With Sega never providing a wireless control solution for the Dreamcast themselves, the task of creating one has fallen on aftermarket companies and fans alike. There's a load of options out there: you've got controller options like Chris Daioglou's
DreamConn — arguably the best solution overall, though it comes at a higher price point. Chris even created a wireless Dreamcast keyboard, in the form of the
KeyConn. A more affordable alternative controller-wise is the
StrikerDC Wireless from Retro Fighters, which has had been praised by those who have used it, but has compatibility issues with
Dreamcast games that utilise Windows CE, and
potentially corrupts saves when used with the
VMUPro. If you’d prefer to use a different wireless controller altogether, or maybe a keyboard you have lying around, several adapters are available. These include the now hard-to-find
Brook Wingman SD, BlueRetro adapters, and plenty of others, giving players more flexibility when it comes to wireless control methods for the Dreamcast (we know you lot love to tell everyone how much you hate the Dreamcast's original controller!)
8BitMods, the creators of the VMUPro, are throwing their collective hats into the ring with the BitLink, a new method that looks to give Dreamcast gamers the best of both worlds: not only by turning your existing stock Dreamcast controller into a wireless wonder through some easy modification, but also giving the option of allowing other controllers —both wired and wireless— to connect to the console.
The BitLink comes in two colours, classic white and smoke black, and consists of two parts. The larger piece, the "adapter," resembles a Dreamcast rumble pack, and slots into the second slot of your Dreamcast controller. To install it, you need to disassemble your controller and connect it via the "included cable to the controller's internal JST port," with no soldering required. There has been some confusion about how the controller will look once modded, with many asking whether the unused cable will just be dangling out the bottom of the controller, or if there will just be a hole where it once was. Hopefully 8BitMods will clear up some of the confusion soon.
Once done, your controller becomes wireless, with rumble, on-board storage (four virtual flash memory cards worth), and a battery that will also charge your VMUPro if you insert into slot one. It supposedly will also have "motion control", and we're intrigued to see how that can be utilised...
The thing that makes this adapter talk with the system is the dongle (pictured below), which can also use Bluetooth and 2.4gHz to link up other wireless controllers, keyboards, and computer mice. To charge, simply plug a USB-C cable from the dongle into the adapter in your controller. The dongle’s USB-C port can also be used to connect up wired controllers and keyboards. It will also apparently connect to some kind of built-in web interface via Bluetooth, which will allow for controller customisation (some second stick action in Quake III Arena, maybe?)
8BitMods' product page suggests that this too will have its own built-in storage, which would make sense, as they are offering the dongle on its own at a cheaper price of £26.99, while the "kit" —which will include both the adapter and the dongle— is priced at £69.98.
If you want to learn more, check out the product pages by clicking here. Pre-orders go live this Friday at 6PM GMT / 1PM EST.
