doubledown's fancy new, Intellivision - Super Pro Arcade Controller

[doubledown]

I set out to build myself an arcade controller for the Mattel Intellivision, while incorporating as many features and options as I could, that I felt would be important in such a controller...so allow me to present to you all, my new arcade controller for the Mattel Intellivision (and its console variations), the:

 

Super Pro Arcade Controller (AL) DX++

 

 

A few quick highlights include: the fact that this is a true Intellivision 8-way joystick (not a conventional 8-way that will only work with “some” 8-way games, and no 16-way games) that requires no active electronics (and thus no power), the joystick can be switched from 4-way to 8-way operation with a rocker switch installed into the control panel (no tools or disassembly required), overlays can be used with the keypad, and the 3 arcade pushbuttons can be assigned as any of the 3 Intellivision Side Action buttons.  Of course, as this is only up to an 8-way joystick controller, it is not a true replacement for the Intellivision’s Hand Controllers, but I am looking into the possibility of creating a 16-way joystick.  I’ve already accounted for it in my PCB design (as I know how I would do it), I just need to figure out the engineering.  Not sure if I'll get to this any time soon…as I was truly, mostly interested in designing this controller, to be a 4-way / 8-way arcade stick for arcade/action type games that only require this functionality, as they are types of games that I play the most.  A few more pics:

 

 

 

 

The Short Form Version (for more details, see the “Long Form Version" below)

 

     Features:

 

**  Hammond Mfg., Aluminum Sloped-top Enclosure, (VVG machined)

 

**  VVG INTV SuzoHapp Ultimate 8-way Joystick (w/ Cherry (ZF) Microswitches)

 

**  VVG INTV PCB w/ Keypad (w/ C&K Keyswitches), w/ Overlay Frame

 

**  iL PSL-L Concave Pushbuttons (w/ Cherry (ZF) Microswitches) (3)

 

**  NKK Rocker Switch, for 4-way / 8-way Joystick Operation Selection

 

**  C&K Rotary Switches (SP4T) with Apem Aluminum Knobs, for Pushbutton Assignments (3)

 

**  iL PSL-C Concave Pushbutton (w/ Cherry (ZF) Microswitch) (1), as dedicated Pause Button

 

**  Rear-mounted cord cleats for cable management, 12’ custom crimped Cable

 

**  Side-mounted storage pockets, ~100 overlays or 1 INTV cartridge (and a few overlays), per pocket (x2)

 

**  VVG INTV CPO, “Simulated Aluminum”, with ancillary controls legends

 

     Game & Control compatibility:

 

**  2-way games – 100%

 

**  4-way games – 100% (Including a true, and legitimate, break-before-make, 4-way mode)

 

**  8-Way games – 100%

 

**  16-Way games – 8-Way w/ 45° angles.  The directions provided by this custom engineered joystick allow for the cardinal directions of 0°, 90°, 180°, & 270°, as well as the true 45° diagonal directions of 45°, 135°, 225°, and 315°, but not the additional 22.5° and 67.5° diagonal direction variants, of the original 16-way Intellivision Hand Controllers. 

 

**  Full 12-button keypad, with Overlay Frame, for overlay compatibility & use

 

**  Any of the 3 Pushbuttons, can easily be assigned to operate as any, of the 3 Side Action buttons on the original Intellivision Hand Controllers, or “Off,” if desired.

 

The Long Form Version

  

     Joystick

 

        The joystick used for this build is a SuzoHapp, 8-Way Ultimate joystick.  In its current factory form, it’s a conventional 8-way (4-switch (microswitch)) joystick, with a molded bat handle.  Of course, for those who actually understand how the Intellivision hand controllers “work”, you are well aware that simply wiring a conventional 8-way joystick to controller port pins 1 (left), 2 (up), 3 (right), 4 (down), and 5 (ground), will greatly suffer form compatibility issues in several 8-way games, and in all 16-way games.  So, while some have addressed these compatibility issues with the use of active electronics and a power source, and others have simply ignored these issues all together, I addressed the “problem” by re-engineering the joystick itself…which provides a new, and completely passive solution, to this 43-year-old conundrum.  This new, and revolutionary passive design, provides for 100% game compatibility, with all Intellivision games that require only 8-way, 4-way, or 2-way directional control.  And, when playing any 16-way game, this joystick provides for proper control of the 4 cardinal directions (left, up, right, and down), plus proper control of the 4 pure diagonal directions, of 45°, 135°, 225°, and 315°. 

