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Games

What is the Best Console Controller of All Time? 373

Posted by Cliff from the ps2-before-anything dept.
Mateo Slovinsky asks: "Is the XBox 360's controller the best controller of all time? CNet seems to think so in its line up of the top five gamepads of all time. If you expected the Wii's controller, you will be dissapointed. It's a brilliant piece of innovation, but there simply aren't enough games to judge it against the best controllers ever." Which controller would you pick? What controllers have not left your hands cramped after a marathon session of gaming?
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What is the Best Console Controller of All Time? More

What is the Best Console Controller of All Time?

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  • I agree (Score:5, Interesting)

    by twistedsymphony ( 956982 ) on Thursday May 24, 2007 @08:06AM (#19250799) Homepage
    I'd agree that the 360 is the best controller of all time. it's damn comfortable and has pretty much every function you'd ever want. If they included a Dreamcast like VMU screen it would be "perfect" IMO.

    • Re:I agree (Score:5, Informative)

      by Broken scope ( 973885 ) on Thursday May 24, 2007 @08:13AM (#19250863) Homepage
      I'm one of the guys who prefered the original "duke" controler on the xbox, but even with my largeer hands the 360 controler is really comfortable, I think they really spent alot of time on the design of it.

      • Re: (Score:2, Interesting)

        by IceCreamGuy ( 904648 )
        I completely agree, although I don't have big hands or anything; those giant original XBox controllers felt very comfortable to me. I like having my left thumb going straight up, as opposed to the Dual Shock that has both thumbs going towards the middle; I find that style extremely uncomfortable and straining on my hands. My vote for worst controls, although a handheld, has to be the PSP, it's like they took everything wrong with the Dual Shock and made it worse. I can't play that thing for more than ten mi

        • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

          by Yuan-Lung ( 582630 )
          IMO, 'Feels nature/right' is sometimes very subjective. While some people I know like how the xbox360 controller is laid out, others find it award and uncomfortable. My wife had no trouble working a N64 controller, but it was a hellish nightmare for me. To me, the one controller that fits my hands and playing habits is the Dual Shock. There wasn't even any 'training myself to contort to the controller', as some have suggested, since I had no problem with it from the start. I am no ergonomics expert, b
    • I haven't tried the 360 controller, but to me, it doesn't look that much different than the xBox controller (the current one, not the original bear design). Personally, I love the GameCube controller. I think the best thing about it is that they moved away from the "diamond" button configuration to the design with a big home (A) button, with all the other buttons situated around it. After you use it for a while, you really appreciate being able to reach all the buttons easily and always knowing where your

    • Re:I agree (Score:4, Informative)

      by Guppy06 ( 410832 ) on Thursday May 24, 2007 @09:21AM (#19251699)
      After playing SotN on it, I think it's safe to say the Xbox 360 d-pad sucks.
      • I completely agree with this statement. I was going to purchase the game for my friend's Live account, but after the demo I decided that it wasn't worth it. The game was damn near unplayable because of the D-pad. I'll stick with my Gamecube, dualshock, and Wii controllers. Microsoft has always had crappy D-pads.

      • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

        by twistedsymphony ( 956982 )
        you're absolutely right, I completely forgot about that. I thought the Xbox 1 dpads were bad but the 360's is way worse. Nintendo D-pads seem to be the best. Sony's are OK but they're usually too stiff and the separation of the directions makes for easily chewing up your thumb.

        Playing SFII in the XBLA I end up using the analog stick because the d-pad is just flat out useless.

        Thankfully, with the exception of the occasional XBLA game I don't have much need for the d-pad.

  • Original NES (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Farrside ( 78711 ) on Thursday May 24, 2007 @08:09AM (#19250821)
    Everything else has too many buttons.
    • I would go for the Atari Paddles [atariage.com]; intuitive controls with just one "fire" button. Even my granma could play games with that.

      Just compare the simplicity of that with current joysticks (Like this ;-) [game-accessibility.com]).
    • Atari 2600

      Everything else has too many buttons......

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Guppy06 ( 410832 )
      The MegaDrive/Genesis has exactly the same number of buttons.

