Gaming

Evil Controllers – Evil Shift Xbox One review

A necessary evil?

February 4, 2020

There are those people out there that are fine with routine controllers; and then there are those that want something more significant — and personable — when they game. That’s where peripheral makers like SCUF Gaming and Controller Chaos come in, adding a defining touch to gameplay with their various features.

Evil Controllers is no stranger to this game. They’ve been in it for years, producing quality peripherals to stay in the game with the player. And their latest line of peripherals, the Evil Controllers, are no exception.

First, they offer a customizable touch. In this case, as you can see, a controller with my name on it and a funky purple-ish design that really stands out. The back of the pad is still black, mind you, but the finish applied to the controller and the smoothness of it all is rather cool.

But it’s not just looks that makes this controller stand out. Evil Controller also added some other features that make it great to use, especially if getting masterful at your games is your thing.

You’ll notice the four buttons at the bottom of the back of the pad. These provide extra functionality where some controllers do not, so you can program and press jump and fire buttons without wearing out your thumb on the back of the pad. These can take a little getting used to at first, since they aren’t general features on controllers outside of what SCUF and, as of late, Microsoft offer with theirs. But it’s still a neat thing, especially once you set up the buttons and hit the ground running. They actually do make a difference.

There are also mild improvements to the face buttons and triggers with sensitive inclusion and “hair” reaction. No, hair isn’t growing out of your triggers, relax. We mean reaction time when it comes to pressing them. It actually works wonderfully, especially with combat games like Fortnite and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, and it’s that split second reaction that can make a difference in winning and losing a match. You’ll have to pay extra for these features, but you’ll find that they’re worth it, if precision is your thing.

I also noticed a mild stiffness with the right analog stick, and even asked the rep about this. This was actually done on purpose to give the player a slightly heightened sense of movement. Usually, with analog sticks, they’re nice and loose with getting around. But with the tightening of the right analog stick, it actually helps better with aiming and other functions, depending on what you’re playing. Again, there’s a period where you’ll need to get used to things, but it’s remarkable once it all settles in.

As far as how the controller feels, it’s good. It may not be your cup of tea if you’re used to more general models, since, again, there’s some adjustments that need to be made. But once that’s done, you’ll actually find it to be pretty much improved. Plus, the controller still takes advantage of general features you’d find on a routine Xbox 360 controller, including the light-up front panel (with monster eyes, nice), a plug-in port for a headset and a charging port.

If anything could use improvement on the controller, it’s probably the D-pad. It’s fine, but it’s set to a default option, like the same one that routine Xbox 360 controller make. If you look at peripherals made in the past, you’d see that there are improvements made in this area. For instance, with the funky eight-directional D-pad disc that Microsoft includes with its Elite controllers.

This isn’t a knock on the D-pad functionality — it’s fine — but if Evil Controllers is going all out to maximize performance, it should consider a retake on the D-pad to follow suit.

Then comes the other factor that may or may not decide if the Evil Shift controller is right for you — and that’s price. The general model in itself is $99.99, and the extra features can add up to the point of around $180. To some, that may be too high a price to pay. Others, however, may feel it’s worth it. It really depends on what you want out of a peripheral. Do you want a maximum performance controller, or just something you can jump into and play?

Overall, the Evil Shift controller is a nice improvement on the general model. Sure, there are some things that could be tweaked, like maybe moving the paddles around so they’re not bunched together at the bottom of the controller, and that D-pad. But it performs very well and really does improve your gameplay across the board, depending on what you want to play. Those of you looking to take the game to your next-level should most certainly give it a look.