 

        So, for those wondering how I achieved such an impossible feat of electro-mechanical wizardry (that perhaps has never been done before), I’ll explain the modifications I made to the joystick.  Step 1, was to remove the factory installed E-SWITCH microswitches, as I personally don’t like their feel, and quite frankly, they’re not up to my standards.  With the factory microswitches removed, I installed a new set of 4 Cherry (ZF) pin plunger microswitches in the 4 factory locations, which act as the switches for only, the 4 cardinal directions.  Step 2 then, was to get these switches to react only for the cardinal directions, I had to remove the factory 8-way, 1-stage actuator, and design a new 2-stage actuator, wherein stage 1 interacts upon only the factory location microswitches, but now, instead of the factory 8-way actuation, provides only, a true, break-before-make, 4-way actuation.  Step 3, was then to install a 2nd set of Cherry (ZF) microswitches, these being a lever-actuator switch variant, which are mounted below the factory switches, and are interacted upon only, by stage 2 of my new actuator, to provide the proper 45°, 135°, 225°, and 315° diagonal controls, for use with the Intellivision…all while requiring no active electronics, and thus no power source (internal or external).  Step 4 was to remove the factory “Standard” centering spring, and install the optional “Light” spring, so that the joystick is a little lighter to manipulate.  And then finally, Step 5 was to convert the factory bat handle, to an era correct ball knob handle.  I accomplished this, by using a band-saw to rough cut, and remove the molded bat portion of the lever, milling the top of the rough-cut shaft to a obtain a true flat surface, then drilling and tapping an M6 x 1.00mm hole and inserting an M6 grub screw, so that I’m left with male, M6 x 1.00mm threads…which allows me to screw on almost any ball knob.  For this build I chose a 1-1/2” (38mm) diameter, black, polypropylene ball knob, which matches the molded shaft cover very well (both in color and sheen).  The same series of ball knobs are also available in 1-3/8” (35mm), 1-1/4” (32mm), and 1” (25mm) sizes.  Steps 4 & 5 are of course not required for the Intellivision directional control “magic”…but just done for my personal preferences, regarding the look, and the operational feel I wanted for this controller build. 

  

     Keypad

 

         As this project was to create an arcade stick controller for use with the Intellivision, I of course needed a 12-key keypad.  Fortunately, I had already designed a custom PCB w/ keypad for use in my ColecoVision arcade controller projects, so I started with that design…and drew a new schematic for use with the Intellivision.  And in all seriousness, and with of a bit of dumb effin’ luck, the size of the C&K keyswitch keys that I use for my custom PCBs w/ keypad, and the layout that I had previously designed for my ColecoVision PCBs, are a near perfect match, to the size, shape, and layout, of the keys and keypad of the original Intellivision Hand Controllers.  With this incredible coincidence, I put forth the effort to see if I could figure out a way to incorporate compatibility with the Intellivision controller overlays, as so many Intellivision games included them.  I took some measurements of the overlay frame on the original Hand Controllers, and the overlays themselves, and then came up with my own overlay frame, that absolutely, does allow for the use of overlays with this arcade controller…possibly another first in the world of homebrew Intellivision arcade stick controllers.  I wish I could tell you that the overlay frame was molded ABS plastic (or some such similar), but as it’s such a small component, and it is not part of the structural rigidity of the controller, I decided to go a different route.  The overlay frame itself, is 3D printed with Ultimaker Tough PLA black filament.  As such, it of course has the look and feel of 3D printed parts (although a lot nicer than some parts I’ve seen), but it works perfectly with the Intellivision overlays (verified with originals and homebrews).  I included in my design, a raised top edge to keep the overlays in place when in use, as well a finger tip cutout, so that the overlays are much easier to remove / swap out then they were on the original Hand Controllers.  The overlay frame itself is mechanically fastened to the control surface with 4 black, low-profile, socket-head cap screws, wherein their heads are recessed into the design of the frame, and as such, are flush with the top of the frame itself.  It probably could have been simply installed with some sort of sheet or liquid adhesive…but, that’s just not my style.  Then to finish off the keypad keys, I printed custom key legends that mimic those on the original Hand Controllers, with each having a rounded-corner square frame surrounding the text.  The biggest difference is that I couldn’t print the words “clear” and “enter” clearly enough, with it being so small, so I opted for a simple lower-case “c” and “e,” for the clear and enter keys. 

