How to Play Pokemon Scarlet and Violet with GameCube Controller

To this day, the Nintendo GameCube controller is still widely recognized as one of the best game controllers ever made. It was comfortable, responsive, and borderline indestructible. This is why a lot of players still like to use them to play modern Nintendo games on the Switch. If you’d prefer to play Pokemon Scarlet and Violet in this way, it’s more than possible, though it takes a bit of an investment. Here’s how to play Pokemon Scarlet and Violet with a GameCube controller.

How to Play Pokemon Scarlet and Violet with GameCube Controller

Your ability to play Pokemon Scarlet and Violet with a GameCube controller depends heavily on a few crucial factors:

• Do you have an original GameCube controller on hand?
• Are you willing to drop some cash on this?
• Are you okay with some mildly wonky control schemes?

Related: How to Auto-Battle in the Water in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet

While it is very possible to play through Scarlet and Violet with a GameCube controller, the game obviously wasn’t designed with that particular peripheral in mind. As such, your gameplay experience may have some hiccups. Even if you’re okay with that, you also need to be aware that this process isn’t going to be free; you’ll need to buy some special equipment to make it work, though precisely what you need to buy depends on whether you have an original GameCube controller or not.

Playing with an Original GameCube Controller

If you do have an original GameCube controller, the problem we need to solve is actually connecting it to your Nintendo Switch. The GameCube used a proprietary connector for its controllers, while the Switch uses a regular USB connection. Ergo, to make this work, you’re going to need an adapter.

Third-party manufacturers like Mayflash and Y Team sell special four-port adapters that let you plug GameCube controllers into one of the Switch’s side USB ports. These generally cost around $20 on Amazon, maybe less if you’re lucky. The Switch is built to recognize USB inputs, so this should work fine. The only thing you should be aware of is that a GameCube controller doesn’t have as many buttons as a Switch controller, so you might not be able to use all functions. In the case of Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, a lack of a – button means you can’t see your PokeDex, and the lack of an L button makes scrolling through some menus a little harder.

Playing with a Knock-Off GameCube Controller

If you don’t have an original GameCube controller to use, you can just buy one along with an adapter, but you can also take a different route. Manufacturers like PowerA and HORI make their own controllers in the GameCube controller’s image, but with full wireless functionality and all buttons accounted for. This can be a little expensive, as a full wireless model can cost around $60 on Amazon, though you can save some cash by getting a wired model instead.

Since these aren’t official Nintendo GameCube controllers, though, they may not have quite the same feeling as the originals or be as durable. Also, the wireless ones are usually battery-powered rather than rechargeable, which can be a chore to deal with.

In summation, as long as you don’t mind dropping a few bucks and some minor technical hiccups, you can play through Pokemon Scarlet and Violet with one of Nintendo’s best controllers. Maybe they’ll give us a new game in the vein of Pokemon Colleseum someday…