Guys, you don’t need GameCube controllers to play Super Smash Bros Wii U. And you know what? I think it’s time to let them go. There are lots of great controller options now, and the GameCube controllers—while a great addition—simply feel increasingly like a retro affectation. Not on Nintendo’s part, but on yours. I get that it’s nostalgic, I get that it’s familiar, but it’s time to move on.
Super Smash Bros Wii U GameCube Controllers: Not The Best Way To Play
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It’s very quickly become shared wisdom that GameCube controllers are the best way to play Super Smash Bros Wii U, but I’m going to defy that: I think they’re the third or possibly fourth best way to play. They are, in fact, old hat, and it doesn’t help that finding the GameCube adapter is already impossible. The GameCube controller is quite old at this point, 13 years to be precise, and I think it just can’t compete with the modern controllers. Sure, it still feels good in the hand, it feels familiar, it gets the job done. But it loses a lot of the ergonomic and technical innovations in the newer controllers.
Partially I’m just being a stick in the mud about Smash Bros controllers; I admit that. It’s weird and almost anachronistic to be using a controller from two generations ago on a new game. Even the PS4 finally upgraded the aging DualShock. The days of the early 3D controllers are behind us; let’s leave them behind.
Super Smash Bros Best Controllers
So what do I, in my infinite wisdom and from my grand bully pulpit, think you should use instead? There are three solid options. Unsurprisingly, Wii Remote isn’t one of them, nor is Wii Remote and Nunchuk. Those two combinations were the main options instead of the GameCube controller for Brawl, and both were poor choices. But now we have better options.
Wii U Pro Controller
For most people, I think the Wii U Pro controller is the best controller for Super Smash Bros Wii U. I mean, this thing is basically an Xbox 360 controller, with the sticks in slightly different places. It’s one of the best controllers Nintendo has ever made, just as good as its equivalents on the other system, and it feels better in the hand than either the GameCube controller or even the GamePad—which has merits of its own that are generally not used in Super Smash Bros Wii U. Honestly, most games on Wii U go well with the Wii U Pro controller, and I definitely think it’s worth picking up.
The second best controller for Super Smash Bros Wii U is probably the Nintendo 3DS itself. If you have a copy of Super Smash Bros 3DS, you can use your 3DS as a controller for the Wii U version. While I think that restriction is unnecessarily onerous, it is what it is… but the 3DS makes a great controller for the Wii U version. Many of my professional associates (i.e. friends) swear by it.
The GamePad itself isn’t a bad controller either, and I think it edges out the GameCube controller. The Wii Classic Controller isn’t quite as good as the GameCube controller, but will do in a pinch.
I'm getting the GameCube adapter. I’ll use it now and then, it’s a nice retro feel. But it’s not going to be my main controller for Super Smash Bros Wii U. Stop living in the past, man—embrace the Wii U Pro.