 

     Pushbuttons

 

        For the 3 Action Button pushbuttons, I selected a personal favorite, iL PSL-L pushbuttons, with concave plungers (as is era correct), and snap action microswitches.  The Cherry (ZF) D44X microswitches with an operating force of 75 grams, are the standard premium microswitches used with these pushbuttons, but I upgraded those, to the D41X variant, that only require an operating force of 45 grams, for a smoother, lighter, and quieter…feel and operation.  When it came down to deciding which order to wire the 3 pushbuttons in (with reference to which arcade buttons, are wired to which Hand Controller button), I decided simply not to decide.  See “Pushbuttons – Assignment Switches” section below. 

 

     Artwork – “(AL)”

 

        I personally own an INTV System III, as well as an Intellivision II, but I mostly use the System III...as I prefer the dedicated power switch.  So, I decided to mimic the aesthetics of the III a little bit, with a CPO designed to “simulate” the aluminum panels of the top of this console.  I also used this area to install and to detail, the functions of the ancillary controls built into this DX controller, as described below.  I could additionally envision designing a “simulated” gold CPO to match the original Intellivision, a “simulated” woodgrain CPO to match the TandyVision One, and a “simulated” burl wood CPO to match the Super Video Arcade. 

 

Ancillary Controls – “DX”

 

     Joystick – 4-Way / 8-Way Switch

 

          As my uniquely engineered 8-way Intellivision joystick used in this controller has 2 separate sets of microswitches (1 set for the cardinal directions, and 1 set for the diagonal directions), I was able to do something very special with this controller.  An NKK rocker switch, mounted down within the CPO and directly below the joystick, allows me to switch the joystick from a passive Intellivision 8-way joystick, to a true “break-before-make” 4-way joystick, by interrupting the ground line connection to the set of diagonal direction microswitches.  That’s right, I can, within the span of about ½ of a second, and without the use of any tools, switch the joystick from a 4-way, to an 8-way, and back, as is it necessary, to properly play whichever game I am playing.  No more suffering through playing a game of Donkey Kong, or Pac-Man, or the likes, with an 8-way joystick for me. 

 

     Keypad – Pause Pushbutton

 

          Since a lot of Intellivision games are programmed with a pause feature, accessed by simultaneously pressing keypad keys 1 & 9 (or 3 & 7), I decided to include a dedicated “Pause” button down within the CPO, and directly below the Side Action pushbuttons…which is easily operated by my right thumb.  The pushbutton used here is an iL PSL-C (super short) pushbutton, with concave plunger, and a snap action microswitch, wired to keys 1 & 9.  I also upgraded this pushbutton’s microswitch, with a Cherry (ZF) D41X microswitch.

 

     Pushbuttons – Assignment Switches

 

          When researching which order to wire the 3 Side Action pushbuttons in, it seemed like the most common, and most rational order, is, from left to right…Top (index finger), Bottom Left (middle finger), and Bottom Right (ring finger).  For most games, this seems to makes the most sense, on an arcade stick controller with a left-hand joystick / right-hand pushbuttons layout.  But in a game like Defender, this means that your main index finger is detonating your smart bombs, and either of your two other fingers, are firing your missiles.  And of course, there are several other games where one might want to re-assign which pushbutton is wired to which Action Button, so rather than settling on one fixed, and permanent button configuration, I chose to install 3, C&K, SP4T rotary switches, with 3, Apem, black anodized aluminum knobs, so that I can easily reassign any of the 3 pushbuttons on the fly, as I see fit, for any particular game that I am playing.  These switches are mounted down within the CPO, directly below the keypad (clear of interference with my right wrist), with identifying legends printed in the CPO artwork.  The 4^th position of each switch allows each pushbutton to be “off” and disconnected, in the instance that I don’t want that particular pushbutton to be active at all. 

 

     Extra – “++”

 

          The ++ in the controller’s moniker is in reference to the additional feature, of the twin, side-mounted storage pockets.  My original thought, was since I was going to be able to use overlays with this controller, I might as well have some place to conveniently store them, so after checking the thickness of a couple of different overlays, I calculated that a pocket with a width of 20mm, should hold around 100 overlays, without them being overstuffed into place, which may cause damage.  Then I figured, since there’s more than 100 games for the Intellivision (I realize that not all games came with overlays), I might as well install a storage pocket on each side.  Another bit of dumb effin’ luck here too was, that I realized after I had them designed and installed, they’re big enough to store ~100 overlays, or 1 cartridge (and a few overlays) in each.  These storage pockets are also 3D printed like the overlay frame, and are mounted in the same manner, each with (4) recessed, flush-mount screws. 

