Retro Console Controllers You Liked The Most

[Goldie]

I loved playing on my Sega growing up, partly because of the games they had and partly because I thought their controllers were just great. I liked their directional buttons most of all and I don't think any console both new and old has ever been able to top their controllers, in my opinion. That said, I haven't gotten to play on the controllers of many other classic consoles but I'm confident that Sega's is at least or should be one of the best.

 

[joshposh]

Which sega console were you the refering to? I had all of them so tell when which one you are talking about. In my opinion the best controller of all the their consoles was that of the Dreamcast. To me it was really comfortable and the VMU memory card was different and revolutionary at the time.

 

[calebmelvern]

Sega Saturn all the way! Man this brings back a lot of good memories! I couldn't get enough of that thing when I was growing up. Virtua Fighter anyone?

 

[sorrowscall]

You know, I got in a debate along something like this last night. Each of us were holding up our favorite controllers to old consoles. One friend was holding up his GameCube controller while I held up my N64 controller. Of course, the other friend was holding up a PS1 controller for some reason. The point of the debate was for the first friend to convince us that the favored controller should be the GameCube controller because of it's easy handling: why he liked it. My debate was that the N64 controller didn't hurt the hands as much for long term use; which is why I liked it. As for the PS1 controller, he didn't actually have a reason. Instead, he just simply likes it. Well, I guess to put a long story short, I really like the N64 controller best.

 

[Kleineganz]

I'm old school ... I loved a good, old-fashioned joystick. One button was all I needed. I find newer console controllers too complicated, which is why I stick to PC gaming now.

 

[devilishomar]

I didn't really play much of the Game Cube or the Sega consoles, mostly because I never got around to ever owning one. This might be a cliche but I liked the PS1 controller the most. It's mostly because whenever I play on my PS3 (or even on a friend's PS4), it's always a nostalgic and comfortable feeling whenever you grasp the controller in your hands.

It's what I started with, with the PS1. It's what I progressed with, the PS2. It's what I still play with, the PS3.

PS1:

PS2:

PS3:

and now, the PS4:

Good times

 

[squallsnake]

Whenever the controller conversation pops up, the Virtual Boy controller always gets overlooked. It had 2 d-pad which was basically the precursor to the dual analog stick set up we have to today. Also, there were circle buttons on the back of the controller, similar to the trigger buttons now. I'm not saying it was perfect, just saying it should be acknowledged.

 

[aboleth_lich]

I consider the SNES' controller to have been absolutely perfect! It ergonomically fit my hand like a glove and had a near-optimal number of easily accessible buttons for me!

Earlier controllers were much less ergonomic and either had too few buttons, or had way too many buttons and looked like a calculator or a TV remote! (Just consider the Colecovision's controller!)

Later controllers were unwieldy, convoluted messes that were difficult to adopt and had too many buttons--the N64 being the worse offender on that score!

Sony's PlayStation controllers were a return to the SNES' controller's more reasonable and preferable form. (See devilishomar's above post for photos of said PlayStation controllers.)

 

[dillinger10]

Later controllers were unwieldy, convoluted messes that were difficult to adopt and had too many buttons--the N64 being the worse offender on that score!

I fully agree with you on the N64 controller. Not only does it look ugly but it was extremely uncomfortable to use. On top of this, I always found the control schemes to be one of the poorest of any system I have owned. The D-pad was in the worst position possible.

By contrast, I always really liked the Gamecube controller and found this to be the most comfortable and form fitting controller I have owned.

 

[Ridge]

I have to go with either the Gamecube or SNES controller. My love for the SNES may be nostalgia based more than anything though... Maybe I'll just say the Gamecube controller.

 

[Tycoonie259]

SNES controller, I've even recently bought 2 off them with USB instead of original, so I can use them on my PC now. It's not that complex, and fits very well in my hands. It has just enough buttons to make the game interesting, so I don't really understand why Nintendo made the N64 suddenly with so much buttons. The SNES controller feels like the 'original' gaming controller. Everything after that is just somehow a spin-off of that (in my eyes)

 

[BRyze]

Has to be the Playstation controller. It's stayed mostly the same over the years and it just seems right. I'll always have love for the N64 but there was just too much going on there. Same with the game cube. Then they tried to simplify with the wiimote. Xbox controllers just feel odd to me. I don't know if it's the size or shape but I don't really like it. Always going to have to be the Playstation controller.

