It's been roughly two years since Sony has released the critically acclaimed PLAYSTATION 3, Sony was under a lot of scrutiny for their choice of not adding RUMBLE to SIXAXIS, many people saw the PR spin Sony debuted along side the PS3 stating "'rumble' was last gen", while "rumble" is a last gen feature, it's almost a necessary feature, in the immersion process (no pun intended).
Back in 2005, Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo were sued for the use of vibration technology in their controllers, while Microsoft and Nintendo settled, Sony did not, they counter-sued and inevitably lost, Immersion now struck a deal with Sony to include rumble in Sony controllers, granted there being royalties.
Now we have the DUAL SHOCK 3, big brother of the "Emmy"(lol) award winning controller Sixaxis, is it up to snuff? Well lets take a look at the dimensions.
First of the profile of the controller is the same, relatively the only real difference is the analog pads on the analog sticks are thinner, the reason why? I have no explanation.
The weight is a reasonable difference, the overall grade of the DS3 feels a lot sturdier, it doesn't creek when under pressure, and the weight feels proper. Some people complained the SIXAXIS was a bit on the light side, for myself this wasn't issue.
Now to the vibration/rumble feature; nothing has really changed here, the rumble feels solid, it gives a proper kick when needed, but to much a due, the rumble depends on the game. Games like Uncharted, Warhawk, and Gran Turismo 5 feel solid, the rumble isn't used sparringly, but only when necessary, Burnout Paradise is another great example.
A game that I found lacking in rumble is Resistance: Fall of Man, while a great game the rumble provided here isn't to impressive, a standard issue weapon provides more kick than a rocket launcher, or a shotgun would.
Another game that needs to get with the program is last years Game of the Year, none other then Call of Duty 4, seemingly lacking any rumble, and with no rumble in sight, sources stating: "It would take to long to go back, and re-code the game". To sum it up, 'Heart breaking'.
Things Sony could've done to improve the controller but didn't:
Concave Analog Sticks, and Concave triggers similar to the Xbox 360 controller; many people dislike Sony's design choices regarding there controllers, the triggers aren't concave, there convex (away from the finger) and this design with sweaty hands leads to frustration, I know I happen to be one of these people, games like Warhawk and Burnout Paradise use the triggers L2/R2 to increase acceleration on vehicles slipping off the accelerator can be a nuisance and as hardcore gamers know, this can be the difference between winning and losing.
Overall the Dual Shock 3 is a worth while investment, especially for PS3 owners who already need another controller because of wear and tear, or just to have another controller, The DS3 is priced at a MSRP of $54.99, available at many electronic stores, and your local Wal-mart, you surely won't be disappointed.
In this article Jon Ireson of RealGamerNewz takes up the discussion of DualShock 3 support for the PlayStation 4 and goes over the many technical as well as logical reasons why it is not necessary and if anything, would only hold innovation back for the gamer.
I agree! I welcome a new controller. The dualshock has been around since Playstation 1. I think it is time for Sony to try something new.
It makes sense seeing how different the new controller is and the extra features so I don't mind that the DS3 won't work. The only thing that gets me is what is that light bar for. Is it just 6axis? And if so why could they just but it in the controller like the DS3?
From Shuhei Yoshida on the PSBlog:
"On the front side of DUALSHOCK 4 is a light bar with LED that illuminate in various colors to match the color of the character in a game as a simple way to identify players. The colors can also provide useful information to players, such as when their character has taken damage during a game. DUALSHOCK 4 was developed alongside a second peripheral, a dual camera which can sense the depth of the environment in front of it and also track the 3D location of the controller via its light bar. The new camera incorporates four microphones capable of accurate sound detection and source origination, and it will support the PlayStation Move motion controller with more precision than ever before."
