<s>
A	O
D-pad	B-Device
(	O
short	O
for	O
directional	B-Device
pad	I-Device
)	O
or	O
a	O
+Control	O
Pad	O
(	O
the	O
name	O
used	O
by	O
Nintendo	O
)	O
is	O
a	O
flat	O
,	O
typically	O
thumb-operated	O
,	O
directional	O
control	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
D-Pads	B-Device
are	O
found	O
on	O
nearly	O
all	O
modern	O
gamepads	B-Device
,	O
handheld	B-Application
game	I-Application
consoles	I-Application
,	O
and	O
audiovisual	O
device	O
remote	B-Protocol
controls	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Because	O
they	O
operate	O
using	O
four	O
internal	O
push-buttons	O
(	O
arrayed	O
at	O
90°	O
angles	O
)	O
,	O
the	O
vast	O
majority	O
of	O
D-pads	B-Device
provide	O
discrete	O
,	O
rather	O
than	O
continuous	O
,	O
directional	O
options	O
—	O
typically	O
limited	O
to	O
up	O
,	O
down	O
,	O
left	O
,	O
and	O
right	O
,	O
and	O
sometimes	O
offering	O
intermediate	O
diagonals	O
by	O
means	O
of	O
two-button	O
combinations	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
D-pads	B-Device
offer	O
less	O
flexibility	O
than	O
analog	B-Device
sticks	I-Device
,	O
they	O
offer	O
high	O
accuracy	O
and	O
can	O
be	O
manipulated	O
with	O
minimal	O
movement	O
by	O
the	O
thumb	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
D-pads	B-Device
have	O
appeared	O
on	O
diverse	O
forms	O
of	O
electronic	O
equipment	O
including	O
calculators	B-Application
,	O
PDAs	B-Application
,	O
mobile	O
phones	O
,	O
and	O
car	O
stereos	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
precursor	O
to	O
the	O
D-pad	B-Device
was	O
the	O
four	O
directional	O
buttons	O
used	O
in	O
arcade	O
games	O
such	O
as	O
Gremlin	O
's	O
Blockade	B-Application
(	O
1976	O
)	O
and	O
SNK	O
's	O
Vanguard	B-Application
(	O
1981	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
precursor	O
to	O
the	O
standard	O
D-pad	B-Device
on	O
a	O
video	B-Device
game	I-Device
console	I-Device
was	O
used	O
by	O
the	O
Intellivision	B-Operating_System
,	O
which	O
was	O
released	O
by	O
Mattel	B-Operating_System
Electronics	I-Operating_System
in	O
1980	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Intellivision	B-Operating_System
's	O
unique	O
controller	O
featured	O
the	O
first	O
alternative	O
to	O
a	O
joystick	B-Device
on	O
a	O
home	O
console	O
,	O
a	O
rotating	O
circular	O
pad	O
that	O
allowed	O
for	O
16	O
directions	O
of	O
movement	O
by	O
pressing	O
it	O
with	O
the	O
thumb	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
precursor	O
to	O
the	O
D-pad	B-Device
also	O
appeared	O
on	O
Entex	O
's	O
short	O
lived	O
"	O
Select	B-Application
A	I-Application
Game	I-Application
"	O
cartridge	O
based	O
handheld	B-Application
system	O
;	O
it	O
featured	O
non-connected	O
raised	O
left	O
,	O
right	O
,	O
up	O
and	O
down	O
buttons	O
aligned	O
to	O
the	O
left	O
of	O
a	O
row	O
of	O
action	B-Device
buttons	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Similar	O
directional	O
buttons	O
were	O
also	O
used	O
on	O
the	O
Atari	B-Device
Game	I-Device
Brain	I-Device
,	O
the	O
unreleased	O
precursor	O
to	O
the	O
Atari	O
2600	O
,	O
and	O
on	O
some	O
early	O
dedicated	O
game	O
consoles	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
VideoMaster	O
Star	O
Chess	O
game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
controller	O
similar	O
to	O
the	O
D-pad	B-Device
appeared	O
in	O
1981	O
on	O
a	O
handheld	B-Application
game	I-Application
system	I-Application
:	O
Cosmic	O
Hunter	O
on	O
Milton	O
Bradley	O
's	O
Microvision	B-Application
;	O
it	O
featured	O
four	O
directional	O
buttons	O
around	O
a	O
fifth	O
button	O
in	O
the	O
center	O
,	O
all	O
under	O
a	O
single	O
rubber	O
