And now for the bonus level: controller teardown!

The screws on this controller are readily visible, no rubber plugs here. Inside we find: a bare board with a single connector.

The cable is nicely threaded inside to allow some slack, to relieve stress on the connector.

The front side of the board is almost as bare. A single chip, some passive components, and some contact patches for the buttons.

These buttons act just like many remote controls, when pressed, the button bridges the gap between the conductive paint, completing a circuit—making Mario do something cool!