Xbox One Tip: Your Controller, Your Way
When Xbox One came out with its newest user interface, the New Xbox One Experience, before 2015 ended, it brought extra spices and features to the Xbox One that really got the two thumbs up from the users. But in terms of playing, what is the one thing that really dictates how one plays? Definitely one of the most, if not the most, important factors in gaming is the ease of controller use — and the new Xbox One Experience gives you just that and more.
One of the new features that came to the Xbox One when it did the UI overhaul was the ability to configure any standard Xbox One controller to much-preferred settings and mapping. This means you don’t really need to have an Xbox One Elite controller anymore to get customization access to your controller—although, of course, the customization level with an Xbox One Elite controller is still light years ahead of the standard remap.
But still, this is great news for millions of Xbox One players who have been craving for this feature since the Xbox 360. Ever get tired of readjusting your reflexes when you switch from Gears of War to Halo to Tom Clancy titles? It’s crazy! Now, you can put your feet down and toss the game’s control preference for your own.
To access the standard controller remapping, you have three options: Go to Settings > Kinect & Devices > Devices & Accessories, or Settings > Ease of access > Button mapping, or Launch the Xbox Accessories app directly from your Xbox One. Then let the remapping commence!
However, this is where the first difference between a standard Xbox One controller and an Xbox One Elite controller starts. A standard Xbox One controller can only remap so much since the way of remapping the buttons is swapping button pairs. Major Nelson explained this in detail in his blog post.
“For standard controllers, you can now swap button pairs. For example, if you choose to map LB to X, then X is automatically mapped to LB. This maintains that all buttons are always mapped on a standard controller. You can do multiple button swaps in sequence to move button commands to where you want them to be on the controller.
In Xbox One Elite controllers, you get more freedom, essentially.
“For the Elite controller, the only required buttons that need to be mapped somewhere on the controller are A and B. Another unique remapping feature for the Elite Controller is that you can have multiple buttons mapped to the same function (e.g. multiple physical buttons or paddles can be mapped to X).”
In addition to remapping freedom, tech company Performance Design Products is making quite a progress on the battery front.
Speaking to Polygon at the CES 2016, Director of product development at PDP Christopher Dingle revealed that they have created a new technology that gives eight hours of gameplay from a 60-second charge. Yup, this is science, not magic. Dingle shares excitedly about the PDP Supercharger.
“In the past it has been about either your dry cell battery chemistries or your lithium ion or lithium polymers, but we’ve developed a new type of power pack. It’s a physical reaction rather than a chemical reaction. It’s a new type of power pack chemistry.”
According to PDP, though, these unbelievable chargers are set to launch for pre-order near the end of 2016. In the mean time, start saving up because if you’re planning to grab an Xbox One Elite controller, too, this revolutionary charger from PDP is going to cost around $99.
[Image by Stefano Garau/Shutterstock]