membrane	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Nintendo	O
's	O
known	O
"	O
cross	O
"	O
design	O
was	O
developed	O
in	O
1982	O
by	O
Gunpei	O
Yokoi	O
for	O
their	O
Donkey	B-Application
Kong	I-Application
handheld	B-Application
game	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
design	O
proved	O
to	O
be	O
popular	O
for	O
subsequent	O
Game	B-Device
&	I-Device
Watch	I-Device
titles	O
,	O
although	O
the	O
previously	O
introduced	O
non-connected	O
D-pad	B-Device
style	O
was	O
still	O
utilized	O
on	O
various	O
later	O
Game	B-Device
&	I-Device
Watch	I-Device
titles	O
,	O
including	O
the	O
Super	O
Mario	O
Bros	O
.	O
handheld	B-Application
game	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Initially	O
intended	O
to	O
be	O
a	O
compact	O
controller	O
for	O
the	O
Game	B-Device
&	I-Device
Watch	I-Device
handheld	B-Application
games	I-Application
alongside	O
the	O
prior	O
non-connected	O
style	O
pad	O
,	O
Nintendo	O
realized	O
that	O
Yokoi	O
's	O
updated	O
design	O
would	O
also	O
be	O
appropriate	O
for	O
regular	O
consoles	O
,	O
and	O
Nintendo	O
made	O
the	O
D-pad	B-Device
the	O
standard	O
directional	O
control	O
for	O
the	O
hugely	O
successful	O
Famicom/Nintendo	O
Entertainment	O
System	O
(	O
first	O
released	O
1983	O
)	O
under	O
the	O
name	O
"	O
+Control	O
Pad	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
All	O
major	O
video	B-Device
game	I-Device
consoles	I-Device
since	O
have	O
had	O
a	O
D-pad	B-Device
of	O
some	O
shape	O
on	O
their	O
controllers	O
,	O
until	O
the	O
Nintendo	B-Application
Switch	I-Application
in	O
2017	O
,	O
which	O
used	O
the	O
older	O
four-button	O
design	O
on	O
its	O
included	O
Joy-Con	B-General_Concept
controller	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
To	O
avoid	O
infringing	O
on	O
Nintendo	O
's	O
patent	O
,	O
most	O
controller	O
manufacturers	O
use	O
a	O
cross	O
in	O
a	O
circle	O
shape	O
for	O
the	O
D-pad	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1984	O
,	O
the	O
Japanese	O
company	O
Epoch	O
created	O
a	O
handheld	B-Application
game	I-Application
system	I-Application
called	O
the	O
Epoch	B-Device
Game	I-Device
Pocket	I-Device
Computer	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
featured	O
a	O
D-pad	B-Device
,	O
but	O
it	O
was	O
not	O
popular	O
for	O
its	O
time	O
and	O
soon	O
faded	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Following	O
the	O
release	O
of	O
the	O
Sega	B-Operating_System
Mega	I-Operating_System
Drive	I-Operating_System
in	O
1988	O
,	O
Sega	O
coined	O
the	O
term	O
"	O
D	O
button	O
"	O
to	O
describe	O
the	O
pad	O
,	O
using	O
the	O
term	O
when	O
describing	O
the	O
controllers	O
for	O
the	O
Sega	B-Operating_System
Genesis	I-Operating_System
in	O
instruction	O
manuals	O
and	O
other	O
literature	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Arcade	O
games	O
,	O
however	O
,	O
have	O
largely	O
continued	O
using	O
joysticks	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Modern	O
consoles	O
,	O
beginning	O
with	O
the	O
Nintendo	B-Operating_System
64	I-Operating_System
,	O
provide	O
both	O
a	O
D-pad	B-Device
and	O
a	O
compact	O
thumb-operated	O
analog	B-Device
stick	I-Device
;	O
depending	O
on	O
the	O
game	O
,	O
one	O
type	O
of	O
control	O
may	O
be	O
more	O
appropriate	O
than	O
the	O
other	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
many	O
cases	O
with	O
games	O
that	O
use	O
a	O
thumbstick	B-Device
,	O
the	O
D-pad	B-Device
is	O
used	O
as	O
a	O
set	O
of	O
extra	O
buttons	O
,	O
all	O
four	O
usually	O
centered	O
on	O
a	O
kind	O
of	O
task	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
using	O
items	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Even	O
