Kotaku: It's perhaps the most iconic design in the world of game controllers, and definitely the longest-serving. Today in Total Recall, we look back at over 15 years of PlayStation control pads.
it makes you wonder though, will sony finally change the controller design when we hit PS4? i for one dont see any issues with it, except for the L2, R2 buttons...
I see no reason why they should change it the current controller is fine the way it is. We might see additional buttons added or some improvements to them, but i don't expect huge changes.
Ditto this controller kicks ass! Sure Xbox 360 has a good one as well... But i grew up with this one! Even when they did not have analog sticks back in the old days lol.
This is a perfect controller, putting some design issues aside, such as the inward shaped L2 and R2 buttons which can be a bit slippery during gaming.
As for comfortability, I prefer the Xbox 360 controller. I have big hands and it easily fits in my palms without trouble. The position of the DualShock's sticks is not ideal for me (my opinion). I find myself bending my thumbs back a bit in order to grip them. But their accuracy/sensitivity and larger dead-zone compared to the 360 is just so much better.
I also like the fact that it has the best D pad compared to the 360's worst D pad (in my opinion). Selecting an item that is accessible in say up+left position (like the sonic boom in Batman Arkham Asylum) can be annoying sometimes.
The controller has remained the exact same thing externally for the last 15 years (beside the PS button and wireless). I've recently opened PS1, PS2, and a PS3 Dual Shock Controller (broken). The PS3 DS3 has become much more organized and easier to take apart then previous versions. The rumble weights inside all appear to be the exact same (2 on the left and 3-4 on the right).
I'm wondering if this is just in general, since there are more right handed then left handed, so more feedback on the right hand for rumble.
Internally there has been quit a few changes since the introduction of a battery pack, controller Lights, and PS button, and along with better holding slots for all the parts.
I hope sony keeps the same controller design for PS4 because it's perfect. Though if they just change the L2 and R2 triggers, then it'd be perfectly perfected!
Not like the sticks suck... but yeah improvement can be made still.
Just saying they are the about the Best sticks on any controller, maybe execpt the Razer Onza.
Slightly more elevated than say 360 sticks, easy to accuratily steer, high resolution and smaller deadzone than most controllers. Its texture could be improved for some better grip, though Ive never slipped on the sticks.
DS3's casing is kind of flimsy. Would be great if they used some kind of core metal or carbon frame.
Why all the talk about "triggers?" First and foremost, that'd mean you were using your middle finger for the trigger, which is counterintuitive; I can't get over that on the 360, one of the reasons I don't like that controller.
Then again, this is something that only bothers you if you're familiar with REAL guns.
Edit: @Slaughter And then shift the finger back up to the LB? That's a waste of time, compared to having my index and middle fingers on the four top buttons at the same time.
Edit: @Tretton Takes no time for me, because I don't do it. Maybe it's just me, but since the controller's design all but requires you to have two finger up there, I don't see the point in not using them. Based on the disagrees, I'm in the minority here, but that's fine. I don't have a problem with the L2/R2 as they are.
I've seen too many 360 players using their middle finger for the 360's triggers, and given the button's name and what it implies, it doesn't make a lot of sense that way. On the other hand, switching my index finger from the trigger to the shoulder buttons doesn't make a lot of sense, either.
Why the hell would you use your middle finger for the 360? It's specifically designed for you to be able to comfortably rest your index fingers on the triggers.
"And then shift the finger back up to the LB? That's a waste of time, compared to having my index and middle fingers on the four top buttons at the same time."
um, how long does it take you to shift a finger? Do you game in zero gravity? I don't know anyone that plays with fingers on all top buttons.
Takes a split second for me. Whew, alllll that time wasted.
I play KZ3 with the R2 as trigger, and I'm damn good. I get the most kills most of the time.
@Hicken: If you find using the middle finger counter-intuitive, using the index finger is indeed a slight compromise. But a bigger compromise is to press the PS3 shoulder pad which makes it much harder to accurately control bursts compared to a proper trigger. And that's nothing, the biggest compromise is having the left analog stick located too low on the pad (which is basically a fault of the original pad design where the DPAD was located in the ideal place and the analog stick was tacked on later at a less convenient location. Don't know why they didn't change it until now...
I've never had any problems with the location of the analog stick.
Although I'm left-handed, and thus would use my left index finger to pull an actual trigger, I've been pulling the gaming trigger with my right hand for longer than I've been firing a gun. With that said, R1 has never been a problem for me; it took me a while to get used to shooters, as I've only been playing since CoD:WaW came out, but since then I've been pretty high on the boards on MW2(briefly), KZ2(for quite a while), and BFBC2(again, for quite a while). And that's just the FPS games.
Besides the obvious improvements like the triggers and better casing does anyone wonder if we'll ever get more buttons? Seems like we've been stuck with the 4+4 with sticks and triggs for a while now :p
Good question. Sometimes I feel we could do with some extra ones but it's normally when playing something like dragon age which took advantage of a keyboard on the pc. I do think this is now the standard layout though - seems even Nintendo are going that route
Yah I was wondering, its good the way it is now, always has been, but perhaps an extra button or two wouldn't hurt much, for example the layout would be the same, except you'll have 6 buttons on the right side instead of 4, something similar to the old Sega genesis. Obviously it would benefit RPG's more than anything I would think but it could also make games take more skill depending how they make the game.
I have a wireless pad for PC, which looks similar to dual shock but has an extra couple of buttons underneath where your third fingers would go, a little lower than R2/L2 on the sticks.
i love this controller for fighting games, its bar none.
The controller has remained the exact same thing externally for the last 15 years (beside the PS button and wireless). I've recently opened PS1, PS2, and a PS3 Dual Shock Controller (broken). The PS3 DS3 has become much more organized and easier to take apart then previous versions. The rumble weights inside all appear to be the exact same (2 on the left and 3-4 on the right).
I'm wondering if this is just in general, since there are more right handed then left handed, so more feedback on the right hand for rumble.
Internally there has been quit a few changes since the introduction of a battery pack, controller Lights, and PS button, and along with better holding slots for all the parts.
I hope sony keeps the same controller design for PS4 because it's perfect. Though if they just change the L2 and R2 triggers, then it'd be perfectly perfected!
Ya I agree with a_bro ... L2 and R2 need to be fixed for Dualshock 4 ... Real triggers next time plz :D
A touchpad on the back could work, similar to that of the Vita.
I don't want to see a screen on it though.