Poll: Which Xbox Console Had The Best Controller?

This is a topic I could bore you all to death with. It is the single reason i use the Xbox as my daily driver, some of you may have seen me say that on here around 3000 times. I dislike most Sony controllers with the PS1 and PS5 being the only controllers i find doable. If the Xbox controller didn’t fit my hand like a glove i may not even be on this website, cause i am beyond sick of them not making good decisions and games after the 360. However the 360 is tied with the Super NES as my favorite console of all time. My vote went to the Xbox one. I love the size and weight of it best. I want to rant more about Xbox controllers but i will keep it simple. They are the best in the business and it’s why I have given Xbox so much money over the years.

The 360 wired is the one that best fits my hands. But the Series controller is just better

I honestly like that Xbox has simply iterated on the core design and just made it better every generation. My vote goes to the current X|S design.

I find it so hard to go back to previous versions that I bought and adapter to use the X|S controller on my 360.

I am surprised that the results aren't even more one-sided. XBOX has basically evolving the controller in a very straightforward way over the years. Each iteration gets a little better.

That being said, I guess I am alone in disliking the X360 controller. Other than the duke, that one was the worst for me.

@Wheatly Yeah, I loved the S controller.

360, didn't have stick drift problems back in those days.

Definitely the Series X/S controller. As many have said above, they've refined the controller each generation and with the Series consoles they finally got the D-pad funcionality right, although the clickiness of it is grating.

I started with XBox One, so I don't have any nostalgia or fondness with the older controllers. But any controller with a screenshot button is my favorite.

Btw I've held the Duke (weird name) one, and that's probably the worst controller ever made imo. lol. It's so hard to hold and it feels like I can barely reach all the buttons. It lends some believability to the complaint that video game consoles used to be a guys-only thing.

@Grumblevolcano "360, didn't have stick drift problems back in those days."

I, also, like rainbows and unicorns.

I have a box of seven 360 controllers all with terrible drift that would like a word with you and your alternate reality.

@Utena-mobile Yeah, I was a gamer in the early xbox days and I barely used it until the S controller came out. The duke was way too big for my hands.

@evan23
Omg, roflol. I had to look up the controller S. I thought everyone had to suffer the entire console gen with the chunky Duke. I was like, dang, you guys were really committed to Xbox.

Btw, I'm really dying to get the OPI controller. It looks gorgeous. It's probably the first controller I've felt envy for. lol.

edit* oh wait, nvm, I just remembered the Final Fantasy XIII controller. lol. Ok, the OPI controller is the second controller I've ever felt envy for.

Series X is probably my favourite controller because it's very comfortable. The OG Xbox S controller was good but I wasn't a fan of the white & black buttons.

It's only gotten better with each iteration.

@Tharsman I did the same thing and it also works on my original Xbox, so I am very happy about that. I can use one controller on all of the Xboxes. Wirelessly as well.

If the X360 had a better dpad I would say the 360. Got both right now and the 360 bumpers feel so much better than series/one

@ZYDIO Which adapter are you guys using for that?

How is the latency?

If they put the Elite Series 2 disc d-pad on the stock Series X controller, I think it would be perfect. Oh and make the controller bigger again like the controller before it or the Elite Series 2.

@evan23 I use the Brook Gaming Wingman XB2. There is no noticeable latency whatsoever wired or wireless. If you are going to use it on an original Xbox you will need an adapter that goes from USB female to the Xbox controller port.

@Utena-mobile

Btw I've held the Duke (weird name) one, and that's probably the worst controller ever made imo. lol. It's so hard to hold and it feels like I can barely reach all the buttons. It lends some believability to the complaint that video game consoles used to be a guys-only thing.

There is a bit of a funny history behind the reason that thing was so big. MS outsourced the design of the controller board to some company, I forget the details but I think it was somewhat of a "someone we know" kind of deal, and by the time they got the board, and realized it was too big, they didn't have enough time to have it redesigned and had to work around the giant thing to design the enclosure. They made sure to have the S model ready for the Japanese launch of the console.

Oh found the video interview:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFaNgmSDXtY

@Tharsman I remember that. They had to get that Xbox out there.

They are all perfect but I prefer the Series gamepads.

@Tharsman Roflol. I can only imagine the conversations after they got the board back. That's hilarious. lol

Used them all and it’s easily the current Series controllers. The OG controllers are nostalgic but just feel too strange without LB/RB. The Xbox 360 controllers have a bad dpad and give me thumb blisters after extended use. The Xbox One improved all that and the Series controllers kept the improvements but added more grip.