without	O
an	O
analog	B-Device
stick	I-Device
,	O
some	O
software	O
uses	O
the	O
D-pad	B-Device
'	O
s	O
8-directional	O
capabilities	O
to	O
act	O
as	O
eight	O
discrete	O
buttons	O
,	O
not	O
related	O
to	O
direction	O
or	O
on-screen	O
movement	O
at	O
all	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Jam	B-Application
Sessions	I-Application
for	O
the	O
Nintendo	B-Device
DS	I-Device
,	O
for	O
example	O
,	O
uses	O
the	O
D-pad	B-Device
to	O
select	O
music	O
chords	O
during	O
play	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
D-pads	B-Device
appear	O
on	O
a	O
number	O
of	O
menu-driven	O
devices	O
as	O
a	O
simple	O
navigational	O
tool	O
;	O
though	O
superficially	O
similar	O
to	O
those	O
used	O
for	O
gaming	O
devices	O
,	O
they	O
are	O
not	O
optimized	O
for	O
real-time	O
control	O
and	O
therefore	O
can	O
usually	O
accept	O
input	O
from	O
only	O
one	O
direction	O
at	O
a	O
time	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Many	O
,	O
though	O
not	O
all	O
,	O
such	O
designs	O
include	O
a	O
trigger	O
button	O
in	O
the	O
center	O
of	O
the	O
button	O
arrangement	O
,	O
usually	O
labeled	O
"	B-Device
Enter	I-Device
"	I-Device
,	O
"	O
OK	O
"	O
,	O
or	O
the	O
like	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
older	O
devices	O
do	O
not	O
have	O
D-pads	B-Device
as	O
such	O
,	O
but	O
simple	O
single-axis	O
,	O
up/down	O
or	O
left/right	O
pads	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
some	O
remotes	O
,	O
the	O
D-pad	B-Device
can	O
also	O
be	O
used	O
to	O
control	O
a	O
robot	B-Algorithm
using	O
a	O
signal-compatible	O
receiver	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
remote	B-Protocol
control	I-Protocol
devices	O
,	O
the	O
buttons	O
on	O
the	O
D-pad	B-Device
function	O
in	O
the	O
same	O
manner	O
as	O
other	O
buttons	O
,	O
and	O
are	O
generally	O
used	O
to	O
navigate	O
on-screen	O
menus	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Though	O
initially	O
not	O
common	O
,	O
the	O
quick	O
success	O
of	O
the	O
DVD	O
format	O
led	O
to	O
wide	O
availability	O
of	O
remote	O
designs	O
with	O
D-pads	B-Device
circa	O
2000	O
,	O
and	O
most	O
current	O
menu-driven	O
consumer	O
electronics	O
devices	O
include	O
some	O
sort	O
of	O
D-pad	B-Device
on	O
the	O
remote	O
(	O
and	O
,	O
occasionally	O
,	O
on	O
the	O
unit	O
itself	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
addition	O
,	O
many	O
small	O
computing	O
and	O
communications	O
devices	O
,	O
particularly	O
PDAs	B-Application
,	O
mobile	O
phones	O
,	O
and	O
GPS	O
receivers	O
,	O
include	O
D-pads	B-Device
not	O
only	O
for	O
menu	O
navigation	O
but	O
as	O
general	O
input	O
devices	O
similar	O
to	O
a	O
joystick	B-Device
or	O
mouse	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Less-sophisticated	O
designs	O
similar	O
to	O
those	O
on	O
remote	B-Protocol
controls	I-Protocol
appear	O
on	O
some	O
calculators	B-Application
,	O
particularly	O
scientific	O
and	O
graphing	B-Application
calculators	I-Application
,	O
which	O
use	O
the	O
D-pad	B-Device
for	O
cursor	B-Application
control	O
on	O
multi-line	O
screens	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
input/output	O
recall	O
,	O
menu	O
navigation	O
,	O
and	O
occasionally	O
direct	O
screen	O
access	O
(	O
graphing	B-Application
calculators	I-Application
in	O
particular	O
allow	O
the	O
use	O
of	O
the	O
D-pad	B-Device
to	O
determine	O
values	O
at	O
specific	O
points	O
on	O
a	O
displayed	O
graph	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
programmable	O
units	O
,	O
the	O
D-pad	B-Device
can	O
also	O
be	O
mapped	O
directly	O
,	O
allowing	O
it	O
to	O
be	O
used	O
as	O
a	O
gaming	O
or	O
pointer	O
control	O
.	O
</s>