  • SNES controller (Score:5, Insightful)

    by 192939495969798999 ( 58312 ) <[info] [at] [devinmoore.com]> on Thursday May 24, 2007 @08:09AM (#19250823) Homepage Journal
    It's great to see the SNES controller, it provided 6-button, finger-and-thumb controlling in about the most compact design possible. I see it as the bridge to all modern controllers, from the previous controllers like the NES, Atari,etc.
    • There's one subtle thing I liked about the US SNES controller design, the one with the purple buttons. The X and Y buttons are curved inward while the A and B buttons were curved outward. In the heat of the action, this made it much easier to tell which buttons I should be pressing without looking down, because I knew how the X and Y buttons should feel, and I knew how the A and B buttons should feel. It's a feature that I don't see in modern controllers.
      • You might want to check out the GameCube controller. Each button has it's own shape, so you always know which button you're pressing.
    • I agree that the SNES controler was great, but I look at it from an oldschool gamer's prospective. It had no analog stick so it forced programmers to stay in the 8 directions. I don't like analog sticks, they don't feel right for the games I most like to play. The Ps2 controller gets my vote for the controller I'd most like to develop on, but I wouldn't use the analog stick. There is a little known contoller called the GamePad Pro, it has 4 buttons like SNES, and 4 buttons on the top like PS2. It's the

  • NES Advantage (Score:5, Informative)

    by Tickenest ( 544722 ) on Thursday May 24, 2007 @08:12AM (#19250855) Homepage Journal
    Adjustable turbo on A and B, large buttons, comfortable stick, fits on your lap or a tabletop nicely, even a slow-motion hack for those games that could support it. Next question....

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by jonwil ( 467024 )
      In my eyes, the NES advantage wins on coolness alone. After all, how many other joysticks have been used to drive huge statues around :)

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by brkello ( 642429 )
      haha, support? You mean if you could pause the game...as all it did was hit start fast.

  • Comment removed (Score:4, Interesting)

    by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) on Thursday May 24, 2007 @08:16AM (#19250901)
    Comment removed based on user account deletion
    • I love the GC pad too, in particular the BigBen copy which is slightly larger (I have big hands), it feels so natural I could almost use it while sleeping. On the other hand, although I play more often with my PS2, I still regulary need to look down because I always forget if the square is the left or right button.
      • That's my biggest pet peeve about the PS2 controller. It's hard to associate the shapes with the position of the buttons on the controller. The GC controller has the big button in the middle that's used 80% of the time, with the other buttons easily reachable from it. While the other consoles have games where 1 button is pressed 80% of the time, that button is different for every game, and it's not always easy to get from one button to the other, without forgetting which button you are on. With the GC c

        • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

          by aadvancedGIR ( 959466 )
          "With the PS2 controller, ... it's hard to tell which button does what."

          And because of that, there is no constitancy. One game's jump is another one fire, one's map is another one's menu... For people like me who like to switch between many games on a regular basis (just this week, on the PS2 alone, I did some DQ9, FFXII, DMC3 & Lego SW + several games on PC & DS), it's a real PITA to have to relearn to use the controler every day.
          • I've never understood why they didn't take a clue from the PC game industry and just make the controls completely configurable. Even games like Tony Hawk Pro Skater 2, which had a PC version where the controller was customizable on the PC version failed to offer the same feature for the console version. It's nice that the developers think they know which controls everyone is going to like, but It's not hard to remap the buttons, and is certainly a welcome feature in every game.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Skidge ( 316075 )

      The dreamcast controller is also pretty nice and the dpad is great for fighting games although hardcore gamers will still prefer a joystick.

      The thing I didn't like about the dreamcast controller was how the cord came out towards the player, not towards the TV. You lost a good 4 or 5 inches of cord length there.

      Speaking of cords, it always seemed that my playstation/PS2 controller cords were just a little bit too short for wherever I lived. To me, stock wireless controllers have been one of the best things w

      • To me, stock wireless controllers are the worst thing to happen.

        Micro$oft screwed it up by only including three USB ports on the 360 (forcing you to go wireless to play Halo with 3 friends).

        Sony screwed it up by not having swappable batteries and putting in an absolutely crappy battery in the sealed controller; my PS3 routinely has battery life issues (starts losing signal even while reporting 2 "bars"... WTF is with only having 3 bars to indicate battery capacity left anyways?) if I try to go wireless for
        • The PS2 bat is swappable with slightly more difficulty then swapping a cell phone battery. I opened my up to clean it from a juice spill and ht ebatter has a simple connector. Aftermarket bats should hit the market eventually. The manual give sinstructions on how to swap so I assume sony will sell bats too.
          • when I'm in the middle of a game, and the battery acts up, I don't want to have to take the fucking thing apart to change a battery.
            • How often does a lith ion bat act up? My cell has never, neither has any of my ps2 controllers or lith/ion phones. What exactly do you mean "act up?" it dies? can't really help that, if it dies yoru game is screwed no matter which controller.
    • Along that line, the wavebird controller for the GC is very awesome. Gamecube shape/comfort, wireless that is responsive and didn't care which way you pointed the controller, easy set up for 4 controllers, and excellent battery life.

