New sony controller ?

[JF_Aidan_Pryde]

Theres nothing wrong with the Dualshock 2, why change it.

That's just an excuse for mediocrity.

"If it ain't broke, don't try to fix it department."

Same as above.

That's just stupid. Not only is it 'not broke', it's designed very well. It's easily one of the most accessible controllers. Do you have any justification as to why it's mediocre?

Control interface is not fashion, there's no reason why they have to change every generation. The steering wheel has remained the same since the car was invented. Do you think that's because "it ain't broke" or rather it's probably the most sensible design for steering a car?

 

[kyleb]

I think the oirgnal play station pad was designed well but I don't like the way the slapped the analogs on at all, just isn't comfortable to me.

 

[Iron Tiger]

But changing the design b/c it will add new gameplay experiences should be filed under the "If it ain't broke, don't try to fix it department." PEACE.

2D-sidescrolling wasn't broken, but I'm glad developers had a greater vision than that and created controllers and control schemes to interface with those visions. Would you really prefer to play today's games on 16-bit era controllers?

 

[jvd]

That's just stupid. Not only is it 'not broke', it's designed very well. It's easily one of the most accessible controllers. Do you have any justification as to why it's mediocre?

Well thats what you believe . For me the contoller is awkward to use . Perhaps i have bigger hands but its just not confterable .

For everyone person who thinks that the dual shock is a great controller there is another one who doesn't think its a great controller .

It may have been fine for this generations games . But it may not be fine for next generation games .

 

[quest55720]

But changing the design b/c it will add new gameplay experiences should be filed under the "If it ain't broke, don't try to fix it department." PEACE.

2D-sidescrolling wasn't broken, but I'm glad developers had a greater vision than that and created controllers and control schemes to interface with those visions. Would you really prefer to play today's games on 16-bit era controllers?

For me the Genesis 6 button pad is one of the all time best control pads for fighting games. I would take the genesis pad over the PS2,Xbox,GC or Dreamcast pads for fighting games. Granted a arcade stick is the best for fighting games but second best option is a saturn or genesis controller.

 

[Legend]

The law suit concerns only the rumble mechanism. They can use another method to generate a rumbling feel, thus the ‘shock’ will still be included.

About this specific design; it doesn’t have to be for Playstation. They could release it for PC as I get the feeling it is a stripped down mouse-keyboard combination. Also, it could be for PS but for specific games like MMORPGs. They usually have a large set of controls and this would be better than either using limiting console controllers or use unfamiliar PC controls (for the average console gamer).

In any case, I seriously doubt this is the default PS3 controller. Does anyone really expect this to be shown as the main controller design at E3? They would be eaten alive.

 

[MechanizedDeath]

Any changes should be evolutionary. There's no reason to change up the formula much. It's totally unnecessary. If you don't think so, buy a GC and have fun pulling your hair out playing games that were simple on the PS. The assymetrical button layout is just so idiotic I want to punch Miyamoto in the face. In contrast, I think an assymetrical controller body would be awesome. The Mako64 was like that. Just a joy to hold since it was a pad you could truly palm. But buttons should be set out symmetrically to follow the arc of the thumb. That way you don't need to adjust your grip too much. The Genny's 6-button face was great, but I also prefer four shoulder buttons. a 2x2 face layout works fine for me. On the DS, I can reach all 8 buttons without moving my grip. That's perfect. The changes they need to make are minor IMO. But reinventing the wheel is totally unnecessary. PEACE.

 

[rabidrabbit]

It may have been fine for this generations games . But it may not be fine for next generation games .

What will there be in next gen games that requires big changes in controllers?
Is xbox360 then not a next gen experience because it uses basically the same controller as xbox this gen?

That "PS3 controller" in the patent, I think it's just a patent made to sum up several things that they've (is it a Sonty patent) thought are worth patenting, not meaning all those buttons would eventually be in one controller.

 

[DuckThor Evil]

It may have been fine for this generations games . But it may not be fine for next generation games .

What will there be in next gen games that requires big changes in controllers?
Is xbox360 then not a next gen experience because it uses basically the same controller as xbox this gen?

Well the original dual shock is much older and it starts to show, it needs triggers and better placement for the analog sticks

 

[rabidrabbit]

Changing the position of sticks and giving the shoulder buttons a longer travel still do not make much difference, about the same as making the buttons pressure sensitive in DS2, if even less.

I prefer the analog sticks symmetrical, but I guess if you want to put teh primary (left) stick in better position, the cross pad would have to sacrifice it's place.

So I wouldn't be surprised if Sony changed the stick to the same places as they are in GC and xbox.

Still, those changes are not something that are required for true next gen experience controllerwise.

