What's your favorite console controller?

The Game Room
1

Let’s talk about controllers for video game consoles. When they’re designed well I tend not to even think about them much, because I can focus on the games I’m playing instead. But when done poorly, they’re just a source of frustration that impedes your enjoyment. Which ones are your favorites, and which do you hate?

I’ll give my opinions on the official first-party controllers for most of the major consoles since the NES (except for the ones I never used, of course, and not including handhelds).

NES “brick” controller - Well, it’s hard to criticize a classic like this. Nice d-pad, and the two buttons seems laughably restrictive today but was obviously fine for the majority of NES games. The only complaint I have, of course, is that this thing has sharp corners that makes it kind of uncomfortable compared to modern controllers. I don’t have much experience with the “dogbone” controller, so I can’t comment on that.

SNES - One of my favorites. Four face buttons plus two shoulder buttons meant for hugely expanded possibilities, and the decision to make the B & A buttons convex and the Y & X buttons concave was genius. That was only on the US controllers though. Again, the only real criticism I can offer is that it’s still basically uses the NES-style “flat board” design which seems kind of primitive today.

Sega Genesis - I’m not such a fan of this one. Only three face buttons meant it had a pretty big disadvantage compared to its competitor the SNES, and the “three-in-a-row” layout meant you had to move your thumb around more than when using the SNES controller. The later controller which introduced three more buttons largely addressed these complaints, though, so it’s a much superior pad.

Virtual Boy - This one is kind of interesting. Matching d-pads and having the B & A buttons mirror the start & select buttons means this is the only controller I know of that’s perfectly symmetrical. It’s pretty comfortable to hold, too. Only complaint: having the AC adaptor plug into the controller rather than the console makes for some annoying tangles of cords, and if you don’t want to use that you have to put this big thing with 6 batteries in the controller, which makes it pretty heavy. Another thing: this is the first controller I know of that has the power switch for the system on the controller, rather than on the console itself.

Playstation, DualShock 2, Sixaxis - These are all basically the same so I’ll group them together. I like it for the most part. The shoulder buttons in particular have a good tactile response (NOT on the Sixaxis though, only on the PS1 and PS2), and the analog sticks are fine. Only complaint: the d-pad isn’t great, it always feels kind of mushy to me. The decision to keep the same basic controller design for all iterations of the PS so far meant that it was one less thing to get used to, although I usually like the novelty of a new controller (unless it sucks of course). Side thought: I wonder what that strange “boomerang” controller they were thinking of using with the PS3 would have been like.

Nintendo 64 - A few aspects are OK, but most things about this controller are just bad. First, the good: it’s comfortable to hold–that’s pretty much it. The bad: well, the whole “3-pronged” design seemed cool at the time, 'cause it was like there were three different ways you could play your games: holding the left 2 prongs, the right 2, or both outside ones. Except most games only used the right 2, making the d-pad and the L button completely useless. Why couldn’t they make the d-pad and analog stick both accessible from the same hand position? The analog stick is the worst I’ve ever used–it’s way too springy, and not at all comfortable to rest your thumb on. The Z button is fine, but one thing that pisses me off is the tendency for games to use the “Z” button as fire/attack rather than the A or R buttons, which is how basically every other console does it, making it confusing to switch back and forth. That’s not Nintendo’s fault, though. Also, I know I’m really nitpicking here, but the C buttons always seemed to small to be comfortable to press. By far my least favorite controller.

Dreamcast - This one’s a mixed bag. The analog stick is all right, a little too loose for my tastes, but better than the N64’s. The triggers are OK too, and the face buttons are fine, although I think they’re spaced a little too far apart from each other (this is probably psychological, though, as I think the spacing is essentially the same as the SNES, Playstation, and XBox). Two big problems: first of all, why does the cord come out of the bottom of the controller rather than the top? This just effectively shortens the length of the cord and gets in the way. Second, the d-pad is pretty bad. Specifically, it seems kind of “sharp” and hurts my thumb after a while of playing a game that uses the d-pad only.

XBox - Everyone made fun of the original controller for being huge and ugly, and rightfully so. I’ve only used that controller a couple times, so I don’t really have anything to say on it. The controller S (the smaller version) is pretty decent. But again I don’t have a whole lot of experience with this one, so I can’t think of specific things to criticize or praise. But one thing that applies to the Dreamcast, the XBox 360 and this: why’d they use the SNES names for the face buttons, but swap the positions? Growing up playing Nintendo systems, the B button always came to the left of the A button (and similar for Y and X with the SNES). Couldn’t they either keep the positions, or just come up with their own names for the buttons, like Sony did? It’s not like Nintendo has a patent on letter names for the face buttons, but specifically using A, B, X, and Y is pretty evocative of the SNES.

