by gSathe
Which console should I get, an X-Box 360 or a PS3? This is a question that most people have asked me again and again. And the answer I usually give – buy both! And then looking at people’s angry faces makes knowing them completely worthwhile.
But lets face it, the two consoles are both very expensive. And most of us can’t afford to have both of them. And even if we manage to beg whine and plead, solicit donations off the street and sell kidneys in the black market until we have both consoles sitting in front of us, how do we even start paying for titles for the both of them?
So lets just look at the consoles for a minute then. The 360 and the PS3 both have a lot to recommend themselves. I’m not going to bother with a comparison of the image quality you’ll get from one or the other, or the fact that the PS3 has a blu-ray drive. I’m not even going to go into Live vs the PSN.
The way I see it in fact, there are two things which make a difference at the end of the day. First the titles available. Right now I think that the 360 still has the lead there, though things could change soon enough. If you’re wondering about which titles are available and which are going to be, then just look it up online and you’ll be able to make up your mind quickly enough. And in case you can’t make up your mind yet, then just buy a 360, okay? You need to play Bioshock and Mass Effect. I don’t know about the other games so much, but you really need to play those two.
So what’s the other thing I’m talking about? The controller of the system is your direct interaction with the game. It’s how you enter into the game world. If the controller isn’t right, then the game doesn’t seem right either. It’s a weighty issue, quite literally.
Because the weight difference between the two controllers is big enough to affect your gameplay in a major way. When you’re hefting around the X-Box 360 controller you’ve got that weight in your hands, and you feel like you’re really affecting something. The PS3 controller on the other hand is just too light, it feels like a dinky bit of plastic in your hands.
The next problem I have with the SIXAXIS (why is it all caps? Why?) is the triggers. I mean, really? It’s not that hard to get the triggers right. Just look at the 360 controller. It’s handy. It’s ergonomic. It fits, and then the triggers are just right… With the PS3 the first thing I want to do is swap the functions on L1 and L2, and also R1 and R2. Secondly I want to take the triggers, and stretch them out a bit so that we can squeeze them properly, lovingly. Right now they just make me think of milking a cow, which is very strange, because I haven’t ever milked a cow, or seen a cow been milked, so I have no idea what that should feel like. But that’s the SIXAXIS to me I’m afraid.
And the last problem I have with it is the position of the analog sticks. Looking at them, the PS3 controller looks like a winner, the symmetry of the controller makes it look appealing and it looks comfortable to handle. Once you start handling it though, you’re going to wish for an extra pair of thumbs, so that you can make the crazy angle needed to handle the controller and hold it at the same time!
So right now I’ve just gone over a lot of problems I have with the PS3 controller. With the 360 controller, I’ve a really big problem with the d-pad. It’s iffy at best, it’s imprecise, it’s imperfect and its unreliable plastic feel means that I’ve almost never used it. If I want to play an arcade fighter I would look to the PS3 anyday.
These are my gripes with both the controllers, and based on this at least, I recommend the X-Box 360 to everyone who asks me for an opinion. But in case you’re still a fan of the PS3, there’s hope for you yet, if you’ve time, patience and also a bit of money. You could go visit benheck.com and take a peek at the PS360 controller how to, and learn how to stuff a SIXAXIS inside the far more ergonomic 360 gamepad. The only drawback is that you’ll have to accept the clunky d-pad as part of the package… Or you could still just buy both systems!
14 Responses to “Gamepad versus gamepad”
This person complains at such little things that you can overcome so easily. Like with the PlayStation 3 controller when pressing the trigger buttons you push them up. When you’re playing first person shooters it actual makes you hold the controller more properly. I also don’t think this person realises that all the buttons are pressure sensitive. That means for the most part you don’t always have to press them all the way. With the SIXAXIS it’s a good feature it’s just the developers need to get it right. Even if they do get it right you still need to get use to it. Like when playing Warhawk flying is easy but when in a land vehicle and wanting to reverse can be tricky.
With the XBOX 360 the I don’t like the placements of the analog sticks at all. The D-Pad I don’t like because the directional arrows are merged together. The trigger buttons were designed to shape your fingers plus they’re pressure sensitive. That would be it for pressure sensitive buttons on the XBOX 360. With the D-Pad developers don’t use it as often so that you can overcome. I can live with the analog placements but prefer the PlayStation 3’s any day.
The analog placement of the SIXAXIS isn’t as bad as it looks, because of its small size. After having gotten used to the Xbox controllers for a couple years, I do just with the SIXAXIS in COD4 and other FPSs.