 

[London Geezer]

It may have been fine for this generations games . But it may not be fine
for next generation games .

I agree, something that gives us the same precision of a mouse is badly needed.

 

[DuckThor Evil]

Changing the position of sticks and giving the shoulder buttons a longer travel still do not make much difference, about the same as making the buttons pressure sensitive in DS2, if even less.

I prefer the analog sticks symmetrical, but I guess if you want to put teh primary (left) stick in better position, the cross pad would have to sacrifice it's place.

Well not too many games really use those pressure sensitive buttons beside racers, whereas almost everygame would benefit from better analog stick placement, why should the d-pad have the best spot eventhough it's used less than the analog stick?. Also triggers for a racing game are much better than pressure sensitive buttons, so I think that introducing those are much bigger things than pressure sensitive buttons, and I'm confident that Sony will include them in PS3 otherwise I'm going to be pissed.

 

[rabidrabbit]

I would like touch sensitive areas under the controller, in the areas where your pinky and that other finger rest when you use the DualShock.
The same as touchpads in laptops, but it would perhaps have to be something more irregular surface to contour the controller. Youd use that other finger next to the pinky to guide the cursor or whatever on screen and still have all your other fingers free as you've used to.

 

[Nick Laslett]

the left Analog Stick is 98% unused

What does that statement mean?

Does it mean that the left analog stick is only used for 2% of play time?

Or do you mean the right stick?

I use the left stick to play every PS2 game I own.

The right stick gets about 50% usage for things like camera control, acceleration/breaking, dodge moves, etc.

I'm confused by your statement.

 

[London Geezer]

the left Analog Stick is 98% unused

What does that statement mean?

Does it mean that the left analog stick is only used for 2% of play time?

Or do you mean the right stick?

I use the left stick to play every PS2 game I own.

The right stick gets about 50% usage for things like camera control, acceleration/breaking, dodge moves, etc.

I'm confused by your statement.

I'm confused too, i thought i left the RIGHT analog stick unused a lot.

 

[Guden Oden]

I was never really too impressed by sony's pad to begin with (rip-off of snes pad plain and simple, with a vastly inferior D-pad), then when they tacked on two analog sticks to it I was even less impressed. While it obviously WORKS with the sticks in the positions they sit in, it's hardly ideal, and the four shoulder buttons are confusing IMO.

My brain lacks the finger coordination neccessary to quickly access any shoulder button (and particulary; button combinations) if I need to use both index fingers and middle fingers at the same time; it just isn't wired to work that way. I often have to think for a few moments wether it is the big or the small buttons that are button 1, and even then I sometimes screw up, particulary in games that use pretty much every button on the pad (ZOE2 was a small nightmare in that regard at times).

While I can work the pad well enough overall, it just doesn't FEEL ideal having to keep both index and middle fingers on the buttons. If the game uses little in the way of combinations so I can work the shoulder buttons with just the index fingers everything's swell. It's the "quad-grip" design that trips me up.

Maybe I'm just old-fashioned, I dunno. After all, I grew up with a NES* pad, and it has no shoulder buttons at all!

*edit for factual correctness.

 

[V3]

My brain lacks the finger coordination neccessary to quickly access any shoulder button (and particulary; button combinations) if I need to use both index fingers and middle fingers at the same time; it just isn't wired to work that way. I often have to think for a few moments wether it is the big or the small buttons that are button 1, and even then I sometimes screw up, particulary in games that use pretty much every button on the pad (ZOE2 was a small nightmare in that regard at times).

WTH ? Are average people that uncoordinated like you ?

Maybe I'm just old-fashioned, I dunno. After all, I grew up with a SNES pad, and it has no shoulder buttons at all!

huh ?

 

[Shifty Geezer]

My brain lacks the finger coordination neccessary to quickly access any shoulder button (and particulary; button combinations) if I need to use both index fingers and middle fingers at the same time; it just isn't wired to work that way.

1) I've never had this trouble and think the DS pad the best available.

2) As I've said often before, the only way to get a solution for evryone is to GET RID OF THE STANDARD PAD and allow people to choose a pad that suits them. No one solution will be perfect for everyone. There's no point arguin what a next-gen pad should be as it's too dependant on personal preferences. The only proper solution is no standard.

 

[London Geezer]

Well, ZOE2 could feel like a piano lesson at times, especially during some boss battles that required you to switch to the secondary weapon and back all the time, but that's a bit much Guden

 

[rabidrabbit]

Never had problems coordinating with the many buttons of DS.
Well maybe at the beginning I too had trouble locating and using the four shoulder buttons (did the original DS just have two?) but I must have developed my fingering cordination skills.
That's why I suggested that the remaining fingers should also be put to use.
Maybe I should try accordion next.