Sony keeps the worst controller ever made
7:06 PM - May 8th, 2006
Let me start this by saying that I think the PS1 controller is the worst controller ever made for a mainstream console (”mainstream” meaning the Jaguar doesn’t count). The handles are at awkward angles. The analog sticks are in bad positions. I’ve never liked dual shoulder triggers on each side. And of course, there’s the disconnected D-pad, which I consider to be cruel and unusual punishment.
Sony, being the smart company that it is, chose to retain the same controller form factor when it transitioned from PS1 to PS2. And today, Sony, being the smart company that it is, announced that the PS3 controller will have built-in Bluetooth, wireless tech, and motion/rotation sensors—all in the same form factor as the PS1/PS2 controller. Sometimes I wonder if Sony execs just laugh at us behind closed doors.
Other news: the PS3 will be available in the U.S. on November 17 for $500 (20 GB HD) or $600 (60 GB HD). Yawn. Wake me up when it’s affordable.
Update: the cheaper PS3 model will be missing a boatload of features (HDMI output, Memory Stick / SD / CompactFlash slots, and 802.11b/g).
May 8th, 2006 at 11:19 pm
cant agree more on disconnected D-pad
when i first started playing alpha1, alpha2 and alpha3 when i was in high school
that D-pad killed my left thumb…
the other thing i didnt like was how they use O, X, Triangle and Square as buttons
it literally took me a few years before i ACTUALLY memorized the buttons and where they are, so when someone tell me “press square” i dont press the wrong one. using something thats not letters REALLY make it that much harder to remember the buttons. i just dont get the reasons behind it. (and countless times i tell someone to press “X” thinking its the top button [because of SNES] and ppl go pressing X [where B on SNES is] and say wtf…)
May 9th, 2006 at 10:08 am
I know next to nothing about controller tech, but in broad terms, while Sony design is largely competent, even elegant, companies purveying well-designed products have blind spots… and more to the point, persist in having those lapses.
Exhibit A, Apple’s one button-mouse. ‘Nuff said. (And let’s not resurrect other Apple monstrosities here, shall we? ::cough::e-mate300::cough::)
May 9th, 2006 at 2:13 pm
is this Wii controller real?
http://www.joystiq.com/2006/05/09/confirmed-wii-controller-shell-revealed/
May 9th, 2006 at 2:58 pm
^ How do you hold that thing?
Well, nothing can be worse than the old, big-fat Xbox controller.
May 11th, 2006 at 5:40 pm
love this comment from that page:
So Sony has stolen from Nintendo:
-Shoulder buttons
-Analog control
-Force Feedback
-Motion sensing
Am I missing anything else
May 13th, 2006 at 1:27 pm
“Let me start this by saying that I think the PS1 controller is the worst controller ever made for a mainstream console…”
Really? What about the original Xbox controller?