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Android devices pretty much all support bluetooth gamepads

Android system updates have a habit of breaking apps that act as drivers for Bluetooth gamepads. For example, large changes to the Bluetooth stack from Android 4.1 "Jelly Bean" to Android 4.2 "Jelly Bean II" broke the Wiimote Controller app permanently, and the app had already been broken on several phone models. The Sixaxis Controller app purports to connect connects official Dual Shock 3 controllers to select Android devices. But it requires a rooted phone, has to have a second app just to check its compatibility with your particular phone, and is reported to fail on Android 6 "Marshmallow" and later.

Was it intentional?

Google completely revamped Android's Bluetooth support in Android 4.2, causing Wii Remote applications to raise a "No route to host" error.

(How do you know)?

I own a first-generation Nexus 7 tablet. The "Wiimote Controller" app worked under 4.1 but failed after the update.

Have they got the support back in other (think Cyanogen) ROMs?

I doubt it; otherwise it might have been mentioned in the compatibility page for the "Wiimote Controller" app.

The application you probably used to do this stopped working under Android 4.2. Now all I get on my Nexus 7 is "No route to host".

This is total horseshit on Google's part. I recently switched from a phone running Gingerbread to a Galaxy Nexus running 4.2.2 and I can pretty definitively say Android is worse for it. Bluetooth connectivity just plain doesn't work for a lot of stuff, what does work takes for-goddamn-ever to connect, the sound quality is crap, and they even took out proxy authintication for the browser. Why? Who the fuck knows? tl, dr: Fuck Google and fuck their Android "improvements"

I've paired a Wii classic controller through bluetooth

The application you probably used to do this stopped working under Android 4.2. Now all I get on my Nexus 7 is "No route to host".

There's countless bluetooth joysticks in the world.

But not 900 million of them. How many people would be willing to buy a $60 Bluetooth joystick that clamps onto a phone or tablet just to play a $3 game?

Why does it matter, as an app developer? If your program runs without a force close and doesn't use any specific features to an Android version, your app shouldn't care if it is running on the latest code.

The upgrade from Android 4.1 to Android 4.2 broke a lot of apps that act as drivers for Bluetooth input devices. It broke "Sixaxis Controller", a driver for Sony's Dual Shock 3 controller. That eventually got fixed. It also broke "Wiimote Controller", a driver for Nintendo's Wii Remote controller. That still isn't fixed.

Android has pretty good Bluetooth support.

It did until Android 4.2, which dropped support for the Wii Remote.

Wii console controllers, including the Classic Controller with dual analog sticks, can be easily connected via bluetooth if you install a free app from the Play store

This application is not compatible with the Nexus 7 or any other device that has received the Android 4.2 update.

Do all USB Bluetooth receivers for PC work with PS3 and Wii controllers, or does one need a specific chipset? I'm trying to figure out what to recommend, but I don't currently have the money to buy every make and model. I seem to remember that back in the DS era, communication between a PC and a hacked DS needed a Wi-Fi card with a specific Ralink chipset. As for mobile, Android 4.2's changes to the Bluetooth stack appear to have broken communication with Wii Remotes (and, for a few months, PS3 controllers). Some Android devices don't support the part of Bluetooth used by the Wii Remote at all.

Robert Broglia's popular series of emulators for Android all support using a Wii controller -- or a Wii Classic Controller -- because they're just Bluetooth devices and the pairing is straightforward.

If the pairing is so straightforward, then why is the Wiimote Controller application still broken on Android 4.2?

the low %age of tablet/phone/stick users that *are* willing to pay for and carry a gamepad is quite a large market

That would be reassuring provided I can get fixes for three problems. First, can you cite a source known for fact-checking that would agree with the claim that a non-trivial number of Android smartphone and tablet users carry a gamepad? Second, a lot of Android devices' Bluetooth controllers are incompatible with the driver applications for these controllers, returning things like "No route to host" and "Protocol not supported" (source). Third, when Google has pushed Android updates to users, some of the driver applications broke. For example, the upgrade from 4.1 to 4.2 on the Nexus 7 tablet broke the Sixaxis Controller app (for the Dual Shock 3) for a while, and it broke the Wiimote Controller app (for the Wii Remote), which is still broken.