I still feel like the Controller S is underappreciated (getting neither the praise of the One/Series, nor the nostalgia and mockery of the Duke), but I have to admit that the newer controllers are better overall.

The black and white buttons are fine for what they are, but they can't beat the conveniently-placed bumpers found on everything from the 360 onward.

Why didn't Xbox keep with the d-pad that could switch from 4-way to 8-way? I loved that gimmick.

Everything past the 360 controller has just been fine tuning. Mostly for the D-Pads, but other things too.

Series S|X and Elite controllers. The 360 had a horrendous d-pad. The XB1 d-pad was better, but not great. The Duke had good sticks (round/domed right stick). Unfortunately, the buttons were more for show than function.

In terms of tech, yeah, the Series controller is incredible! But from an ergonomics stand point, other than that awful D-Pad, the 360 is on another level imo. I have never used a more comfortable controller

@NEStalgia yeah I must have went through 5 to 8 of the 360 controller's. I wasn't sure if I was being too ruff while going crazy on bad company and gears 2. The did feel great in the hand though.

@evan23 @ZYDIO I have the Brook Wingman XE2 converter that connects Xbox controllers to PS4, PS3, Switch and PC. No latency noticed but I usually play with the wire. You can connect Xbox 360, Xbox One, Xbox Elite, fighting sticks and Mega Drive Mini controllers wired only and Switch Pro, PS5/PS4/PS3, Xbox Series S|X and Xbox Elite Series 2 wired and via Bluetooth.

The Xbox Elite controllers are my favourite controllers ever. My first Xbox controller was the Xbox Elite controller before it launched because I pre-ordered the Xbox One Elite bundle, a rare bundle that has the Xbox One with a hybrid drive and that launched before the controller.

Hi there fellow gamers.
Just like @themightyant said, I also have a soft spot for the Xbox 360 controller, mostly because I loved my 360 back in the day. And I do like my Xbox One PC controller as well.
But as for my favourite it has to be the Series X controller.
Why? One simple reason: The D-pad is actually good. Not great, but good enough so I can play Guilty Gear Strive, Killer Instinct and Samurai Shodown on my Series X.
The trigers have always been good, as well as the analog sticks, even if they are not in a symmetrical configuration.
By the way, I must have been lucky since I never got the Ring of death on my two Xbox 360 consoles.
Of all the gaming systems that I owned, only my original PS3 failed me. It even got my Dragon Age disc.
Had to start all over again on PC.
Cheers and happy gaming folks

@Carck Totally this! Wired 360 was hands down the best controller. It was a sad day when my puppy chewed the cable

I’m def in the minority but i actually prefer the feel of the XBONE controller over the Series X. I can’t can really describe what it is, but it just feels better to me somehow.

Series X/S controller is THE best ever for me. Xbox One controller is not that much different, but the tactile sensations are more pleasant with the Series X/S, maybe the plastic is better.
Xbox360 controller was very good for its time, definitely better than the PS3 DualShock, although I know people who said that the PS3 DualShock was better (I just don't understand those people...).
However, if we don't compare controllers from the same generation, then the PS4 DualShock is better than X360 controller. Moreover, it's better than the PS5 DualSense.
So, my rating is
1. Series X/S controller
2. Xbox One controller
3. PS4 DualShock
4. PS5 DualSense
5. Xbox 360 controller
6. Others.
But it's all a very subjective thing. Many PC players don't use a controller at all and they're saying that nothing compares to keyboard+mouse.

I voted the Series X/S because it's basically the result of them continuously evolving the original controller S. It's like with every generation, I could see improvements being made. In fact the Series controller is basically the same thing as the Xbox One controller, just the latest revision of that really.

@Banjo- the Wingman XB2 is similar to the XE2 in the way that it allows you to use pretty much whatever controller you want to different Xboxes. I can use PlayStation 3, 4 and 5 controllers if I want to wired or wirelessly. Which I'm sure is awesome for a lot of people that like those controllers better. It says it has support for over 125 different controllers. I just use it to use my Series X controller or my Elite Series 2 controller on the original Xbox or Xbox 360. It's pretty cool using the Elite Series 2 on the original Xbox because that's also what I use when I'm playing original Xbox games on the Series X and basically I can play any console and get used to just having the same controller everywhere as well as on PC. That's when I start to wonder why there isn't just some universal protocol that everything uses for controllers so every controller already works on every device. Then I'm like oh wait there's Bluetooth, but all the consoles have to have some proprietary nonsense instead of everyone working together and using a low latency Bluetooth protocol. I think that by default every controller should just work with everything, kind of like how keyboards and mice work.

