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I spend a considerable amount of time thinking about game controllers. At this point, it could also be a game controller collector. Not only do I have multiple controllers for every console that I own (obviously), but I also have several that I have purchased to play PC games over the years. If you count all the 8-bit controllers I’ve bought for retro games, I’ve definitely wrapped my gloves around a few gamepads.
I’ve been faced with the question of the best game controller before, but with the arrival of next-gen consoles, we might have a new winner: the PlayStation 5 DualSense. Sony spent a lot of time promoting the new PlayStation 5 controller, and now Since the console is here, it seems the DualSense has the ability to back up that hype.
Astro Game Room is the only introduction one needs to the DualSense controller, and I think it should be the first thing every new PlayStation 5 owner plays. Not only is this a fun enough game in its own right, but it demonstrates all the features of DualSense, from Adaptive triggers and haptic feedback to motion controls and built-in speaker / microphone.
What particularly impressed me was the haptic feedback on the DualSense, which when combined with the speaker in the controller can really make different actions in the game feel different. The most basic and easy-to-explain example is when Astro walks between hard and soft ground, for example a steel floor and grass. You can definitely feel the difference due to that haptic feedback, and the speaker in the controller helps the effect a lot more than I thought.
All of the features on this controller are great, but they aren’t the only things that make the DualSense a really good controller. For starters, the controller feels great in the hand, just as good as an Xbox One / Xbox Series X controller, and that’s not praise. From a design point of view, I don’t think I was more impressed by a PlayStation controller.
I was never a huge fan of PlayStation controllers until the DualShock 4 came out. Obviously, game controllers have only gotten better with the passage of time, but for a while, PlayStation controllers were mostly the same generation on. generation with only minor changes. The DualShock 4 broke that pattern in a big way, but now that the PlayStation 5 is on the scene, it looks like the DualSense is the true revolutionary controller in the PlayStation line.
Despite all the praise, the controller is not perfect. I’m not crazy about the mostly white color scheme to begin with. I’m sure we’ll see plenty of color options for the DualSense as time goes on, and it probably won’t be long before I can get a DualSense in a darker color to use as my everyday controller, but I really hate it. when things that are supposed to have heavy use are only available in white. Every little speck of dirt shows up as the day on this controller, and after a week and a half of using it, I can already tell it will be a huge hassle.
In my opinion, there is very little difference between the d-pad of the DualSense and the d-pad of the DualShock 4. It seems that the buttons of the d-pad of the DualSense have a smoother curve, but beyond that, they feel almost exactly the same. The d-pad on the DualSense isn’t bad, but I think the d-pad on the Xbox Series X controller stands out in terms of quality.
However, aside from those minor complaints, and they are very minor, I don’t find much to dislike about the DualSense. I love the clear plastic buttons, I love the look of the controller, and I love how it feels. The battery life seems pretty good, but to be honest I only had to charge it once from the initial charge when I first unpacked the PlayStation 5, so I don’t even have a full picture of the battery life yet. The DualSense is so good that PC gamers may even want to pick one for their rigs, although Xbox controllers are generally preferred among the PC crowd.
My main concern is that we won’t see developers using these standout features (haptic feedback, adaptive triggers, etc.) on a large scale. I hope all original PlayStation games are compatible with those features, but beyond that, it’s easy to see that developers choose not to support them in cross-platform titles because ultimately it means investing more work in the PlayStation 5 version of their game.
I hope I’m wrong, because these features are definitely impressive and I would like to see them in as many PlayStation 5 games as possible, but I don’t think we are going to see integration at the level of Astro Game Room coming from any company except those under the Sony umbrella. That wouldn’t be the end of the world, because it’s still a great controller even when those features aren’t supported, but when they are, that’s when the DualSense really shines.