      It wasn't the default controller that shipped in the box, but I can't remember the last time a corded controller was connected to my gamecube.
    • My only beef with the Gamecube controller is the placement of the Z-button. I really liked the Z-button placed under the controller on the N64 and had the Gamecube controller done that, I would support it hands down as the best.

      The list is pretty solid and even though I dislike the Xbox and 360, I think the 360 controller is pretty nice. Honestly, my only beef with the list is the N64 controller. As other posters have pointed out, you can't use a third of your controller at a given time. I wish keyboard

  • Wavebird (Score:2, Informative)

    by gunny01 ( 1022579 )
    The wavebird was practically the only redeeming feature of the Gamecube. Sure, if you had ape hands it was kind of small, but for my 12-year old hands, it was a dream come true. The wavbird proved that you could have a decent wireless controller.

  • Idiots (Score:5, Insightful)

    by seebs ( 15766 ) on Thursday May 24, 2007 @08:24AM (#19250957) Homepage
    Maybe they should have played some Wii games rather than just dismissing it.

    It does not take a lot of games to notice that:
    1. I no longer have to play games with my hands together as though I'd been cuffed.
    2. Easy to distinguish buttons, not too many of them, with convenient support for things like "thumb+forefinger = grab", making controls easier to remember.
    3. Broad selection of simultaneous actions. I can move and turn at the same time without trying to remember button combos.

    The wiimote is, hands down, the best console controller ever. It's not even close. Can I invent a game that works better on something else? Sure. I can make games that are better on keyboard than mouse, too. Still, the dominant case is pretty clear.

    • Re:Idiots (Score:4, Interesting)

      by Aladrin ( 926209 ) on Thursday May 24, 2007 @08:34AM (#19251059)
      I disagree. While I like that my hands aren't cuffed together anymore, the majority of the buttons are poorly placed. A and B are the only ones usable during gameplay while holding it as 'intended.' (I use that term lightly.) 1 and 2 are the only ones usable when holding the 'mote sideways, ala Super Paper Mario/Excite Truck.

      When holding it sidewides, it fits my hand so poorly that it's not even funny.

      When holding it like a remote control, the pointing interface is so horrible that I can't believe they bothered. It's fine for menus, but any time that it's used interactively, it's horrid. Red Steel is a great example of horrid pointing.

      My 'best' controller would be the Phoenix Revolution for the PS2. the controls are all placed just where they are comfortable, the analog sticks have adjustable tension, and you can move the sticks/buttons/dpad to any of the 4 positions. Now that I've adjusted it as I like, I rarely change it... But I've always got the option.

      The Wiimote has its uses, and it's GREAT for Tennis and the other sports games... It's just not in the running for 'best controller'.

      • Re:Idiots (Score:5, Interesting)

        by Verteiron ( 224042 ) on Thursday May 24, 2007 @09:48AM (#19252095) Homepage
        When holding it like a remote control, the pointing interface is so horrible that I can't believe they bothered. It's fine for menus, but any time that it's used interactively, it's horrid. Red Steel is a great example of horrid pointing.

        I can't help wondering if this is something software-specific. Case-in-point: Zelda's pointer interface is smoother and more responsive than the actual Wii menus. When it comes to firing the bow in Zelda, it's easy to snipe even tiny targets from a tremendous distance using the pointer interface.

        I haven't played Red Steel so I'll take your word that the pointing interface sucks in that game, but I don't think it's a problem with the controller.

        • Definitely software-specific (Score:5, Insightful)

          by Moryath ( 553296 ) on Thursday May 24, 2007 @11:57AM (#19254649)
          This is one thing the Nintendorks software writers need to fix for the next Wii software update: include a goddamn calibration routine.

          I have a 50" screen. I was getting really annoyed at how twitchy Zelda was, how twitchy the general Wii response for visuals were. If I pointed to the edge of my screen, the mouse zoomed WAY off to the side.

