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Note, this does not have to be the best controller in terms of ergonomics and functionality, this is probably always going to be an Xbox 360 or Xbox One controller. This is more your personal favourite - it could even be something from your past, or maybe even something that isn't actually that good of a controller but it means a lot to you.
I'll post my top 5. And any honourable mentions.
There's a reason they brought it back for the Switch, it's just killer for Super Smash Bros, and it's actually a really well-balanced controller with everything you need despite it's unbalanced look It's clinging onto some Nintendo 64 lineage with the C stick and Z button. The octagon-shaped cavity which holds the analogue sticks help make defined direction a bit easier than other controllers which just have a smooth rotation. Maybe not the best for driving games though. Plus the bean-shaped buttons are kinda quirky. Hell, this whole controller is quirky.. it's Nintendo after all.
This controller kinda set the tone for PC gaming, despite it being for the Xbox 360. As PC games became more controller-friendly, things like Xbox button prompts and Xinput support started creeping in until it got to the point where this controller was the default controller for them. Aside from that its a great controller with a nice construction and reliability. The d-pad isn't the best but the plastic blob was soon updated to a switchable d-pad when they brought out revisions of the thing. Still an excellent choice for gaming even today.
The PS5 controller. You won't know how amazing this thing is unless you've used it with a game that uses it's functions properly for example the pack-in game Astros Playroom, or something else like Returnal. It's adaptive triggers, sound effects and rumble features are out of this world when used appropriately. I wouldn't say there's anything necessarily new about the buttons and analogue sticks here, but the build quality and chunky-ness of the controller make it stand out more than the PS4 or PS3 controllers. It's one of those though - when used on a normal game or not used at all.. you just won't understand the potential of this controller.
One of the first 'decent' game controllers for the PC. It was basically a copy of the original PlayStation controller only with a little joystick which you could screw into the d-pad and convert it to an analogue stick! It was a genius bit of design and made it more versatile than you would have expected. I guess the d-pad wasn't that great on its own but these things were pretty bombproof as well.
What the heck is this thing? It was an early attempt at a decent analogue controller, and it actually got really good reviews at the time and was hailed as one of the best controllers of all time. I think that accolade has now passed, things have gotten way better.. But I just had to mention it here as it was SO good at ONE game... Nights into Dreams! Strange thing to behold, and hold.
Honourable Mentions:
I'll post my top 5. And any honourable mentions.
1. GameCube Controller
There's a reason they brought it back for the Switch, it's just killer for Super Smash Bros, and it's actually a really well-balanced controller with everything you need despite it's unbalanced look It's clinging onto some Nintendo 64 lineage with the C stick and Z button. The octagon-shaped cavity which holds the analogue sticks help make defined direction a bit easier than other controllers which just have a smooth rotation. Maybe not the best for driving games though. Plus the bean-shaped buttons are kinda quirky. Hell, this whole controller is quirky.. it's Nintendo after all.
2. Xbox 360 Controller
3. DualSense
The PS5 controller. You won't know how amazing this thing is unless you've used it with a game that uses it's functions properly for example the pack-in game Astros Playroom, or something else like Returnal. It's adaptive triggers, sound effects and rumble features are out of this world when used appropriately. I wouldn't say there's anything necessarily new about the buttons and analogue sticks here, but the build quality and chunky-ness of the controller make it stand out more than the PS4 or PS3 controllers. It's one of those though - when used on a normal game or not used at all.. you just won't understand the potential of this controller.
4. Gravis Gamepad Pro
One of the first 'decent' game controllers for the PC. It was basically a copy of the original PlayStation controller only with a little joystick which you could screw into the d-pad and convert it to an analogue stick! It was a genius bit of design and made it more versatile than you would have expected. I guess the d-pad wasn't that great on its own but these things were pretty bombproof as well.
5. Saturn Analog Controller
What the heck is this thing? It was an early attempt at a decent analogue controller, and it actually got really good reviews at the time and was hailed as one of the best controllers of all time. I think that accolade has now passed, things have gotten way better.. But I just had to mention it here as it was SO good at ONE game... Nights into Dreams! Strange thing to behold, and hold.
Honourable Mentions:
- Wii U Gamepad (Amazing device, shame the rest of the hardware wasn't as complimentary)
- Pro Controller (Wii U or Switch, they're very similar)
- Xbox One controller
- Nintendo 64 Controller
- Brawler64 N64 controller (Third-party, but GREAT)
- WaveBird (A Wireless GameCube Controller. Thought about including this on Top 5 but the OG controller wins!)
- Atari Jaguar Controller (for it's crazyness. It had what could only be described as a phone keypad built into the middle of the controller for some reason?)
- The PS3 E3 'Boomerang' controller (That might have been pretty sweet!)
