Topic: Unpopular Gaming Opinions

@JohnnyShoulder That is 'new' ones as the build quality - especially on the thumbsticks aren't great that they don't last me very long either...

@Kidfried Never had any issue with my Xbox 360 battery compartments - those things were built much better and tougher than the DS4 and XB1 generation - mind you so was the DS3 too. I had two battery packs and a charger throughout the whole generation as well as Rechargeable AA's but never really used them and they lasted years - OK by the end they were not lasting as long - around a couple of days instead of a week - still longer than the DS4!!

As I have said before, the DS4 is by far the best designed controller Sony have ever made - really closed the gap on MS's design. Making the grips more bulbous rather than thin and tapered with much more comfortable trigger angles has significantly improved the DS4. I do think the speaker, touch pad and lightbar are all a 'gimmick' though and would happily buy a DS4 without these but much better built. It feels like 'cheap' and relatively thin Plastic - compared to last gen. The touch pad is barely used - other than as a single button, the light bar for me at least does nothing and the speaker, I guess has its 'merits' in some cases but overall, I wouldn't miss them at all if they removed for the DS5. I know they can't now for the 'few' titles that use these features. Its in its 'features' that 1-ups the XB1 - compared to having rumble in the triggers for haptic feedback as the only feature it has over the DS4 compared to the light bar, speaker and touchpad. To me the DS4 feels like they cut corners in some areas to make it for a price. Battery and materials are two of these - small, short lasting battery and thinner plastics. Comfort-wise, its the only Playstation controller I can use for more than a couple of hours - in fact I beat H:ZD in 6days or 75hrs, I spent 100hrs on ME:A in around 8/9 days, I beat GoW in 5days - Sessions lasting more than 10hrs and day after day too - I certainly could not of done that with the DS3 or earlier PS controllers.

Talking of H:ZD, I bought a brand new controller for that because my Day Pro controller, only a few months old,, broke - just like all the others have and every day, I would start off with a full battery and half way through, have to plug it in to keep playing because of no battery.

@KALofKRYPTON You shouldn't have to take controllers apart and reassemble. I guess I have a LOT of 'batteries' for a DS4 because I have a fair few that are 'broken' so could strip the battery out if I ever get one to last long enough so the battery dies.

@Kidfried The controller was a big thinking point for me when choosing a console for this gen. My brain kept telling me I wouldn't be able to get used to the DS4's after years with the 360 controllers. Of course that was silly as I quickly got used to them.

@BAMozzy Why not? Also, you don't 'have to' really. I've got a DS3 i use on the PSTV that I haven't bothered switching the battery out for that I just use wired. USB cables are as long as you want and never expensive.

No battery lasts forever - and as with most phones these days, ergonomics trumps removable batteries.

How do you have a few 'broken' DS4s?

Wireless controllers are nice and everything, but it's hardly as if wired controllers are the most inconvenient things in the world. I still have my MegaDrive, Saturn, PS2s, GameCube, XBOX and PS4 fightpad all wired. Funnily enough, the world doesn't end playing them.

@KALofKRYPTON you know i prefer wired controllers over wireless ones myself (i may have even said so on this tread, i can't remember) but i do think that if a controller is wireless then you should have easy access to the battery in case you have to replace it and the XB1 controller does give you that, regardless on if your using normal batteries or the XB1 plug and play kits in them but the DS4 doesn't

i still think the DS4 is a better controller overall though

@BAMozzy you have loads of broken DS4's but i think that might just be bad luck after all my OG DS4 still works fine, the analog sticks are still in really good condition and it's still very responsive (my second on the other hand is broke but that was my fault entirely, i left it on the floor and stood on it) yet i am on my 4th XB1 controller, my first the left analog stick stopped working, with my second the A button stopped working and my third just died altogether, so like i said i think it's just bad luck, we got dud controllers but it proves that BOTH have issues

@FullbringIchigo Maybe there is an 'element' of luck involved but I have had the same recurring issue with DS4's over and over and over again - usually within 3months. I am not saying that the XB1 controller is 'significantly' more durable either though as I do think they too are not as 'sturdy' as last gen controllers - with the exception of the Elite. The Elite though has been incredibly reliable and sturdy - although my day 1 Elite broke a few weeks ago - the shoulder button broke but as for the thumbsticks, top buttons, triggers etc these are still perfect and the 'shell' feels a lot more solid and well built.

