New Joysticks
Monday, May 04, 2026
In the early days of the information age, computers seemed to have souls. To a young kid, they were more than machines—they were companions for play and discovery. My first computer — a Commodore 64— opened the path to programming, electronics, and a lifelong love of computers beginning in 1982. It set the course for my life in electrical engineering. It also introduced me to a community of friends who shared the same excitement and love to learn, tinker, and play.
Decades later, that passion never faded. I rebuilt my childhood C64 using a original unit along with the Raspberry Pi 'Fazination C64' project. When Commodore was revived in June 2025, I jumped at the chance to own their C64 Ultimate — a faithful, fully compatible successor to the original hardware.
No matter if using a Commodore, Amiga, Atari, or other retro system - finding good joysticks today isn’t easy, so I decided to design and build my own*. They use a Sanwa microswitch joystick for reliability, are very configurable, and include a custom low‑power CMOS autofire circuit that is designed to protect the 6526 & 8520 Complex Interface Adapter (CIA) chips in the original Commodore hardware. I’ve enjoyed them so much that I want to share them with the community that shaped me.
*This product reflects an independent design and engineering process. Any similarities to other products are purely coincidental.
