Japanese Auction Reveals Nintendo's First Wii Remote, for the GameCube

[Megalith]

A recent listing on a Japanese auction site has revealed a never-before-seen Nintendo prototype controller, a Wii Remote designed for the GameCube. Selling for $663, it resembles the Wii one quite a bit, aside from the existence of an Ethernet port and sensor bar that plugs into the memory card slot.

WayForward game development director James Montagna used his Twitter account on Saturday to confirm the controller's legitimacy: "I remember seeing these back when it was still known as the Nintendo Revolution!" he wrote. Montagna's memory was jarred in particular by noticing something interesting about the older Wii remote's d-pad and primary buttons: that they were lifted wholesale from the Game Boy Advance SP.

 

[The Mad Atheist]

Ah, the N64 analog stick.

 

[Red Falcon]

The port is RJ-45, but it isn't "Ethernet" like the article states.
I've seen a lot of common and esoteric peripherals use RF-45 - I suppose anything that requires 8 pins or less for communication will work on it for a lower cost.

Nice find, though!

 

[blkt]

Ah, the N64 analog stick.

Looks more like a harvested GameCube analog stick to me, see the side view.