 

[LitoLawless]

I really like the Super Nintendo controller the best. I'm a big fan of fighting games and the Super Nintendo controller seems like it was just made for that. I can remember playing Street Fighter on Sega Genesis and having to press start to cycle between punches and kicks. It just made no sense what so ever...and no, you couldn't pause it.

 

[Tycoonie259]

Has to be the Playstation controller. It's stayed mostly the same over the years and it just seems right. I'll always have love for the N64 but there was just too much going on there. Same with the game cube. Then they tried to simplify with the wiimote. Xbox controllers just feel odd to me. I don't know if it's the size or shape but I don't really like it. Always going to have to be the Playstation controller.

The original Super Famicom (SNES) controller actually feels a lot like a simple PlayStation controller, and you may not forget Nintendo has a 'classic controller pro' which is about a PlayStation controller for the Wii. The N64 controller was indeed terrible, though I don't see why you would dislike the GameCube controller.

 

[MrHurricane]

I didn't use many controllers, only the SNES, the PS1 and Xbox360 ones. Out of these, the PS1 one was the best at the time when I played on that. I find the xbox360 one to be bad, especially with the trigger placement on the back of it, my finger always get in the way and I manage to press it accidentally.

 

[Cereus]

Playstation controller hands down. My hands are ridiculously tiny but the PS controller was perfect. It wasn't too big or too small and I could hold it for hours without being in huge amounts of pain. I played the N64 for a while but couldn't play very long because of fatigue from holding the controller. The original Xbox's controller was what turned me off from Xbox completely because there was no way in hell I could hold the controller for long periods of time in my hands. I know it got better over the years, but my first impression was horrible with that controller.

 

[ducklord]

@devilishomar I don't think the second image, of PS2's DualShock, is actually depicting the official one - the handles feel a bit "off" to me, and from what I remember, they hadn't changed in form until DualShock 3 came around. Just saying, 'cause...

Because PS2's controllers were my favorite, until I grabbed PS3's. Then I realized the perfect controller would be a Hybrid of those two: I don't like the too-softy feel of PS3's trigger buttons, but I do like the fact they have more "travel distance" than PS2's, and I prefer the subtle changes on all other aspects as well - some millimeters here and there do make a huge difference in feel.

I confess that I haven't grabbed neither PS4's nor Xbox One's controllers yet, so I don't know how they compare.

I also liked Xbox 360 joypad's "rigidness" compared to the "too-plastickey" feeling of PlayStation controllers, but didn't like the button or thumbsticks placement - and the D-pad is simply atrocious.

 

[YunaKazama26]

I don't really have a favorite controller because I concentrate on functionality and comfortability. I think I love all my retro (Family Computer and Sega Genesis) and modern gaming console and controllers because they provided different experiences. Oh the nostalgia. Sometimes I find myself staring at my wired and wireless controllers from time to time. Like the difference in shape and color, that Genesis didn't have the select button, how I used to button mash to victory, etc. I own PS1-PS3 so when I got a Xbox 360, I had to get used to it. The transition from L1 R1, L2 R2 to RB RT LT LB...the trigger buttons. I think the hardest was games with QTE (Quick time events). I kept dying because I kept pushing the wrong button at first. Also the fact that the X360 controller is bigger and it was my first time with chrome controllers (C3PO gold one...so shiny and full of my fingerprints).

 

[ducklord]

@YunaKazama26 It's strange that I feared I'd... er... "meet the same fate as you" with my Xbox 360, but somehow the different buttons instantly "clicked" for me. I dunno, maybe my mind subconsciously "mapped" the different markings to the "positions" of them (that are the same on both joypads), like "up action button (Triangle - yellow Y)", "left action button (Square - blue X).

What I never got used to were the concave thumbsticks! What not many people notice is that Xbox 360's joypads "curve in" at the point where your thumb touches them, whereas PS3's "curve out". That makes the 360's joypads "more rough" and, as a result, after loooong sessions your thumbs may even hurt a bit compared to the DualShock!