I almost forgot that I also use it to use the Xbox 360 controller on the original Xbox sometimes just because. I haven't tried it with using the Xbox 360 controller on the Series X but that woud be cool. Maybe someone else on here has tried that and can share their experience. I guess in theory it should work because it does allow the use of PlayStation 3, 4 or 5 controllers on the Xbox One and Series consoles and if it supports over 125 controllers then the 360 controller should work as well.

@ZYDIO Yes, this one also supports over 100 controllers but I listed the popular ones. I chose this model because why wouldn't I use the best controller (Xbox) on an Xbox console? My intention is to use the Xbox controller on other devices. Then again, I don't have older Xbox consoles like you. I agree that all controllers should use the same protocol like in the past, some consoles used the same ports as the PC, wasn't Mega Drive one of them? I also have an adapter for the Xbox that I bought to use my arcade stick, specifically the Mad Catz Street Fighter V Arcade Stick Tournament Edition S+ and the adapter is Brook P3/P4 XOne Controller Adapter. Oh, and I threw my PS4 (Dual Shock 4) controller away when the battery died. It became useless because it only works on Bluetooth.

Another difference is that Xbox uses its own Xbox Wireless which has less latency than Bluetooth so at least they have an excuse but I found it disgusting when Nintendo launched Switch and didn't support the Wii U Pro Controller when both consoles use Bluetooth and launched in the same generation.

@F1at8mot0 It's probably the size. The Xbox One controller is slightly bigger than the Series X|S controller and the Xbox Elite Series 1 is also bigger than the Xbox Elite Series 2. It's a small difference but I feel it in my palms.

@Banjo- Did you know Sega Genesis/Mega Drive controllers work on an Atari 2600? I had both of them hooked up to the TV a really long time ago and I realized that they had the same connector and I just gave it a shot and it worked. It was a really weird playing the Atari 2600 games with a Genesis controller but it actually worked better than the joystick. I never did try to plug the 2600 controller into the Genesis though. Oh yeah, I almost forgot. You said that you threw away the PlayStation controller when the battery died. Did you know you could just open it up and replace the battery?

@Banjo- Where I noticed the difference in size between the Xbox One and the Series X controller is the spacing between the buttons and the buttons are actually closer to the analog stick. The Elite controllers actually feel bigger than the Xbox One controllers but the Series X controllers are the smallest.

@ZYDIO The thumbstick rubber tore apart and I hate the Dual Shock 4 shape, handles and triggers. When I found out that it could not be used wired I decided to threw it away (recycling point, not the rubbish bin because it has a battery inside).

It would be great to use controllers on any platform. You can use the new Xbox controllers via Xbox Wireless on Xbox and via Bluetooth on PC and wired on both but it seems that Sony and Nintendo only want people to use their newest controllers.

I also noticed that the buttons are more separated on the Xbox Elite Controller Series 1. I liked that controller the most in terms of size and buttons placement but Xbox Elite Controller Series 2 is overall better and although it uses a built-in battery, it lasts a very long time and you can also use it wired. The PS4 and PS5 controllers battery life is very short and after the battery of the PS4 controller dies, the controller becomes useless.

You may have had something wrong with your Dualshock 4 controller. They work just fine over USB wired. I picked one up to feel authentic while I was subscribed to PlayStation now on PC. I used it wired at first for quite a while while I was using it on my laptop and I did not use it over Bluetooth until I plugged my laptop into the TV to play on the couch. With all that said, I could not stand that controller. It was so uncomfortable. I cannot stand the symmetrical analog sticks and the analog stick material and shape on the PlayStation 4 and 5 controllers are absolutely horrible. Also, like you said the battery life is abysmal compared to my Elite Series 2 or even the Microsoft battery pack for the Series X controller or even double A's on the Series X controller. I don't know what kind of battery they have in those PlayStation controllers but it's a rip off.

Does it feel like the dualshock 4 is too wide? That's one of the problems I had with it and the handles were angled incorrectly to be comfortable.

Only the last model. The original model, even when a USB cable is connected, the controller only communicates via Bluetooth and the cable is used only for charging the controller. As I said, the controller is completely useless once the battery dies.

For my hands, the handles are thin and short and, as you said, they are angled incorrectly in ergonomic terms. On top of that, you need to hold the controller in a different position for pressing either the bumpers or triggers easily.