          Then, inside Zelda, I found this awesome feature. It let you select your screen type (4:3 or 16:9), then it displayed a yellow bar. You lined up your IR bar ("sensor bar" my ass, it's a bar of plastic with a set of IR LEDs in it) with the center of it, sized up the yellow bar so it matched the IR bar, and the Zelda interface adjusted itself. Now, in my Zelda games, if I point to a spot, the little cursor goes right where I'm pointing.

          NO other Wii game has implemented this yet. Red Steel, had they had this in, would have actually been playable. Trauma Center: Second Opinion would be playable. Wii Play would make a lot more sense in Duck Hunt mode.

          Nor have they done us the simple courtesy of pushing a simple recalibration routine out over the system software, which would stop any other software company from having to do so.

          Bad Nintendorks. No Cookie.

          • Re: (Score:3, Informative)

            by me_lucky_charms ( 681647 )
            Wow. I cannot believe you got modded to +4, Insightful. Not by people who actually own a Wii, I'm sure.

            The size of your TV does not really matter. All movements are read relative to the "sensor bar". So it doesn't matter where you are pointing on your screen. I'm sure there are others who know a lot more than I do that could explain it better.

            And they do have a built-in sensitivity tool. I have it and I have not been online with my Wii yet.

            Go to your Wii menu -> Wii Settings -> Wii Systems Settings 2

      • Re:Idiots (Score:4, Informative)

        by Fozzyuw ( 950608 ) on Thursday May 24, 2007 @09:56AM (#19252255)

        When holding it sidewides, it fits my hand so poorly that it's not even funny.

        I agree with you on this. The box design is no Cadillac when holding it sideways for VC games or games like Paper Mario. But I give them props for designing a multi-functioning controller that CAN be used in two different positions. In this game, the functionality is more important than the perfect comfort.

        Red Steel is a great example of horrid pointing.

        Red Steel is the the prefect example of how to screw up the pointer detection at the game level. I picked up this game at release and traded it back in a week later. Never bothered to play it very long. This wasn't due to how crappy the pointer is, but how the game interacted with the pointer. Often, it would jump around the room 'locking on' to things.

        Also, as I've been finding out, a 'bright' room causes havoc with pointer detection. Trying to play Paper Mario when it's sunny out and the curtains are open is just painful. You need a good game interface and a darker room and the point works like magic. Just play Wii Play to see how well it can work. Not perfect, sure, but far from being obtuse.

        I might rent Red Steel again (being a Blockbuster online member, I get a free game rental a month) to see how much was the remote sensitivity on a bright day and how much was the game interface. Since that time, I've learned to adjust the pointer sensitivity and room brightness.

        Cheers,
        Fozzy

    • Re:Idiots (Score:4, Insightful)

      by Rallion ( 711805 ) on Thursday May 24, 2007 @08:38AM (#19251113) Journal
      I think people who haven't used the controller at length underestimate how nice the separation of the hands is. It makes it much more comfortable.

      I don't know about the number of buttons, though. Twilight Princess uses each and every button on that controller, including the four D-Pad directions, and it comes out to 12. On the plus side, the buttons ARE all very distinct. I do see people confusing B and Z at times, however.

      My only real problem with the controller is that with my setup, I pretty much have to sit quite close to the TV -- too close for the pointer to function if I'm holding my hands out. Unfortunately there's just not that much I can do about it.

      • Re: (Score:2, Interesting)

        by sexylunchboxboy ( 905263 )
        You can actually just use two candles for the pointing functionality. The problem of being too close is a matter of the LEDs used for pointing being too far apart. Two candles, or your own set up of infrared LEDs, about 4 inches apart, will probably help.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by grumbel ( 592662 )
      ### 1. I no longer have to play games with my hands together as though I'd been cuffed.

      Definitely a plus, I liked that already back then on the N64 where you could play certain games (Perfect Dark) with two controllers, one for each hand, to get two analogsticks.

      ### 2. Easy to distinguish buttons, not too many of them, with convenient support for things like "thumb+forefinger = grab", making controls easier to remember.

      I would rephrase "Not to many of them" to "not enough of them". That you need an addition

      • - not enough buttons
        - not enough analog sticks

        To add more buttons and analog sticks would defeat the purpose of simplifying gaming for the uninitiated. The Classic Controller is an easy way to support more traditional games without making a "Wall of Buttons and Dongles" the standard.

        - when hold horizontal very uncomfortable
        - pointing sensor is useless in horizontal position

        While not as comfortable as the normal position, I don't find the horizontal orientation to be uncomfortable. At this time I can't think

    • Besides the things you mention, I feel the wiimote is the best by far because it has the potential to change the gaming demographic, perhaps radically.

