Today, Nintendo revealed a brand new game controller for the Wii U. It’s aimed right at the hardcore. And boy, talk about déjà vu.
Dubbed the Wii U Pro Controller, it looks very much like the Xbox 360 controller — not just in colour, but also, in shape. There are shoulder buttons and what look to be triggers. The upper middle of the controller has three buttons, with a Home button on both (the Xbox 360’s, of course, is bigger).
If you were fumbling around in the dark, you might get them confused.
However, there are major differences. While the upper left on the Xbox 360 and the Wii U Pro Controller has a thumbstick, the upper right is different on both controllers: The Xbox 360 has face buttons, while the Wii U Pro Controller has a thumbstick. In face, the right half of the Wii U Pro Controller is an inverted version of the Xbox 360 controller.
The Wii U Pro Controller’s lower middle has a power button, which is a major difference between the two controllers. The Wii U Pro Controller also has four lights under the power button, indicating how many controllers are in use.
And while both do have directional pads, the Wii U Pro Controller’s Dpad is a proper directional pad. The Xbox 360’s directional pad is one of that controller’s weakest features (okay, it sucks), so the Wii U Pro Controller having a proper Dpad is a major difference between the two. If anything, that’s a selling point.
Of course, Microsoft and Sony have yet to show their next generation controllers. And of course, home console makers need to have symmetry among their controllers so they have run multiplatform games with comfortable control schemes. Whether or not this Wii U Pro Controller is comfortable, we’ll have to wait and see.
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