 

So for now, this is what I've come up with for my Intellivison arcade stick needs.  Some day I may get to working out the 16-way joystick, but for now I can start enjoying some action/arcade games with a controller that's not a Hand Controller.  Enjoy!

[Intymike]

Pretty impressive!
 

[+Rick Reynolds]

Nice work.  You've put into place many ideas that I've also had over the years.  Congratulations!

[mr_me]

It would be good if you can map one of the arcade buttons to a keypad button.  Some cartridges use the keypad for the third or second action e.g. Defender, Locomotion, Astrosmash, Shark Shark, Space Hawk, Atlantis, Solar Sailer.  Keypad three and enter would be helpful. Keypad nine and zero if you make a sixteen direction joystick.

[+fdr4prez]

This is an impressive piece of work.

 

Is it possible to re-wire the insides so that you can connect this controller to Port 1 and use it as-is, but then have an optional switch setting so that the keypad is isolated from Port 1 and have a second cable to be connected just to the keypad and have that run out to the Port 2?

 

This is very useful for games like Deadly Discs, Cloudy Mountain, and Night Stalker, so you can run (joystick) and fire (keypad) at the same time.

[Morpheus]

Amazing!!!

 

How many units are you going to manufacture ??🤠

[bikeguychicago]

If you want to incorporate 16 directions into the stick, you may have to look into a 49-way stick, like the types used in Sinistar. 

[+cmart604]

Oh my. Well this looks awesome. That variant artwork might end up costing me a bunch of money. Lol. Put me at the front of the line when you manufacture these. 😍

[+Steve Jones]

Looks great, I like that you can use the overlays on the keypad

[+The Intellivision Gamer]

Looks great and I’d like to be put on the list as well. 

[Echoesfox]

Nice work. I’d buy one if you ever produce these for sale. 

[doubledown]

8 hours ago, Intymike said:

Pretty impressive!

Thanks.  If you're gonna build an arcade stsick..go big or go home!

 

8 hours ago, Rick Reynolds said:

Nice work.  You've put into place many ideas that I've also had over the years.  Congratulations!

Thanks, I'm very happy with it.  I've still got a couple more idea up my sleeves for a few other INTV controllers...mostly game specific.

 

6 hours ago, mr_me said:

It would be good if you can map one of the arcade buttons to a keypad button.  Some cartridges use the keypad for the third or second action e.g. Defender, Locomotion, Astrosmash, Shark Shark, Space Hawk, Atlantis, Solar Sailer.  Keypad three and enter would be helpful. Keypad nine and zero if you make a sixteen direction joystick.

The rotary switches I installed for the Button Assignments are 4 position switches, which obviously allow for all 3 side action assignments, plus an "off" position.  It is possible to install 16 position switches (they exist, I've already looked), which would allow any of the 3 pushbuttons, to be any of the 3 side action assignments, or any of the 12 keypad assignments, plus an "off" position.  I very briefly considered this, but I figured with this first one, keep it "simple", and after some gameplay time, determine if I want to add this option.  

 

6 hours ago, fdr4prez said:

This is an impressive piece of work.

 

Is it possible to re-wire the insides so that you can connect this controller to Port 1 and use it as-is, but then have an optional switch setting so that the keypad is isolated from Port 1 and have a second cable to be connected just to the keypad and have that run out to the Port 2?

 

This is very useful for games like Deadly Discs, Cloudy Mountain, and Night Stalker, so you can run (joystick) and fire (keypad) at the same time.

This would be possible, but it would be a major re-design of the PCB to allow for it.  If I were do do something like this (for right controller keyboard control), I would probably use the wider enclosure in this product line, and add a 2nd keypad to the right of the pushbuttons.  

 

At this point I'm already looking into custom dedicated controllers for AD&D and/or Night Stalker (Ms. Night Stalker), with dedicated arcade type pushbuttons vs. using the small little keypad buttons, that would be wired to the right controller port.  

 

6 hours ago, Morpheus said:

Amazing!!!

 

How many units are you going to manufacture ??🤠

Probably more than 1, (as my buddy wants one too, and I got 3 PCBs with my prototype order), but less than 10,000.  😁

 

6 hours ago, bikeguychicago said:

If you want to incorporate 16 directions into the stick, you may have to look into a 49-way stick, like the types used in Sinistar. 