      Every female member of my extended family played the atari 2600 for a couple hours in the 80s and that was pretty much the last gaming they did. Every one of them is now addicted to the family wii -- and all we have is the Sports disc.

  • Sega Saturn SNES (Score:3, Interesting)

    by hal2814 ( 725639 ) on Thursday May 24, 2007 @08:28AM (#19250987)
    I always preferred the Sega Saturn controller to the SNES (and all other digital-only controllers). It's got a smoother directional pad, 6 buttons in 2 rows of 3 with a bump for the bottom center button to find it without looking, and it still had shoulder buttons. The 2 rows of 3 was far superior for games like Street Fighter II and Mortal Kombat. And personally I always thought the Genesis directional pad was a bit soft or I'd also put it above the SNES controller.

  • Favourite tends to be what you grew up with (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Silver Sloth ( 770927 ) on Thursday May 24, 2007 @08:28AM (#19250989)
    For me it will always be the Sega Megadrive - preferably playing Sonic 2.

    This is not an objective opinion, I don't think that there can be one where the word 'favourite' is involved, but I spent so many hours with it in my hands that it's the one that feels right for me and all others are, in my mind, compared with it. I'm sure that, had my peer group been Nintendo, rather than Sega, orientated, then I would feel differently, but they weren't, so I don't.

  • Atari 2600 (Score:4, Funny)

    by travdaddy ( 527149 ) <travo&linuxmail,org> on Thursday May 24, 2007 @08:29AM (#19250997)
    Atari 2600: One Joystick, one button. What more do you need?

    • Atari 2600: One Joystick, one button. What more do you need?
      Nothing. That is unless you want to play any game which requires more than one button ;-)

    • Re: (Score:2, Redundant)

      by CaseM ( 746707 )
      One joystick and one button should be enough for anyone.

      - Atari, circa 1983

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by fbjon ( 692006 )
      One button was a bit of a standard on home computers then, I believe. I can't remember playing any computer game that used more than one joystick button, until simulators on the PC. Now I have 4 axes and 10 buttons plus two shift buttons. Talk about inflation!
  • I loved the NES Advantage [wikipedia.org], not for the arcade look, but for its turbo ability. I haven't seen a single turbo controller that matches this one. Nowadays, in games involving button mashing (like some Mario Party mini games, or FF-8 boosting), I can manually mash the buttons faster than any so-called turbo controller. Why can't anyone make a decent turbo controller (and I mean one that presses the button more than twice a second) anymore is beyond me.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Tridus ( 79566 )
      They started making games at one point that wouldn't react well to the turbo feature. I believe Megaman 3 was the first one, if you shot too fast the enemies would become immune for short bursts, so the turbo feature didn't really help you.

      Otherwise I agree, the NES Advantage was an awesome stick.
  • G&W started the whole Nintendo D-pad era, which then migrated to the NES and every console they've made since. Personally, I much prefer the Nintendo style D-pad to any of the others out there, and specifically don't like the 360's version as it seems to be on a slight angle based on how you hold the controller. As far as analog sticks go, the 360 has the best out there - much better than the sloppy ones on the PS1/2/3 controller IMHO.

    However in my mind, I reckon that WASD and a mouse is the best contr

  • N64? Seriously? (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Daverd ( 641119 ) on Thursday May 24, 2007 @08:36AM (#19251087) Homepage
    I started reading the article, and got through XBox360, PS2, and then N64 at 3rd place. That's when I stopped reading it. There's a general concensus among my friends that the N64 controller is among the worst ever designed, and possibly is the worst. Whose idea was it to make a controller that you needed 3 hands to properly use?

    • I started reading the article, and got through XBox360, PS2, and then N64 at 3rd place. That's when I stopped reading it. There's a general concensus among my friends that the N64 controller is among the worst ever designed, and possibly is the worst. Whose idea was it to make a controller that you needed 3 hands to properly use?

      I hate the N64 as well. Most of the games disabled a third of the controller (since their market was not three-handed gamers) so you just have a large chunk of controller as weig

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by Mattintosh ( 758112 )
      The N64's controller was the only one that made console FPSes worth playing. All others have sucked large donkey balls in comparison.

      For some reason, everyone got some dumb-assed idea that running should be an analog function and that looking around should tie up your only other thumb. This is simply not the case.

