Build a Custom Control Panel for Elite Dangerous (and Other Games)

If you play computer games, you most likely use a keyboard and/or mouse. This works OK for most, but in reality, you’d probably rather have something that’s actually made for your game, rather than a tool for writing a book or balancing your checkbook.

Matt Hale, apparently wasn’t satisfied with using a controller to play Elite Dangerous, and decided to make his own panel using an array of buttons wired into a Teensy 3.2 microcontroller.

The laser engraved and cut build is beautiful, and includes lots of buttons that look fascinating whether or not you play the game. What is especially interesting from a technical point of view is the way the buttons are wired in a matrix, so far fewer inputs to the Teensy are required than the number of buttons.

This concept could be applied to other games, or really any other custom input situation that you come across! You can check out the entire project here.