Here’s a gaming experience I’m sure many of you will find relatable. In the middle of a heated battle you need to make a quick weapons or ability selection via the D-Pad. Your left thumb, as nimble and expertly shaped as it may be, presses more on a diagonal rather than directly on one of the cross directions. In an instant your character now brandishes an inferior weapon or power and you are dropped to the ground before the mistake has a prayer of being corrected.
This condition, which I’ll dub “D-Pad Slippage,” may not be as big an issue in single-player gaming as the setback might only cost you a minute or two of extra gaming. In a multiplayer adversarial match where every kill counts, it could mean the difference between claiming victory or languishing in the middle of the pack.
Looking to provide a remedy to D-Pad Slippage is Evil Controllers, a company whose core initiative is modding Xbox 360 and, in some select cases, Playstation 3 controllers so they can be the best they can be. Their solution is the Evil D-Pad Controller, a modified controller that removes the D-Pad entirely and replaces it with four buttons representing left, right, up and down. It’s a simple solution to a rather simple but frustrating problem.
At first glance there’s no sign of modding whatsoever on the Evil D-Pad Controller. The beveled edges holding the new buttons don’t look like an added addition. Instead they’re presence is natural as if the controller was originally designed as their permanent home.
Evil Controllers promises this scheme will result in “100% error-free gaming.” After putting an Xbox 360 Evil D-Pad Controller to the test while playing Call of Duty: Black Ops, I wholeheartedly agree with their pledge. The D-Pad is primarily used (depending on your button configuration) for selecting equipment. Never once while experimenting did I miss the “up” D-Pad press of the button to make my selection. It worked flawlessly.
The only real downside to the button vs. D-Pad layout is you lose the diagonals altogether with the buttons. If there’s a game requiring a “wheel” selection between 8 objects or weapons, you would need to change the controller configuration to assign that to the analog sticks (assuming the game being played allowed that).
The Evil D-Pad Xbox 360 Controller doesn’t come cheap. The wireless version will cost you $59.99 at the Evil Controllers website and there are no additional frills out of the box. For someone looking for a more ideal multiplayer button configuration, the extra few bucks may be worth peace of mind to know your left thumb won’t let you down again.
– Dan Bradley
February, 2011 is Girl Gaming Month at Evil Controllers and they’ve cooked up something special for you girl gamers out there. Hop over to their Evil Blog to read more about it.