Unfortunately the 49-way joysticks, that are still made by SuzoHapp, cost about $180.00, require a very deep mounting depth which would require a different enclosure, require power which my controller doesn't need and the Intellivision doesn't provide, and would need to be encoded/decoded so that the Intellivision could do anything with it.  Not saying its not possible, but its not the route I would take, I don't think.  I already think I know how I would re-engineer my current joystick to be a 16-way, but I'd need to order a few different microswitches to check fit and sizing, then develop a mount for them, then re-engineer stage 2 of my actuator for it to all work out.  I may get to it at some point, or I may not...at this point, I'm just super happy to have a true INTV 8-way joystick, that doesn't require any power.  

 

5 hours ago, cmart604 said:

Oh my. Well this looks awesome. That variant artwork might end up costing me a bunch of money. Lol. Put me at the front of the line when you manufacture these. 😍

Oh...are you a fan of the Intellivision?!?  😂  I've tried a few sample prints to "simulate" the gold panels of the original console, but nothing I'm really happy with yet.  The easiest alternate would be the TandyVision One, as I already have a printable woodgrain sample that I can color adjust as necessary, that I've used before...so that with grey/silver ancillary controls and text down in the CPO, is how I would make that one.

 

5 hours ago, Steve Jones said:

Looks great, I like that you can use the overlays on the keypad

Once I realized that my custom keypad layout was almost an absolute perfect match to the original keypads, I knew I had to try.  It only took me to revision designs to get what you see in the pics...it works very well.  I've never made a ColecoVision controller with an overlay tray, because there really aren't that many ColecoVision games that need them, but with the Intellivision...I think it's almost a must-have option. 

 

4 hours ago, IntvCasey said:

Looks great and I’d like to be put on the list as well. 

Thanks

1 hour ago, Echoesfox said:

Nice work. I’d buy one if you ever produce these for sale. 

 Thank you.  Can't everybody build their own custom controllers?  Why do I have to build them all...geez!

 

So with really getting into the Intellivision recently, due of the building of this controller, I just found out some info that I'm sure you all already know about...when using the System Changer to play 2600 games, you can play joystick games with either the Intellivision controllers plugged into the Intellivision console, or Atari controllers plugged into the System Changer.  Now with the only option previously being either an Intellivision hand controller, or any other Atari joystick controller to play these 2600 games, I'm sure most would select an Atari joystick...but this arcade stick may change that. 

 

I was also able to make myself a short 12" passive cable adapter, that allow this controller, to be plugged into and used with any other console/PC that can use Atari 2600 controllers.  Of course the only controls available on say a 2600 would be the joystick, and 1 button, (not the keypad, and not a 2nd or 3rd button) but that makes this arcade controller compatible with a lot more that just the Intellivision, and the 4-way / 8-way switching feature works too...tested on my 7800.  

[vtadave]

Wow, super impressive.  I would likely buy one with the caveat that I may have to hold out for the 16 directional...

[mr_me]

14 minutes ago, doubledown said:

The rotary switches I installed for the Button Assignments are 4 position switches, which obviously allow for all 3 side action assignments, plus an "off" position.  It is possible to install 16 position switches (they exist, I've already looked), which would allow any of the 3 pushbuttons, to be any of the 3 side action assignments, or any of the 12 keypad assignments, plus an "off" position.  I very briefly considered this, but I figured with this first one, keep it "simple", and after some gameplay time, determine if I want to add this option.  

I've only found four keypad buttons that would help:  3, E, 9, 0.  I don't think the others would be beneficial.

[+Lathe26]

Nice work!  It's packed with a lot of features I never even considered.  However I have to ask...

 

Does it have a snow level?

 

❄⛄🌨

[+cmart604]

4 hours ago, doubledown said:

Oh...are you a fan of the Intellivision?!?  😂  I've tried a few sample prints to "simulate" the gold panels of the original console, but nothing I'm really happy with yet.  The easiest alternate would be the TandyVision One, as I already have a printable woodgrain sample that I can color adjust as necessary, that I've used before...so that with grey/silver ancillary controls and text down in the CPO, is how I would make that one.

Actually the Tandyvision woodgrain would be high on my list. Nice. 

[Morpheus]

8 hours ago, doubledown said:

Probably more than 1,

Cool, put me down for two!👍

[MGG]

WOW.  Looks incredible!  Definitely interested!

[doubledown]

10 hours ago, vtadave said:

Wow, super impressive.  I would likely buy one with the caveat that I may have to hold out for the 16 directional...

As of now the installed PCB has the necessary bits for a 16-way joystick, so if/when I can physically work it out, I can simply modify the joystick, and do a bit of re-wiring to employ it...that way its not a total re-build.  