Gamecube - Pretty good for the most part. I have two main complaints: the triggers have to be pushed really far in and make a somewhat-loud clicking sound, and most importantly: The Z button on the Gamecube controller is just terrible. It’s small, uncomfortable to press, and placed right next to the right trigger so it’s easy to accidentally hit the wrong button. It’s like they remembered at the last second that they needed one more button but didn’t really have any space left for it.

XBox 360 - Now this I like. The analog sticks are awesome. Not too loose like the Dreamcast or too stiff like the N64, and very comfortable as well. The trigger/bumper buttons are great too, and the overall shape/feel of the controller is the best of all. Only one real complaint, besides that face button labeling thing: the d-pad on this controller is HORRIBLE, probably the worst I’ve ever used. XBox 360 is the only console where I’ll navigate through menus with the left analog stick rather than the d-pad; it’s just that bad (well, except for the N64, but that’s because you have to move your whole damn hand to access the d-pad).

You might notice that I’m criticizing the d-pad on a lot of these controllers. What’s my problem? Will no d-pad satisfy me? Well, the reason for all these complaints is that I’m comparing every d-pad to the…

Sega Saturn model 2 controller (the one that was launched with the Saturn in Japan, and later released in the US). The best of all d-pads; it’s comfortable and responsive. The face buttons are great, too. The shoulder buttons don’t really have the feel I like best, but they’re passable. For pre-analog controllers, this is as good as it gets.

Incidentally, there’s a Saturn Model 1 controller that was launched with the US Saturn, but it’s AWFUL. The d-pad has these weird grooves that hurt your thumb, and the shoulder buttons feel like they’re broken. It’s also really ugly. If you own a Saturn and only have the Model 1 controller, you really owe it to yourself to pick up a Model 2, although they’re a little hard to find these days.

The Wii remote is just too different to even compare, and I don’t have much experience with the classic controller.

So to summarize:

Best overall feel: XBox 360
Best analog stick: XBox 360 (yet this oddly enough has the worst d-pad, maybe tied with Saturn model 1)
Best d-pad: Saturn Model 2
Best shoulder buttons: Playstation
Best face buttons: They’re all fine for the most part; let’s go with the SNES for the convex/concave thing.

Now if only they could make some kind of Franken-controller that combined all these…

What say you?

2

I’ve tried most old-gen and current-gen controllers, but I for one like the PS3 DualShock 3 the best. I really like the classic PS shape - Sony was very smart not to change the shape or layout much over three generations of controllers. But what does it for me are the long-throw analog L2/R2 buttons - great for a throttle in racing/GTA games (awesome for precise control of drifting), but also useful (although underutilized) in FPS/third person action games.

And yes, I realize the DualShock 2 had analog shoulder buttons, but they had minimal travel, and so were not much better than digital switches.

Whatever the PS4 looks like (if there is one) I hope they don’t change the controller much - maybe offer a better motion detector but that’s about it.

3

The Xbox 360 controller is a perfect instrument. It’s got great balance, works very well, is robust, and doesn’t break easily/become the tool of destruction.

Outside of that, the Super Nintendo controller. I also liked the convex/concave buttons.

I never liked PlayStation’s controllers. Always felt small and cheap, even though I know better.

4

I’m with LOUNE - I love the 360 controller, it’s an excellent evolution of design from the previous model. I don’t mind the PS3 controller (or other PS versions), but they do feel small and a bit too light in my hands.

5

This. They took the XBox S controller (the small one) and refined it, and that controller I’d already spent countless happy hours using comfortably.

The Wii Classic Controller is basically just an SNES controller with the standard dual analog sticks + D-pad configuration. Not amazing, but not terrible, either.

6

I loved the Gamecube controller because it’s the only controller I’d ever had that wasn’t built for big ugly man hands. It fit my lady hands well.

I have no complaints with the 360 controller, I must say.

7

The SuperNES controller sucked. It was too light, and the damn shoulder buttons broke all. the. time. I’ve had four of those in my life, and all their shoulder buttons broke at the hinge. So maybe I got fingers too long or something, but they sure were a major PITA.

Right now, I’m divided between PS2 and Xbox360. I’m getting used to the 360 one and it’s not that bad, although the shoulder triggers still annoy me to no end, and the left joystick is weirdly placed. In comparison, the PS2 is nice and symetrical, and more ergonomic IMO.

8

I won’t say it’s the best, I’d pick either a Playstation incarnation or the Gamecube for that distinction, but I really liked the N64 controller. The thing is, I found a way to hold the controller in a way that looked uncomfortable to some people, but allowed me easy access to all the the buttons in all of the hand positions. Rather than putting my left hand around the central prong and using the tip of my thumb on the analog stick, I would put my hand around the left prong and use the side of my thumb. When I was use it normally, I did feel like the stick was loose, but when I used the side of my thumb instead, I felt like I had much tighter control. Holding it like that also gave me access to the L key via my left middle finger and the Z key via my right middle finger. The only real downside was that the side of my thumb didn’t initially have the typical gamer toughness built up, so it would feel raw with extended play for quite some time.