One problem with the stick placement, though, is that when you happen to push the sticks towards each other (in FPS, this means circle-strafing to the right) you damn thumbs collide. Doesn’t happen too often, but I wish the sticks were spaced further apart.
How about these points:
1. The bulkyness of the 360 controller.
2. The crapiness of the 360 D-pad
3. The shittiness of the 360 Analogue sticks?
Both the DS3 and the X360 gamepad have lessons to learn from the gamecube’s analogue sticks, analogue triggers and D-pad.
The PlayStation 3 SIXAXIS the trigger buttons were designed that you are holding down the controller with your thumbs. If you don’t it can seem a bit hard to use compared to the XBOX 360 trigger buttons.
For example push the trigger button on the SIXAXIS without holding the controller with your thumb(s). Then do the same thing when pressing any of the bottons besides the L1, R2 buttons. Right away you’ll feel a difference because you have more support.
I do agree with you on a few points, but it looks like you are used to the Xbox 360.
I am used to Dualshock 3 and therefore I hate the Xbox 360 controller because I am not used to it.
Also, this is not a fair comparison. You should have compared it to Dualshock 3. It have a better weight and doesn’t feel as cheap.
Also, yes, the triggers (R2/L2) is a pain in the start and sucks (slipper, as well), but in the end, you get used to it and they work perfect for me. They are not even slippery for me anymore.
OMG WHOEVER WROTE THIS IS NOOB. PS3 PWNS NOOB WHY DO YOU THINK IT COSTS MORE!? I BET MICROSOFT OWNS THIS WEBSITE AND PAID YOU TO POST THIS! YOU DID NOT EVEN MENTION THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE SIXAXIS IN GAMES LIKE SUPER RUB A DUB!
Forgot to say one thing. Microsoft and Sony should have copied Gamecube controller because it is easily the best controller, ever! Remember, IMO.
The 360 controller is essentially perfect apart from the godawful D-pad, the weighting and ergonomics are excellent and the analogues feel right. Haven’t had a real go with the PS3 pad but if its anything like the dual shock it’ll be incredibly uncomfortable with retarded triggers and horrible feeling analogues.
hmm, i have to say my hands never fail to hold the ps pad,
after more than 10yrs it still feels good, hance why fix what aint broke.
the sixaxis funnction wins it, as it allows for a variety of extra functions to be added without the need for extrta buttons, just need to allow developers time to incorperate them. imagine leaning around walls in fps for a shneaky shot just by a sideways tilt??
very much have to agree with the OP about the triggers though , though amagazine in the UK was giving away the snap-on trigger attatchments (Gioteck’s ‘Real Triggers’ ) oh fuck yeah, that sorts the problem, if your struggling, try source some of these, i took the chance on buying PSW magazine issue 101 from december 07,
well worth the price of the magazine and beyond
As a former PC gamer until the 360 came along, I have to say the 360 pad is the best I’ve ever used. It allows a degree of accuracy that gets somewhere near the mouse (which is saying something) and ergonomically it’s perfect. Agree on the cack d-pad however.
I can’t comment on the dualshock version but the standard ps3 pad is a disaster. The lack of weight is the killer, there’s nothing to keep the pad stable in your hand. Not paying up for force feedback was a mistake… That said not as much of a mistake as not allowing the pad to function while being charged on its ludicrously short USB cable!
If you people think everyone copied the Nintendo GameCube just just out my blog that I made way back.
HTML: http://www.gamespot.com/users/Some_One_Plays/show_blog_entry.php?topic_id=m-100-25109447
I absolutly hate the PS controllers, all the way back to the PS1. They just feel so uncomfortable to me. For me the 360 controller wins easily. I love the position of the analog sticks, the buttons are easier to find without looking and quite honestly I find no problem with the d-pad. Also with the SIXAXIS it tends to move when you’re just repositioning yourself. It ends up messing you up, which the 360 doesn’t do. When it comes to games, 360 pwns multiplayer. Single player is basically the same on both systems, but I don’t want to play the campaign on COD4 20 times.
hmm dont wanna read any 360 fanboy thing… just wanna say that the war comes every 5-6 years or so, thing is its always the same… SPECULATION and unless you show me your DOC in Ergonomics then what you wrote is only your Opinion, Im not spitting on the 360 cause I must say I LOVE Bioshock tho I hate the controler…. but thats my opinion….
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