      Using the N64's controller, I would typically run with the c-buttons (using my index finger to hit either the top one or the R button, and my "shooting thumb" for the other C buttons and the A/B bu

  • I love the Power Glove. (Score:5, Funny)

    by Rob T Firefly ( 844560 ) on Thursday May 24, 2007 @08:40AM (#19251141) Homepage Journal
    It's so... bad.

  • P-P-P-Powerglove (Score:3, Funny)

    by mobby_6kl ( 668092 ) on Thursday May 24, 2007 @08:40AM (#19251145)
    Why, the Powerglove [youtube.com], of course!

  • Dreamcast.....but then 360 (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Pojut ( 1027544 ) on Thursday May 24, 2007 @08:45AM (#19251219) Homepage
    Am I the only one that cannot STAND the Dual Shock controller? In fact, the controller is one of the reasons I never finished many PS2 games...I just couldn't stand using the friggin' thing

    For a while, I thought it was the Dreamcast controller...it fits perfectly in my hands, has a good weight to it, and the D-pad felt solid.

    Overall, I would have to agree with C-Net...the 360 controller is AWESOME. The buttons and triggers have a nice solid feel, the thing just cradles in your hands, and it has a decent weight to it. My only gripe would be with the D-Pad...other then that though, the 360 controller is at the top of the list.

    Nothing beats a good keyboard/mouse combo though;-)
    • Actually the d-pad is the thing i like the least about the Dreamcast's controller, but other than that, it's one of the best. The dual shock, indeed, is absolutely worthless.
  • because some controllers are ideally suited for specific games only.

    On the PC my favorite for FPS games was the spaceorb. If only it was brought forward to XP I would never had gotten rid of the ones I had.

    As for consoles, again, doesn't it depend on which game your playing?
  • My fav so far has been the 6 button Sega Genesis controller. It was light, responsive, and the buttons well placed. Honestly I wish they would rebrand those old controller for some of the modern systems.

  • WTF?! (Score:3, Funny)

    by Soiden ( 1029534 ) on Thursday May 24, 2007 @09:19AM (#19251677) Homepage
    Come on! That list totally sucks. The GC controller is much better than the N64 one, and there's nothing better than the SNES controller. Ever. Why is the Wiimote out of the list? Not too many games? Pff. I call a fanboyism ranking.

    • Re: (Score:3, Funny)

      by mwvdlee ( 775178 )
      I agree with you completely.

      This top 5 list should include atleast the Nintendo Wii, Nintendo GC, Nintendo SNES and Nintendo N64 controllers.

      What a bunch of fanboys they are!

      Thank god you are more objective.

  • The good, the bad and the wtf (Score:4, Informative)

    by RogueyWon ( 735973 ) * on Thursday May 24, 2007 @09:20AM (#19251695) Journal
    Ok, at the top end of the scale, I've got to agree with assessment the 360 controller is the best ever made. Prior to the 360's launch, I'd have pointed to the Xbox S-controller, which was well ahead of anything else in terms of shape, quality of build and buttons, weight balance and overall ergonomics. The only downside with the S-Controller was that the black and white face buttons were awkward and uncomfortable to use. The 360 controller corrects this flaw, essentially by converting those buttons into bumpers and also improves the weight balance still further. Range, reliability and ability to survive being thrown on the floor after Dead or Alive 4 drives me to my snapping point are all excellent.

    The Dualshock 2 was also an excellent controller in its own way, despite being a little too small for comfort. It did a good job of doing absolutely everything a modern controller needs to with a minimum of fuss and bother. However, the pressure-sensitive function of the buttons could be extremely finnicky and was hard to use properly in games that demanded it (such as the Gran Turismo series). The Sixaxis is a big improvement in this respect, but... well... I'll come to the Sixaxis later.

    Leaving the consoles aside for one moment, I'm going to get a bit retro for my final pick of "great" controllers and go back to the PC's Thrustmaster F-16. I had one of these eating up half my desk-space for many years and never found anything more fun to play flight-sims with. Sure, the customisation software was all DOS based and didn't work properly under Win 95 or later, but I still have very fond memories of this stick.

    Now... the bad.