Compared to last gen, I do think this gens - inc the 'standard' XB1 controller (not the custom ones like the Gears 4 I have which actually feels much more like the 360 era controllers - in terms of the plastics anyway), don't feel as 'sturdy' or as solid. The DS4 does feel like its 'thinner' plastics and has more 'flex' to it - I, like @Tasuki said, feel like I could easily snap it in two. Its gotten to the point where I want third party options as they surely can't be worse than Sony's - and was looking at the 'Scuf' controllers - the Impact or Vantage (if that releases in the UK)

In general, with this generation, I have felt that the controllers do not last as long or as well. Not counting the 'battery' issue with my DS3's, they are still perfectly functional - no broken thumbsticks - even if they do have some grooves worn into the shafts now, now issues with 'clicking the left' to sprint - the BIG issue I have with EVERY DS4. I have had a few XB1 controllers that have Left thumbstick issues - mostly that they are a bit loose and 1 will sometimes just start moving my character without me touching the controller - not everytime although it was getting more and more frequent before replacing that one.

If I was being Cynical, I would say that Sony and to a lesser degree, MS built their standard controllers to 'break' or wear out very quickly (depending on use and type of games you play) so that they have a steady income of people buying replacements. As long as the console works and remains working, people are not likely to replace it but they do need controllers so make these 'cheaply' and then people will be forced to buy.

that is EXACTLY how mine went before it stopped working completely and as for you being cynical, your probably not because it really wouldn't surprise me if they were actually doing that

I had to go through a few DS4s bedsides tbe triggers (specifically R2) kept wearing out and losing the spring, but while they don’t feel brand new, they stopped doing that after the warranty wore out, so it wasn’t too bad because I didn’t pay for the contollers again.

@Kidfried Of course I am sure its not 'my' doing. Its well documented for those that play a lot of games like CoD where you are constantly 'clicking' the left thumbstick to run. I bet you can pull up on your 'left' thumbstick and it will move a mm up - sometimes this affects running more on some controllers than others. Its as if the shaft on the switch isn't long enough for the depth of the hole on the actual thumbstick itself.

I am certain its not me as I never had this issue with any other controllers - not even the XB1 which does get worn out in different ways - either becoming a bit slack and with more of a dead zone, big grooves worn into the shaft and one that moves my character without touching the controller periodically but NONE that actually 'drop' a bit which then doesn't 'click' to run properly, if you can actually run. I have used an Elite controller since Oct 2015 and that still has perfect 'thumbsticks' still as good as new with no slack or 'wear' that you could expect after thousands and thousands of hours.

The fact that its ONLY the DS4's that have this issue and have never had this issue with ANY other controller tells me that its not 'me'. Maybe you and your friends don't play a lot of fast paced shooters that require you to constantly be clicking the thumbstick and holding it down to run....

@Kidfried That maybe true but the DS4 is also much more comfortable for FPS games but its the 'quality' of the thumbsticks and switches that is my biggest issue with the DS4. I do have squeaky triggers but they are at least much better than the DS3 in that regard. I rarely use the D-Pad unless its used for selecting some item in game but that's not 'constant' use and a lot of games I play have 'emotes' assigned to d-pad so I rarely ever use it. All the games I play use the right Thumbstick for movement and you have to click and hold down as well as push in the direction you want to move. A lot of games require you to run a lot - so you are constantly clicking and holding it down and pushing it forward so it 'grinds' on the ring. As you need to hold it down and push forward, that does put a lot of pressure on the thumbstick and as the switch seems to have a short rod (or the thumbstick that slots on to this rod as too deep a hole), it drops a bit which then affects the ability to run. Sometimes it seems OK and you can keep using it but on a lot, you get a 'stuttering' run where it will stop and start running or just stop altogether - which obviously impacts on the gaming experience. Its the only controller that has this issue and therefore its a 'design' flaw and not something I am doing. There are numerous others that also have this issue too so its not just me.