As for price: go for the $50 MK808B and you don't suppass the Ouya

But are there enough MK808B users that targeting a game to the MK808B becomes viable? The advantage of Ouya is that there are tens of thousands of devices on preorder that all have at least one controller. True, after you've made an Ouya game, porting it to any other Android device becomes trivial, and a developer could use his revenue from sales on Ouya to fund QA on some of these other devices.

the low %age of tablet/phone/stick users that *are* willing to pay for and carry a gamepad is quite a large market

That would be reassuring provided I can get fixes for three problems. First, can you cite a source known for fact-checking that would agree with the claim that a non-trivial number of Android smartphone and tablet users carry a gamepad? Second, a lot of Android devices' Bluetooth controllers are incompatible with the driver applications for these controllers, returning things like "No route to host" and "Protocol not supported" (source). Third, when Google has pushed Android updates to users, some of the driver applications broke. For example, the upgrade from 4.1 to 4.2 on the Nexus 7 tablet broke the Sixaxis Controller app (for the Dual Shock 3) for a while, and it broke the Wiimote Controller app (for the Wii Remote), which is still broken.

As for price: go for the $50 MK808B and you don't suppass the Ouya

But are there enough MK808B users that targeting a game to the MK808B becomes viable? The advantage of Ouya is that there are tens of thousands of devices on preorder that all have at least one controller. True, after you've made an Ouya game, porting it to any other Android device becomes trivial, and a developer could use his revenue from sales on Ouya to fund QA on some of these other devices.

Because the Dual Shock 3 doesn't speak the special "Made for iPad" protocol. Even on Android, I don't see a lot of people buying a $59.99 Dual Shock 3 for a $2.99 game, especially when Android system updates (such as 4.1 to 4.2) tend to change the Bluetooth stack to break the driver applications that these controllers use. It's like using a PC with a TV and multiple gamepads: possible, but in practice never done outside hardcore geekdom.

I, for one, would rather game on my phone

My phone is a flip phone. An Android phone would involve a much higher recurring fee. For example, Virgin Mobile USA won't activate an Android phone on a $80 per year dumbphone plan; it requires a $420 per year smartphone plan. I imagine a lot of children and teens are in the same situation: parents are willing to pay for a low-end plan to call home in an urgency but not more than that.

with a bluetooth connected game controller of my choice.

Provided that Android system updates don't cause your Bluetooth controller driver to fail with "No route to host", as they did when I tried using my Wii Remote after upgrading to 4.2.

The Wii is for when I have friends over and want to play together regardless of skill level. The PC is where I go to play complex games or play for any length of time, completely different requirements and roles.

Then what do you recommend for indie developers, who aren't yet "tall enough" to qualify for Nintendo's developer program, to target the use case "when I have friends over and want to play together"?

Developers target a framework like Direct X

Or OpenGL. The problem is that sometimes a certain sequence of DirectX or OpenGL calls might crash a particular card's driver. The 3D drivers don't have nearly as much real-world test coverage as the 2D drivers.

I can hook a Wiimote up to my Android phone.

That worked for me in Android 4.1, but as of Android 4.2, it no longer works: "In this update Google has swapped out an essential component of bluetooth with a different solution. This broke the existing way of connecting with Wiimotes."

The infrastructure is there, all phones/tablets these days have bluetooth, it's just a mater of software.

That and a way to hold both the Bluetooth controller and the phone or tablet.

This is why I believe that in the near future, consoles will be tablets with UI's and programs specifically designed for gaming and gaming peripherals

In other words, you're telling me you believe in Ouya. Am I understanding you right?

there has been support for Bluetooth/USB connected gamepads since at least Android 4.0

Which is something extra to carry, at least compared to a Nintendo 3DS or PlayStation Vita. It's also something extra to buy, and application developers can't depend on end users already owning one. Video games that require a specialized controller tend to be popular only when bundled with that controller (like DDR or Guitar Hero or Wii Fit), and that's possible only for games that come on a disc or cartridge, not for purchased downloads.