    Top pick here... the Gamecube controller. Not in terms of sheer, outright awfulness - you can certainly find worse examples of that. But rather because this controller managed to be the only controller to "get it wrong" so badly in a generation where everybody else (including PC accessory manufacturers) seemed more or less able to agree on roughly how many buttons a controller should have and where they should be. One huge, stand-out flaw was the pathetic cable length, particularly unforgivable on a system so heavily geared towards party games. Shelling out extra for wireless controllers became effectively essential for anybody with a living room larger than a small cupboard. The right analogue stick wasn't even a proper stick - it was a stumped and malformed nub, which was no use whatsoever for gaming and made fpses on the cube a truly nasty proposition. The mis-shaped buttons, with the huge green blob and the tiny little kidney-beans around the edge meant that you were forever hitting A when you didn't mean to. All in all, the official Cube controller felt like a nasty, $5 third party accessory.

    Also high on the list... the PSP's analogue stick. Gums up with dust far too easily and is not pleasant to use even after cleaning. The rest of the PSP interface is fine and many games avoid using the little stick, but this is definitely something for Sony to tackle in the next revision.

    And now the "why weren't they includeds"

    Basically, because while allegedly revolutionary (although the results of this "revolution" remain to be seen), the Wii-mote at best represents a very early and unpolished attempt at a new type of controller. Accuracy is questionable at best, especially during rapid movements. Less understandable, and harder to forgive, is the positioning of the buttons. If you want to use more than 2 buttons, then you are going to get sore fingers. Using the Wii-Mote for anything other than a "wave the wand around manically" game for any protracted period is deeply uncomfortable and cramps up my hand like nothing else I've ever tried. The 360 controller is a massively polished traditional product - as good as it's going to get for regular controllers for the forseeable future. That the Wii-mote fails to measure up is perhaps inevitable given how novel it is, but it still doesn't mean that it's as good as the 360 controller.

    And the Sixaxis? Well..
  • Come on now, a little critical thinking will do wonders.

    If you have the hands of a 6 year old kid, a controller like the NES or like the small/close buttons on a Game Boy / DS model will probably be perfect for you. If you have larger hands, something like the SNES controller might feel better.

    There's also the issue of how you hold the controller. Some people like something that fits firmly into the palm of their hands. Others try to rest it by curling the 4th and 5th fingers around to give it support.

    It's
  • "If you expected the Wii's controller, you will be dissapointed. It's a brilliant piece of innovation, but there simply aren't enough games to judge it against the best controllers ever."

    Then why exactly did they pick the DualShock 2 over the DualShock? The only feature the newer controller has over the latter is pressure-sensitive buttons, and I'd say there are fewer games that take advantage of that than there are in the Wii's library.

    And the 2600 controller? They're not handing out these awards based o
  • I mean, it's pretty comfortable to just hold. But once I start playing games with it, it frustrates me at times. In particular, the shoulder buttons are way too stiff, and my fingers (which are somewhat arthritic) start hurting quickly in any game that makes heavy use of them. And then there's the Z button. Am I the only one who finds it very awkward to reach back and forth between the R button and the Z button? I can't stand it. Sure I could put my middle finger on the R button and keep my index fing
  • Seriously, these are great, sure they look a bit like the SNES and PSX controller, but the buttons are much better.
    I just hate it that MS forced me to buy a new gamepad because they broke support for the Gamepad Pro in XP SP2.
    My gravis gamepad, even though over 10 years old, are still in perfect condition.
  • The Wii Virtual Console really needs some controllers substantially similar to the MegaDrive/Genesis and N64 controllers. The remote alone works great for the NES and TG16 experience (and SMS, if they ever get around to adding it), and I daresay the Classic Controller is a better SNES controller than the original, but I'm not entirely happy with the mapping of buttons and controls from substantially different controller form factors so far.

    Oh, and I'd really like to be able to use buttons Y and B on NES an
  • I'll take this generation by generation, as it's much easier to compare...

    First, I'll have to choose the NES and SNES controllers. The NES controller isn't very comfortable nowadays, but it did what it needed to do back then. And the SNES controller is just great, maybe my favorite, definitely my favorite no-joystick controller. It's small but it's comfortable, it has plenty of buttons, but nothing confusing. The Genesis controller just felt plasticky and I never really liked the three button setup.

    For

  • Am I alone hating the vast array of buttons? (Score:3, Informative)

    by Fross ( 83754 ) on Thursday May 24, 2007 @09:42AM (#19252019)
    Ever since the PS2 (that seems to be the watershed for me), the damn things have become stupidly unwieldy. I hate the analogue sticks on the PS2 Dual Shock. Not per se, but they just make the whole thing so cramped. As for shoulder buttons... one each side is permissable, but what idiot decided TWO could fit on there comfortably? The damn thing feels more like a chinese finger-trap than a fun controller.

