Nacon releases an asymmetric PS4 controller with the left thumbstick in the correct position.
Sony’s original dual-analogue controller – the predecessor to the rumble-enabled DualShock – might have been one of the first commercially-available analogue controllers, but it’s not the best. Even by the fourth iteration DualShock 4, with glowing light bar and large, touch-sensitive pad, it’s still not the best controller.
The problem is the position of the left analogue stick. Having them both together at the bottom of the controller is just awkward and unbalanced. It might have begun as an exercise in avoiding patent infringement on the DualShock, but this was a lesson learned well by Microsoft with the Xbox controller – the Xbox One controller is the best controller – and latterly by Nintendo, with the Pro controller for Nintendo Switch (and the stick position on the built-in JoyCon controllers).
Now Nacon, a third-party peripheral maker that produces licensed controllers, is sorting out the biggest issue with the DualShock with its asymmetric PS4 controller.
Dubbed the “Asymmetric Wireless Controller” for PlayStation 4, Nacon’s new peripheral offers the same features as the official DualShock 4 – including audio functionality and that big, rectangular touchpad – but has the left analogue stick in the best position. The proper position. The Xbox controller position.
It’s not the first Nacon PS4 controller to offer this superior thumbstick position – they also offer a number of Pro controllers – but it is the first one that’s a reasonable price. The MSRP for the Nacon Asymmetric Wireless Controller is pennies under £50, just a fiver more than Sony’s official (and officially wrong) DualShock 4 controller.
There is one drawback: the Nacon Asymmetric Wireless Controller can’t make use of Bluetooth like Sony’s native DualShock 4. Instead, you’ll have to use a USB wireless dongle in one of the ports in your PS4. That does also mean you can use Nacon’s new controller with a Windows PC – which is also true of the DualShock 4 – but you don’t need a Bluetooth radio in your PC to do it.
