I spent $3.50 to pick up a ten-year-old vibration-free Betop Bat gamepad, just for nostalgia. I own many controllers. Their specs keep getting better, yet I cannot recapture that old feeling. I suddenly remembered the first time I connected a gamepad to my PC. Compared with cheap no-name controllers, the experience was totally different. This is the rumble-free Betop Bat. Back then it sold for $6.85, while the rumble-enabled version was priced at $10.90. Its hand feel is mediocre, and the dpad is its biggest weakness. I do not even see the lack of wireless support as a downside. Most cheap generic controllers in that price range back then only supported DInput. Still, its build quality was far better than off-brand alternatives. It was popular among students and retro game players for its solid value. If we only look at practical value, spending $3.50 on this old pad is not a good buy, since brand-new entry-level gamepads are very cheap today. Even so, it works well enough for casual retro gaming and reminiscing about the old days.

Betop has grown into a gamepad brand with solid technical expertise within China. When I chatted with friends recently, we all remembered that this brand has grown alongside Chinese gamers for 29 years.

Looking back at 2015, options for gamepads at this price point were very limited, in both developed and developing countries. You could only pick up no-name controllers with terrible feel, unreliable lifespan, and messy in-game setup. If you wanted something with solid build quality and decent ergonomics, you would have to pay significantly more. Betop gave more players access to a relatively decent gaming experience. Even though the brand has had its share of debates over these 29 years, I’m just posting this to document a personal memory.

Note: I do not intend to compare the modern Betop Kunpeng with controllers like the DS5. This post only documents the old Bat gamepad and the story of Chinese retro gamers from that era