    I also don't like the 4-button diamond layout that started with the SNES controller and has persisted. The thumb has one comfortable axis to play with and keep uniform button-pressing movement - side to side. Thus the three-buttons-in-a-row structure is far better.

    Certainly large amounts of buttons are more easily accessible on arcade games (I've never had a problem with Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat, etc), but as you're using your fingers, palm-down to access them, that's far better than trying to hit 4 - or even 6! As per the Saturn for instance - with one thumb.

    I play PC games more than console games, so I'm familiar with using a good 15-20 buttons to play Counter strike, World of Warcraft, what have you - but the layout of a keyboard is so much better for that than a cramp-inducing controller. It's not the complexity of what's involved, but the fact that your most useful digits are tucked away gripping the controller, and you're expected to hit 12 buttons and 3 directional pads/sticks with your two thumbs that is dumb.

    Having said that, I love the Wiimote. Aside from the jumping-about-waving aspect, its design limits you by necessity to not using more than 2-3 buttons, which is great. The Nunchuk could use one mess "shoulder button", but it's forgivable.

    There is a cute "family tree" of controllers available here: http://www.axess.com/twilight/console/ [axess.com]

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Richard ( 5962 )

      Ever since the PS2 (that seems to be the watershed for me), the damn things have become stupidly unwieldy.
      The SNES was the last controller that I was happy with. 6 buttons (and only 2 shoulder buttons) and one pad is my limit. 2 analog sticks and 4 shoulder buttons is just too damn much.
  • If you are going to rate the best all time ocontroller, should you not rate all controllers from the past present and future. One can rate the best al time dinosaur or all time greatest roman ruler because none are contained in the future. One can not rate teh best all time controller because someone could make a better one next week.

  • MegaDrive/Genesis 6button joystick.
    Its simple,and very easy to operate(especially when you use millisecond twitch skills).
    except the mode button:its really badly designed and breaks often.

    And for PC:
    A properly mapped keys on keyboard(with extra short retype delay) would provide the same or better gaming expirience.
  • How did that monstrosity of a controller get third place? I used to get hand ache and callus's if I spent more than an hour playing that controller and I wasn't the only person I know who suffered problems with it.

    SNES controller over the Mega Drives? The SNES controller was ok, but the Mega Drives was built in your hand shape and when your ten you can hit all the buttons without having to re-adjust your grip. But I'm guessing it comes down to nostalga in the SNES's controller.
    Personnally I'd have the PS

  • Anyone remember the NES "MAX"? (Score:3, Informative)

    by raw-sewage ( 679226 ) on Thursday May 24, 2007 @10:42AM (#19253245)

    Remember the "advanced" controllers for the original Nintendo, the NES Max and NES Advantage? The Advantage was the huge, arcade-style controller. I never had one, but friends did. I didn't like it. What I did like, and own, was the NEX Max [wikipedia.org].

    Now, the thing I hated about it was that "sliding" left thumb control wasn't very precise. But I fixed that by taking it apart and actually inserting the D-pad from a regular NES controller. A real simple hack that gave me the customary precision of the standard NES controller, the more "natural" and comfortable shape of the Max, as well as the all-too-important turbo buttons.

    Nowdays, I like the standards Playstation2 controller to be the best. It just feels natural in my hands.

  • I don't see any reason for the Atari 2600 to even be on the list other than nostalgia. That wasn't a particularly good controller, I didn't even like it at the time. It was too stiff to allow for fine control, not that it mattered much for games back then.

    The SNES controller I agree was quite good. But I tend to think the 6-button Genesis controller was superior. That controller fit the hands better and I've always had a tendency to prefer buttons on the face of the controller.

    The simplicity of the original
  • None of the game pad controllers work for me due to my physical disabilities. I have four fingers, lack of thumbs, and can't hold them up in mid air. I like those Atari 2600 joysticks because they were simple, light, small, and used on table/floor.

    These days, I just don't play consoles and stick with computers (2-3 buttons mice + non-Natural keyboards).
  • The Playstation 2 controller is truly the greatest controller of all time. It's got the analogue sticks in a natural location, the buttons feel right, there's no problems switching from digital to analogue... everytime I buy a PC controller, I look to get it closest I can to a PS2 controller. Even the 360 controller fails in some regards, due to the fact that a lot of games read the back shoulder buttons as analogue. That screws up controls in some games like Pro Evolution.

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