the controller itself is shaped like an "m" (similar to a gamecube controller). players hold onto the sides of the controller and the part that dips down in the middle contains the battery pack. there are six buttons on the controller (a, b, start, select, l, and r), two d-pads, and the system's "on/off" switch. the two directional pads are located on either side of the controller at the top. the "a" and "b" buttons are located below the pad on the right side and the "start" and "select" buttons are located in the same spot on the left side. what would normally be called "shoulder buttons" ("l" and "r") are located behind the area where the pads are, on the back of the controller, functioning more as triggers.