The game runs through an emulator, so any usb controller should work.

Any USB joystick, really, so your Nimbus should be fine even though every time I hear of people using a gamepad for a spacesim I die a little inside.

The one I have is a bluetooth, I don't think it is going to work. When I open up the joystick calibration it doesn't recognize any movement.

Any specific joystick anyone recommends for a Mac?

Thanks, Nick

Very strange, have you tried to tinke a bit with the emulator?
Perhapas you need to set the gamepad manually in the emulator software, either by some control panel or by editing a configuration file manually.

However, just in case:

Thustmaster T-16000, it should be MAC compatible and it's a very good stick though it's around 50 Euros/dollars (or less, the prices in the US seem to be lower) it has the same magnetic sensors of the insanely expensive HOTAS Warthog, and it's much more durable than more expensive Saitek stick though still not a CH Products level in that regard.

There is also the Logitech Extreme 3D pro, which is still good, a little cheaper but it uses less advanced and less durable potentiometers instead of magnetic sensors.

Anything less expensive might not last you a week.

There is also the Thrustmaster HOTAS X but it has an inferior quality stick and the big throttle would be useless in older wing commander games.

Note that all these joysticks work on Mac only as simple plug&play devices, they have more advanced softwares that allow you to tinker with the button layout (for example you can bind other buttons other than button 1 and 2 in wing commander) but they are windows only.

I just realized the gamepad navigation is working, it was just the calibration screen that didn't recognize it.

But none of the buttons on the gamepad function, and since the calibration in the game doesn't recognize I can't set anything.

Try to use a software that associates button presses with keyboard strokes (there should be at least one that works on Macs).

Wing Commander should recognize at least two button however, one to fire the main guns, another with the secondary functions*.

*button 2 in wing commander launches missiles with double click and lets you roll the ship and speed up/down when pressed, also it fires the afterburner if you press and hold the second click when double-clicking.

If your pad has "clicky" sticks button 1 and 2 may have been mapped to them instead of the normal buttons, I don't know if there is a software that lets you swap the buttons in that case, at least one that works in macs.