014 Wii U SSB and will not work on any other game? I would love to use those or get new controllers vs. used but as I understand it, old original Gamecube controllers are the only ones that will if we want to play Melee? We don't have a Gamecube, only a wii and wiiU if that makes any difference. Sorry I am so dense, lol. Thanks for your patience and hand-holding!

The Smash Bros. controllers are just normal GameCube controllers with the Smash logo on them, not a special kind of controller designed to only work with Smash games or anything like that. In any situation where that controller will work, any other type of GameCube controller will also work.

Only certain games support GameCube controllers (of which Smash 4 is one). This applies to both the Wii and the WiiU despite the Wii having built-in GameCube controller ports.