What is the Best Controller Ever? A Gamer's Lounge Community Conversation
Everyone has a favorite. Whether they’re basing it on layout, durability, ease of use, or just “the one they grew up with,” there’s a certain controller that just….works. We talk of console wars, but a lot of people simply get stuck on a layout and find it hard to adjust. Personally, I like the symmetrical analog sticks of the Sony systems, but my all-time best has to be the NegCon, a quirky little thing made by Namco for racing games like Ridge Racer Revolution. It always felt like when I’d turn and twist the controller, pretending I was steering, except this one would actually translate it into in-game motion.
We had quite a few differing opinions over at Facebook, and the conversations are listed below. Want to get in on other community convos? We’re likely to have two or three a month that will translate to articles here at the site to hopefully spark even more discussion. Drop on by the Facebook page and follow in!
Nintendo 64 Controller
There was a little bit of love/hate for the old ‘64’s unique design.
Rubin: The n64 trident, as it was simultaneously forward thinking and totally ridiculous in retrospect.
John (Site Founder): I cant stand the N64 controller. Never could. One of the reasons the N64 is my least favorite console. I have one with the Zelda games and the Star Wars games. Thats it. When the Retro Fighter stick came up on Kickstarter I couldnt wait to get it. Now I can play the N64 like a real console lol
Erik (Site Author): I agree on the N64 controllers those joysticks were crap. The Gamepad plus is a decent 3rd party N64 controller as well
Meanwhile, I was able to find a unique replacement stick that drops a GameCube style stick into the 64’s natural shell. Try it out if you have a broken controller and tell us how it works!
We also learned more about classic games with the N64, primarily Goldeneye.
Jacob: N64 controller was simply a game changer for me. Who knew you could integrate a trigger into a controller before that point!? Then again, I'm sure someone did, but they took it mainstream better than anyone IMO.
Ryan (me!): One thing I always wanted to figure out but couldn't master was the dual controller setup in Goldeneye. That was the first I ever thought of dual analog sticks, and if you got it down was THE way to play.
Jacob: Whoa, whoa, whoa. I did NOT know about that! Watching some vids on that now!
Customization
Rob: I use both the Elite for Xbox One and the Scuf Vantage for PS4. Both have a good weighty feel, interchangeable parts for thumb fatigue and the offset analog sticks to make it feel form factored and comfortable in your hands.
Are the custom controllers really worth the price increase? I personally haven’t gotten to play with them.
Switching it up
John: Right now mine is the XB1 controller followed closely by the Switch pro controller.
All time for me is hard. The NES controller is hard to beat. Snes is a great on too. With Nintendo having the patent on the dpad their controllers were hard to beat. I’m fond of the Genesis and Dreamcast controller. Its tuff to pick just one!
Working with what you got!
Heather: Only controller i know is the wii controller. Lol
(I know Heather personally! Her husband is a classic gamer, and the Wii does a great job of sharing those games with the family. Plus with the booming success of the original Wii, I bet there are a lot of people out there who answer this question exactly the same!)
So there you have it! Our first community article! It’s fun getting opinions from all walks of life, and not just living on the words of those of us who are writing articles. Want to get in on another question? We currently have one up seeing how you feel about the new PlayStation Mini, that just got it’s official list of 20 games released. Find that question here and put in your two cents!