Thoughts on modern controllers features & the future

[ivandagiant]

Hey all,

I wanted to start a discussion about modern controllers and where we can move forward with them.

I recently got to try out a Switch 2 at my brothers place, and the whole time I used it I was just thinking about how fantastic these controllers would be on PC. They have a built in sensor to function as a mouse! That would be so convenient on PC. I love being able to have my arms at my sides to play games with them. I love gyro controls. This sort of innovation is what makes me excited about consoles, not the graphics. I would 100% purchase those controllers to use on PC if they had proper support. (Was not a fan of the switch 2 myself though, just liked the controllers)

I currently main a DualSense on PC and it is a fantastic experience with Sony titles. Helldivers 2 plays amazing with the adaptive triggers and the touchpad for navigating the map. Returnal is elevated with the DualSense. I think it is such a shame more games don't take advantage of these features. I think if Xbox would actually innovate and add some new features to their controller then it would just become the de facto standard and we would see more games support these features instead of just the basics.

I've been looking into purchasing a new controller as I had a DualSense that died in a literal month of me getting in (was busy with school so I had no time to warranty it), but all of these premium controllers seem to cull features instead of enhancing them. Things like mouse click buttons, instant trigger presses, etc. are the complete opposite of features I want. I'm not playing games to be competitive or sweaty, if I am then I'd rock a keyboard and mouse. When I use a controller, I want to sit back and relax and enjoy the experience. Seems my best option for that is the DualSense and maybe I'll mod it with new TMR/HE joysticks when it inevitably breaks.

Right now, my dream controller would either be something like the switch 2 controllers for PC and a DualSense controller that has paddles (and better battery life). Sony used to sell a paddle module for the DualShock 4s, but for the DualSense they cheaped out and only sell the premium Edge controller that is literally designed to break and sell you replacement modules which I refuse to support.

Are there any controller features you would like to see become more prevalent in games? What is your favorite controller? Do you enjoy these additional features like the touchpad and adaptive triggers, or do you see them more as a gimmick?

 

[Darunion]

Haven't played a switch 2 yet. My switch 1 the controllers made me hate life, plus the constant need to dock them to charge was annoying.

I wouldn't mind a inductive charging on game controllers. I know it wastes energy but plugging in cables to charge is tedious, and the docking stations always need finagling around to get it to sit on the pins. So my request is minor at best. Would like all analog parts of controllers to be hall effects though, much smoother and long lasting.

 

[ivandagiant]

Haven't played a switch 2 yet. My switch 1 the controllers made me hate life, plus the constant need to dock them to charge was annoying.

I wouldn't mind a inductive charging on game controllers. I know it wastes energy but plugging in cables to charge is tedious, and the docking stations always need finagling around to get it to sit on the pins. So my request is minor at best. Would like all analog parts of controllers to be hall effects though, much smoother and long lasting.

Hmm I'm not sure how well you could get inductive charging to work without a similar sort of docking station. Gotta get that coil lined up right? I could see it working for the joycons since they are pretty flat, then have some magnets to align it, but I can't see it working out for more traditional controllers. Maybe we just go back to removable batteries so you can have one charging while the other is in use (although at that point many would prefer just to have a second controller they rotate out)
I wasn't a fan of the Switch 1 controllers either. They were too small. The new ones are a bit bigger and it goes a long way.

 

[pendragon1]

I recently got to try out a Switch 2 at my brothers place, and the whole time I used it I was just thinking about how fantastic these controllers would be on PC. They have a built in sensor to function as a mouse!

what controller are you talking about? i dont see a touch pad on the s2 pro controller....

 

[ivandagiant]

what controller are you talking about? i dont see a touch pad on the s2 pro controller....

The joy cons. They have a sensor so you can use them like a mouse. The Dualsense is the controller with a touchpad which is from Playstation.

Not a fan of the switch pro controller, felt it was overpriced and I hate that it doesn't have analog triggers. HD Rumble on it does pique my interest though. Also it looks like it has paddles now? Not bad actually

 

[pendragon1]

The joy cons. They have a sensor so you can use them like a mouse. The Dualsense is the controller with a touchpad which is from Playstation.