Either way, while I realize it’s short-comings, and perhaps my fondness of it is partially due to how I’d managed to overcome them, it still remains one of my favorite controllers.

9

I’ve always liked the D-pad on the Playstation controllers. Unlike other controllers, the D-pad on the PS is made of individual buttons.

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Another great thing about the 360 controller is how efficient it is, power-wise. Wiimotes run through batteries like crazy, but I can play the 360 for about a full week of playing time without having to replace the batteries. With the Wii, I had to get the chargers, but I don’t think it’s necessary to get a charger with the 360.

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Wii.

For the simple reason that I don’t have to have my hands close together. The comfort of being able to slouch in whatever position in my armchair outweighs any other aspect.

Now, If BigN could get a WiiHD on the market, all the ports that will be possible makes me drool.

I hate having to play Falout 3 on a PC. AWSD sucks.

12

I have a charger for my 360 (and the Wii, too). One of the best gaming investments ever. Not only that, but it’s USB and will plug into a Windows computer to be used as a controller there.

13

I recall the analog sticks on my XBox controller S sticking if you pressed them in, which would occasionally cause problems in Madden.

ETA: Not to mention how big it was.

14

I still like the Playstation 2 controllers best. Everything is laid out perfectly for my hands. Of course, my opinion is colored by having logged years of play on the various iterations of Playstations, and having never played an Xbox!

:wink:

15

The posts about batteries and stuff reminded me of one of my another annoyances: Wireless controllers! I’d much rather deal with a cord than with batteries, charging, and most importantly those inconveniently placed battery boxes that cramp up my hands (the 360 controller is the worst for this).

16

I have to say the x360 is one of the best controllers out there, it fits my hands well and is intelligently designed. That said, my biggest complaints are the absolutely HORRID d-pad, and the placement of the analog sticks, I’d rather they be symmetrical a la the ps dualshock line of controllers.

As for the wii… meh. I like the idea, but it’s kind of a novelty. The controls work great in some games and are a total waste in others. More often than not, in titles like Mario Kart or Super Smash Bros, I find that you simply cannot compete unless you use a Gamecube controller, which sort of defeats the entire idea behind the wii and it’s innovation imo.

the OP did forget that the original PS controller did NOT have analog sticks. The N64 (which came out in 1996, a year after the psx) was the first console to have analog sticks (there were consoles before that used joysticks, atari 2600 being a prime example, but they were digital, not analog). The Dualshock launched over a year after the psx came into being (I remember importing one from Japan when I was a kid, hehe)

Also I think it should be mentioned that the Dreamcast, while a great system, had one of the worst controllers ever. Not just the cord issue and the fact the freakin thing was huge, but the button layout just never felt natural. Your hands didn’t rest naturally where the buttons were, and the grips were too thin, imo. Plus the VMU thing was a novel idea but kinda useless overall.

One important controller you guys are all forgetting, though, is the Jaguar controller. I mean, who the hell thought including a NUMBER pad on a controller would be a good idea? ANd this was only a couple years before the n64 and psx launched

also of note would be the optional analog controller for the Sega Saturn that came with Nights into Dreams. looks like some sorta weird frisbee with grips

http://www.edu.lahti.fi/~aaspinen/kuvat/sekalaiset/Sega_saturn_analog_controller.jpg

17

Since you’ve linked the Jaguar’s controller, I may as well link the Neo Geo’s controllers.

18

The Atari 2600 had a digital joystick, but the 5200’s controller was analog. That’s the first one I know of.

I did forget to mention the Saturn’s analog controller. The analog stick isn’t really a stick at all, it’s more like a ball that you move around. I’ve only ever used it to play Nights Into Dreams, and it’s fine for that game. It actually looks pretty similar to the Dreamcast controller.

19

Don’t forget the NES Advantage!

I think the xbox360 is pretty solid. They might be able to squeeze a few more buttons in there, but you might as well just go to keyboard and mouse beyond the current generation.

20

I love the N64 controller. Very comfortable to hold, and the Z-trigger is indeed in a nice, intuitive place. My only beef with it was that it decided to still keep a D-pad and a L-button–or maybe I’ve been playing Super Smash Bros. wrong all this time and you’re supposed to use the D-pad for movement instead of the joystick.

The PS2 controller is great, but mine tend to get a little abused and thus the buttons (and the joysticks) stick a lot.

The SNES controller comes in at third place mostly out of nostalgia; I have horrid memories of jamming my thumb from holding it too hard. (This has happened to me on the PS2, but not as badly; I did accidentally give myself a blister from abusing the joystick too hard the first time I used it, but I got better.)