If we factor in failure rates, definitely the Valve Index Controllers.
I fucking love them when they work, but this is the second or third time that I had to get one replaced by Valve in the 7 months of having them. Please, Valve, Index users are already paying premium money. We’d like controllers that don’t just stop working properly despite NOT having hit them against walls repeatedly or anything of that sort. It also can’t be super lucrative for you if for every sold pair you create and ship out 5 replacements.
Yeah, I’m also on my third controller RMA. First the stick on the left controller started drifting, then the right controller’s plastic started peeling off and finally the right controller stopped working altogether.
At least they did the third RMA for free way out of warranty.
Had to buy a new headset cable on my own though when the display started flickering after 2 years. They also sent me a new plastic clip for the cable on the back when the old one broke and a new left speaker when it started crackling instead of requiring me to send in the full headset so that’s pretty cool.
I don’t know if it counts as a controller per se, but I’ve been using an MMO mouse with a big number pad for the thumb for quite a few years now. I used to laugh at these things, but once I tried one, I couldn’t go back. Those extra buttons come in handy a lot more often than you might think, and sometimes I wish it had even more.
Not super weird in the grand scheme of things but I played the shit out of FFXI using this controller and when my friends found out I was using this they were astounded at my typing speed. This was back in the era of texting with a number pad so thumb typing wasn’t as prevalent as it is today.
I unironically wish all controllers were like this. IMO the main way hardware limits game design is the number of buttons on modern controllers; more buttons = more actions that can be performed = more complex and interesting games.
Emulating a Nintendo DS and looking for stylus only games is my recommendation. Games like Kirby Canvas Curse, Kirby Mass Attack, and Warioware Touched are fun.
I really enjoy the Gulikit King Kong Pro 2 (and would assume the 3 is better) because it all runs on firmware. No software to install, it just works as it should. Also works on Linux without fuss.
On its functionality side it has hall effect triggers and joysticks plus nice buttons.
Also using 8bitdo Pro 2, I like it. Bluetooth connection is somewhat crusty – for some reason, games think that I’m holding LT, despite me not pressing it. Maybe it’s a Linux Mint thing, I dunno. Works perfectly wired, though
This drives me nuts on the Switch on handheld. The Joycons have no natural “grip”, so it’s hand cramp city unless you invest in a grip case. Was it so hard to give the Joycons an ergonomic shape?
It’s big enough for my long hands. And it has a ton of features and customizability.
What I don’t like is the right track pad when games expect a joystick. Depending on the game controls, it can be suboptimal. (configurable to a degree with center deadzone)
The 8Bitdo Pro+ has been great - works really well with my Steam Deck and Switch. Sounds like the Pro 2 is the superior version with hall effect sticks.
The Switch Pro controller has always been good too. And the DualSense is really neat with the haptics and adaptive triggers - expensive, but not that much more than a Pro controller surprisingly.
To be fair I’ve had the pro controller for several years and it has held up really well. Really ergonomic and the vibration’s good, plus it has gyro. Perfect for my needs on Switch. I think it was worth what I paid.
No the pro controller doesn’t have hall effect sticks, but I’ve not experienced any drift. I did take it apart once to clean the insides however.
I had no end of problems with the joy cons, and have replaced those sticks with hall effect ones. Since doing that I’ve not had any problems, touch wood!
Admittedly I don’t use the D-pad all that much - does it not register inputs well? I guess it’s pretty important if you’re playing a fighting or retro game that require precise inputs. For the games I’ve played, it hasn’t been an issue.
The contacts inside are too big and sensitive and it results in phantom inputs. The DIY fix is to open up the controller and literally cover parts of the input contacts with tape.
markdown formatting is weird bruh, sometimes it adds spaces, sometimes it removes them sometimes it just fucking yeets newlines, sometimes it adds them, what a weird “standard”
I got no beef with the three prongs like you see so many fuss about but those analog sticks were extremely fragile and would inevitably go completely limp over time and wind up 99% deadzone.
Super Mario 64 - a launch title, iirc? - murdered my control stick. Spinning that around to swing Bowser was a great game design idea, but yeah they didn’t build those controllers to withstand it for long.
People always give shit to MadCatz but they had the sturdiest 64 controllers. All the first party ones would last maybe 2 or 3 games of Mario Party or WWF Smackdown. The MadCatz we had was the GOAT for games that required spinning the stick a lot. But I hated how extra THICC they were. Made them a bitch to hold.
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