 

10 hours ago, mr_me said:

I've only found four keypad buttons that would help:  3, E, 9, 0.  I don't think the others would be beneficial.

I took a look at the overlays for the games you mentioned and see what you are saying.  Some of those use 1 side button, and a keypad button, but some use 2 side buttons and a keypad button.  So the question is, do you make all 3 arcade buttons, 8 position selectable (top/left/right/3/E/9/0, and "off"), or only 1 or 2 of them, and if only 1 or 2, which ones left/middle/right?  Right now my PCB wouldn't need any modification to do this, just different switches...it would just be a bit of a pain wiring, without dedicated solder pads for the 3/E/9/0.  I could definitely consider a Rev 2 of the PCB to add these.  

 

8 hours ago, Lathe26 said:

Nice work!  It's packed with a lot of features I never even considered.  However I have to ask...

 

Does it have a snow level?

 

❄⛄🌨

Thanks. 

 

And if that's an inside Intellivision joke, I'm sorry to admit, that I'm not familiar.  

 

5 hours ago, cmart604 said:

Actually the Tandyvision woodgrain would be high on my list. Nice. 

Me too.  Radio Shack was a big part of my life as a kid, as we had a Tandy 1000EX, I was at Radio Shack all the time bugging the sales guys to show me new stuff, and I worked for Radio Shack a couple of years after high school.  

 

[alevin16]

You have a sale here!

[+Lathe26]

2 hours ago, doubledown said:

Thanks. 

 

And if that's an inside Intellivision joke, I'm sorry to admit, that I'm not familiar. 

Just to let the cat out of the bag, yes the "does it have a snow level" is an inside Intellivision joke.  It used to be a common joke made against homebrew games when they were released.  It's not as common these days.

[doubledown]

32 minutes ago, Lathe26 said:

Just to let the cat out of the bag, yes the "does it have a snow level" is an inside Intellivision joke.  It used to be a common joke made against homebrew games when they were released.  It's not as common these days.

Thanks for the clarification!  😁 

 

If people are serious about wanting to purchase one or more of these controllers, I can take an in-depth look into the hardware costs, the time involved to build one, and come up with a selling price.  I do know (only because I ordered them very recently) that the ancillary controls down within the CPO (rocker switch, rotary switches with knobs, pushbutton w/ D41X) alone, cost me ~$90...plus all of the machining, assembly, and wiring time to install them.  As they are separate/independent of the PCB (and the standard joystick, keypad, pushbutton controls), I could make a variant of the controller without the ancillary controls (or with some of, but not all of them), which could be less expensive.  Same goes for the side mounted storage pockets (as they're not integral to the design), as they cost about $10 in filaments, take 9.5 hours to print...each, then another 1/2 hour each, to install them with the fasteners I use.  These pockets alone would probably be a price difference of around $25 per pocket, installed. 

 

I might have some time this weekend to look into this, if not maybe mid to later next week...just have to see.  

[mr_me]

5 hours ago, doubledown said:

I took a look at the overlays for the games you mentioned and see what you are saying.  Some of those use 1 side button, and a keypad button, but some use 2 side buttons and a keypad button.  So the question is, do you make all 3 arcade buttons, 8 position selectable (top/left/right/3/E/9/0, and "off"), or only 1 or 2 of them, and if only 1 or 2, which ones left/middle/right?  Right now my PCB wouldn't need any modification to do this, just different switches...it would just be a bit of a pain wiring, without dedicated solder pads for the 3/E/9/0.  I could definitely consider a Rev 2 of the PCB to add these.  

I would just put a switch on the third button for AR, K3, KE, K9, K0.

 

Would having twelve mini arcade buttons instead of the keypad increase cost much?

[+MIK710_0]

If you decide to produce them for the community, I'd be happy to be included on the waiting list for one!
Your prototype is amazing! ^__^
WOW

[+fdr4prez]

17 hours ago, doubledown said:

I already think I know how I would re-engineer my current joystick to be a 16-way, but I'd need to order a few different microswitches to check fit and sizing, then develop a mount for them, then re-engineer stage 2 of my actuator for it to all work out.  I may get to it at some point, or I may not...at this point, I'm just super happy to have a true INTV 8-way joystick, that doesn't require any power.  

You may want to reach out to the developers of the Long Play Controller.  

 

With their disk, they are using 12 microswitches under the disc, and some diodes, they say they are getting 16-directions, and they don't need external power.