Not a fan of the switch pro controller, felt it was overpriced and I hate that it doesn't have analog triggers. HD Rumble on it does pique my interest though. Also it looks like it has paddles now? Not bad actually

oh, right, where you put them on edge and use it like a vert. mouse.
yeah we dont need that on pc we have mice...
the dualsense pad can be used like a laptops touchpad though...

 

[Comixbooks]

I'm looking for decent Xbox controller cords the stock ones are like dead grass snakes. I tried a phone cord and got crashes so that is out of the question. Power A makes some but they are 17.00 on Amazon.Update: Found some decent cables at work that are 10' long "Onn brand" Braded Cables I fired up South of Midnight seems to work ok. I'll see what happens after playing 1-2 hours. I found the cable up front by the Registers. Alot off the cable in Electronics are 6' or cost 14.00 these were 9.87 before discount. They say 460mbps on the Back of the Back so they must be Data Cables.

 

[toast0]

paddles

I love me a paddle controller. Didn't know they were back in style.



I don't know that this works with switch 2 joycons, but it might help? https://github.com/Davidobot/BetterJoy or maybe this? https://github.com/Logan-Gaillard/Joy2Win

A quick look says the 8bitdo adapter will not do what you want (lets you use one joycon at a time, horizontally)

 

[Domingo]

To me, I think an ideal controller would basically combine the PS5 pad and the current Xbox pad. Give me the Xbox layout (offset analog sticks) and toss in the adaptive triggers and touchpad from the PS pad.
As far as features go, right now Sony's features are only usable if you hard-wire your PS5 pad to your PC. The touchpad is mostly ignored in 95% of games, too. I'd love to see native/wireless support for those things and I'd love to see games take advantage of them. The touchpad especially. It's capable of a lot of mouse-like functions, much like a touchpad on a laptop, a phone screen, or the lower screen on the 3DS.

 

[ivandagiant]

To me, I think an ideal controller would basically combine the PS5 pad and the current Xbox pad. Give me the Xbox layout (offset analog sticks) and toss in the adaptive triggers and touchpad from the PS pad.
As far as features go, right now Sony's features are only usable if you hard-wire your PS5 pad to your PC. The touchpad is mostly ignored in 95% of games, too. I'd love to see native/wireless support for those things and I'd love to see games take advantage of them. The touchpad especially. It's capable of a lot of mouse-like functions, much like a touchpad on a laptop, a phone screen, or the lower screen on the 3DS.

I've been wondering about how the features on the DualSense work on PC. Some games you are right it only works if you are wired over USB C, but other games don't require that! I tried getting ChatGPT to spit out a list for me (feel like this is the type of thing AI should be good for) and it just can't, its awful. You are right about the touchpad being ignored, and it's a shame because the solution to this is to use Steam Input, but enabling that nukes all the other features of the DualSense you would see from the games like the adaptive triggers. Def an awkward spot with support.

From personal experience, Helldivers 2 and Hades 2 both make use of the adaptive triggers over a bluetooth connection. Returnal required a wired connection. I wonder if newer games in general support it wirelessly or if it's just hit or miss.

 

[Domingo]

I've been wondering about how the features on the DualSense work on PC. Some games you are right it only works if you are wired over USB C, but other games don't require that! I tried getting ChatGPT to spit out a list for me (feel like this is the type of thing AI should be good for) and it just can't, its awful. You are right about the touchpad being ignored, and it's a shame because the solution to this is to use Steam Input, but enabling that nukes all the other features of the DualSense you would see from the games like the adaptive triggers. Def an awkward spot with support.

From personal experience, Helldivers 2 and Hades 2 both make use of the adaptive triggers over a bluetooth connection. Returnal required a wired connection. I wonder if newer games in general support it wirelessly or if it's just hit or miss.

Could be a newer game thing or some level of support that Sony added with newer firmware I dunno. If some support it, that's definitely a good sign. I haven't experienced it wirelessly. I'm a couch gamer even on my PC, so I'm not gonna run a 12 foot cable over to my computer just so I can experience slightly different trigger haptics.

 

[StevenJamesBorchard]

I had a Logitech Fighter Jet joystick around 2009 or so and recently looked at various websites.

Now after 15 years or so it has had virtually no changes and it is the same device/ same product.

 

[Comixbooks]

Make sure you buy a controller stand picked one off Amazon they sent me a gift card for 25.00 Amazon credit.