I don't understand why people would complain. It's basically a DS3 but upgraded and better. It hasn't changed that much so fans won't recognize the controller. The buttons are all there, the analogue sticks are there in the same place. They've just refined it and made it better:
-Reduced latency
-Better rumble
-Speaker integrated
-Lightbar LED (enables Move support of some sort)
-Touchpad for (additional input)
-Headphone jack
-Better triggers for shooters
-More ergonomic
-More texture on the device for better grip
-Share and options button
All that, while still keeping the traditional DS3 design which is familiar to millions of gamers. The only thing they removed was start and select buttons, which honestly were a bit unnecessary to begin with. I haven't pressed Start and Select to get out of a Tekken game in ages, nor have i pressed Select to trigger a taunt since Devil May Cry. These can all be integrated with touchpad.
Oh the smell of butthurt fan in the morning lol... It was announced like TWO months ago that the DS3 wasn't gunna work on the PS4, I don't know why everyone seems so surprised now...
for a while I was interested in the PS system because you could use it to play older games... but I agree now that newer systems will have updated/ altered functions so backwards compatability is not always going to be viable...if the new controller is going to have more options on it then using an older one does not make sense to me... as the article stated if you buy the newer system it does not mean you have to discard the older one if I had access to a working PS1 I would still use it today even if I had the newer systems too.
It would be useless for DS3 support since PS4 was built with the new controller features in mind
With only five days left until the (almost certain) announcement of the Playstation 4, this photo appeared and made the rounds of Destructoid, Kotaku and everywhere else.
Business at the front. Party at the back? A list of observations and questions regarding this prototype. From the front here it looks quite “normal” but the more you think about it the stranger it gets - could there be some unique features we're missing?
Smh back at you? Agreed, it's likely not the final design, and for the record I like the look of the weird prototype anyway. :) It definitely has a few visible improvements already in this form.
As the DualShock has been the consistent PlayStation icon for many fans, the question that seems to be raised is ‘what will happen to it with each new generation?’ As rumors have once again sparked about a different DualShock 4, the Daily Reaction crew of Seb and Dan address the potential for changing the DS for the PS4.
Please no, I'm used to the DS3. Biometrics could be cool, but no touch stuff.
Definitely redesign the L2 & R2 triggers on the DS3...I hate the way they slant in..need them more like the dual shocks of old
I F$#KIN hate the L2 and R2 buttons on the DS3! such uncomfortable useless buttons and no matter how fast I push them, they still seem to go up and down really slow?!?!.
If they are gonna change the controller for PS4 then they should at least make the DS3 compatible with the PS4 as well. That way those that prefer DualShock can continue to use it.
Why not give console gamers a choice on which controller they want to choose.. its not hard.
Guys, wait until you see the new controller before moaning. I know its been 15 years and i appreciate after that long, change is hard. But things move on.
Sony have a good track record with controllers. Whatever they come up with, Im sure it'll be good.
@Domination
Like the last one they came up with for PS3 and quickly threw out the window for DS3?
Here is a thought: Offer 2 variations of PS4 controllers!! Offer the standard dualshock 4, but then also blow us away with something new particularly for the bigger hands of adults.
I own PS1,PS2 and PS3 and I've always found the Gamecube and smaller Xbox1 controllers the most comfortable.
The Ps3 controller can cause pains in my hands after a few long hours of pressing in L3 while moving around in 1st person games. This is because the controller handles are too small and awkwardly slanted.
The joysticks need concave tops for more control so people aren't tempted to buy those little snap on things.
For shooters I believe the Xbox joystick placement is optimal, but i'm open to new layouts.
simple answer yes but change isn't always so good so maybe a make some changes but keep the main concept the same
everyone wants change till it happens than every day will be articles about how the old controller was so much better
i am happy with DS3 as i was with DS1 and 2
no, a new controller is good if they give you the option to use the ps3 controller on the ps4. that way you get the best of both worlds. see, change not always so bad.
They just have to update it, sort some things out here and there to make it even better and they'll be good to go
perfect controller in my opinion.. nice button layout (though I guess, its just because I am soooooo used to it.), nice form factor.
only change I would request to be had would be that they modify the part of housing that holds the analogue sticks wherein I wish it would be like whats in the vita(encased in a piece of metal to avoid chipping)
Nintendo didn’t settle, they use their own technology
Interesting.