Peripheral Visions

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The weird world of the Nintendo accessory

LCD screens (GameCube)
Portability is a funny concept. Technically, a piano is portable, insofar as you have the manpower to carry it about. But for convenience’s sake, portable objects should really fit in your back pocket - which is why Nintendo’s handhelds have done such sterling trade. Flying in the face of that is the GameCube’s wide array of third-party LCD screens. They came with an adaptor so that the whole beast could be plugged into a car’s cigarette lighter, giving the kids something to do on their way to the store. But wouldn’t you rather take your GBA along than, say, play Luigi’s Mansion on a tiny, bleached-out screen?

The Shaft (Wii)
Our favourite thing about third-party Wii controller The Shaft? A question on its website, that simply asks “How big is The Shaft?” The response? “It’s about 6 inches by 11 inches”. Which we’re told is perfectly normal, and almost certainly nothing to be ashamed of.

Singer IZEK (Game Boy)
Not so much a peripheral as a labour-saving device, the Singer IZEK was a sewing machine that could be controlled via Game Boy. Yup, upload your favourite stitching patterns to the bundled cart and you’ll churn out some convention-standard Pikachu cosplay in no time flat.

Work Boy (Game Boy)
In a reversal of the adage “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy”, some bright spark thought what Game Boy users really wanted was to siphon all the fun out of their favourite handheld by attaching a mini keyboard and software that contained a clock, calendar, phonebook and conversion table. Thankfully, it was never released.