You pair an Android tablet with a PS3 controller by connecting it via USB once. Paired via Bluetooth forever.

I tried doing that with a Wii Remote. It worked with my Nexus 7 tablet under Android 4.1, but the update to Android 4.2 "swapped out an essential component of bluetooth with a different solution" that broke the driver application. I don't own a PlayStation 3 console, so before I buy a controller, will PlayStation 3 controllers continue to work even through Android upgrades?

Couldn't be simpler.

It could be simpler if the PS3 controller broke into two pieces that snapped onto the sides of the tablet. Otherwise, the player has to put the tablet down and pick up the controller to do a controller part of the game, then put the controller down and pick up the tablet to do a touch part of the game.

If it has bluetooth, nothing will stop you from using a 360 controller

Since when are Xbox 360 wireless controllers Bluetooth? I thought they used a proprietary RF layer, and using them with a PC required buying at least one of the controllers in a bundle with a USB receiver. And even then, PlayStation 3 and Wii controllers don't completely follow the Bluetooth HID standard, and underlying changes in an operating system's Bluetooth stack can break and have broken driver applications designed to map these slightly nonstandard devices.

Android tablets already support HDMI out and input from bluetooth controllers.

Using controllers controllers on PCs and Android tablets has several problems compared to using them on a game console. First, because a controller is not bundled with most Android tablets shipping in the United States, developers can't rely on the presence of a controller. (Archos GamePad and Ouya don't ship for several months.) Second, some Android devices (most notably HTC and Samsung devices) have been seen to be incompatible with some Bluetooth controllers. Third, Google has been known to pull the rug out from under developers of applications related to Bluetooth controllers certain when it changes how Bluetooth works in new versions of Android, such as Android 4.2 that broke the Wii Remote driver. Fourth, even if a controller is present and compatible with a given tablet, as I understand it, Bluetooth controllers are like USB controllers in that every model appears to have its numbered buttons in a different order. How likely is it that a casual gamer will have the patience to sit through a button mapping form every time a different brand of controller is connected?

Android tablets already support HDMI out and input from bluetooth controllers.

Using controllers controllers on PCs and Android tablets has several problems compared to using them on a game console. First, because a controller is not bundled with most Android tablets shipping in the United States, developers can't rely on the presence of a controller. (Archos GamePad and Ouya don't ship for several months.) Second, some Android devices (most notably HTC and Samsung devices) have been seen to be incompatible with some Bluetooth controllers. Third, Google has been known to pull the rug out from under developers of applications related to Bluetooth controllers certain when it changes how Bluetooth works in new versions of Android, such as Android 4.2 that broke the Wii Remote driver. Fourth, even if a controller is present and compatible with a given tablet, as I understand it, Bluetooth controllers are like USB controllers in that every model appears to have its numbered buttons in a different order. How likely is it that a casual gamer will have the patience to sit through a button mapping form every time a different brand of controller is connected?

Built in X-Box Live and Zune. Having a system built into a phone for online gaming etc that has been tested and proven for years is great.

In games for Windows Phone 7, how do you feel where your thumbs are relative to the on-screen directional pad and trigger buttons at the sides of the screen so that you can press them while looking at the action in the middle of the screen? Android solves this with devices that use physical buttons (the Xperia Play and the forthcoming Archos GamePad) and a Wii Remote driver application.

I have used the WiiMote on my Nexus 7. (and phone, but the phone is too small of a screen for that kind of use) I just downloaded an app and every game that supported gamepads worked.

To get this Wii Remote app working in Nesoid, I had to perform several steps, some of which resembled the steps to connect the Wii Remote to a Wii console, and then configure the buttons in Nesoid. But I still had to configure the buttons in Nesoid to match the keys that the input method installed by the Wii Remote app was pressing.