I may get through a 'lot' of controllers in relatively quick times compared to others but if I am playing more in one day than some play in a fortnight, its going to last a lot less time compared to their experience. If theirs last a year, that could be month for me in terms of hours usage. Its not unusual for me to play for more than 10hrs in a session where as some may not play that much in a week...

@BAMozzy @Kidfried Not had any problems with the thumbsticks, triggers or any other buttons for myS4's and I've played over 100 hours on games such as Battlefield 4 and The Division. I know there were a lot of issues reported with em years ago, but you don't hear about them so much these days.

@Kidfried I have to agree with @BAMozzy as I have had the same problem. Since owning my PS4 since launch, I have been through 8 DS4 controllers and no it's not me or my son it's how they are made.

I hate it when people say so it must be you because I have had mine since XXXX. No it's not me I don't throw my controllers around, slam them press the buttons really hard or any other destructive means it's the controllers themselves and people need to get off their high horses and realize they are poorly made controllers. Sony always had had low quality controllers. My PS2 I went through about 10 of them and still buy them to this day. Now compare that too my SNES launch day controllers that I still have, Sega Genesis, Gamecube, N64 and any other controller I own and you will see that it's not me. Heck the only controller I replaced over the years is a NES one and that was because my friend stepped on it by accident years ago, but that's another story.

I honestly think the whole it must be you argument when it comes to controllers are just fanboys who can't stand to here that Sony's controllers are inferior to MS.

Regardless to button position, size, shape, trigger buttons etc. Sony controllers will also be inferior to MS due to their quality. It's just how it is.

well trying to get back on topic

Unpopular Gaming Opinion: Consoles DON'T need to be able to play DVD's or blu-rays (for TV shows and Films) nor do they need to have Netflix or Amazon Video or other streaming services, they are fine just playing games

@Tasuki well, if you honestly think that, I can honestly say (again) ive had no problem with my 4 PS4 controllers other than dodgy sticks on the first 2 which I replaced I'm looking at my blue controller right now, it's as good as the day I got it out the box over 3 years ago. I dunno what you do with yours, slam them around and cover them in jam I guess 😂

@FullbringIchigo and nah, I've always enjoyed my console playing DVDs and Bluerays. The only reason I would prefer otherwise is I'd have to invest in a decent standalone player, which would run almost silently compared to the PS4. Which would be nice.

@Tasuki We are only repeating our experiences, not sure how that is deemed as being a fan boy? Think you are getting a wee bit over defensive. You may have experienced a bad run with DS4's and I doubt you are the only one, but think of how many PS4 owners are out there, if the controller was so poorly made like you claim we would soon hear about it a lot more than we currently do. Other people have already said Xbox one controllers have broken on them, but you have either chosen to ignore that or seeing that as being a fan boy.

@JohnnyShoulder Then why does everyone assume that I am the one at fault. Whenever I explain my situation as @kyleforrester87 so gracefully showed the first thing people ask is what did you do or you are too rough with your controllers. I mean come on do these people think I spend $60 just to break my controllers? Just because something breaks it doesn't mean it's the users fault can't people just accept they are poor quality?

@Tasuki I'm just winding you up. My point is just as you want people to accept there is a problem with them, you have to accept just as many (and, let's be honest, probably more) people don't have a problem with them. Maybe it's just certain batches or those made for certain areas. Or maybe you should stop dropping them so much

@Kidfried what you do in private is your own business bud.

I'm sure the people who work in ERs have to help out people who "accidentally sit on" controllers all the time.

My dualshock 4 works as well as the day I first bought the system. So does every other console controller I've ever owned. I don't own my Dreamcast anymore, but if I did, I'm pretty sure I'd still be able to use the controller for it that's floating around my closet.

Nintendo DS Lite hinges broke on me all the time, though. They're apparently built from whatever the opposite of Gameboy era Nintendium is.

Ive had five dual shocks, 3 old version 2 new, problems with triggers sticks and charging port on one, shoddy crap.