DualShock 4 Controller Shows Little Need For Improvement Over The Years [Video]

The DualShock 4 controller is a lot like the original PlayStation controller, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. It simply shows that Sony had it right the first time.

There was a good reason why the PlayStation enjoyed so much success, aside from its infinitely popular games. Metal Gear Solid, Gran Turismo, Twisted Metal, and Final Fantasy VII were considered must-play games, but we might not have given them a chance had it not been for the controller itself.

Sony may have switched up the controller options on us a little when they replaced the popular letter buttons with the circle, square, X, and triangle, but it wasn’t enough to distract us from how good the controller felt in our hands.

It was a design that Microsoft later tried to emulate without making it too obvious, initially ending up with a controller almost as big as the console itself. As time went on, you might have noticed that the controllers for the Xbox 360 were shaped a little more like Sony’s controllers, though different enough to not warrant accusations of copyright infringement.

Sony’s DualShock 4 controller resembles its predecessors so much that it almost looks at first glance like all they changed was the color and the kinds of buttons available in the center.

After some lawsuits over the rumble feature, the DualShock 3 brought it back alongside a motion sensor, but after all these years, the basic shape has remained the same. The PlayStation controller wasn’t broken, and Sony decided not to fix it.

As far as weight is concerned, the DualShock 4 actually measures lighter than Xbox One’s latest version. It seems Microsoft can’t ditch the “brick” they started with.As the next gen consoles arrive on the quickly approaching horizon, a few have actually had a chance to try out the DualShock 4 controller, and despite it being a little heavier in general, it still feels perfect.

Sony’s latest controller is actually the biggest redesign to date, with the clickable touchpad added and the center buttons renamed, and it’s been called the best controller Sony has ever come up with. In answer to Microsoft’s haptic feedback, Sony has said that their controllers will eventually have that added as well.

The buttons and analog sticks are much tighter now, with a definite edge to the bottom triggers so your fingers no longer feel like they’ll slip off the bottom.

The end result is that the DualShock 4 controller promises to be the best one you’ll ever use.