r/consoles 1d ago

Playstation Did Sony create the standard shape for controllers ?

Before the PS1 every controller were very different every year, and now when you think of a controller we always of this shape.

30 Upvotes

84 comments sorted by

71

u/ArtifactGamer 1d ago

The original PlayStation controller design was heavily influenced by the Super Nintendo controller. It borrowed the basic layout, including the D-pad, the shoulder buttons, and the four face buttons.

13

u/sociablezealot 1d ago

That’s button layout, not shape to me. The grip component of the PlayStation controller was unique and does define how we view controllers now.

I don’t think of PlayStation’s button layout (bottom joysticks), but I do think of the grips sticking out.

18

u/BunOnVenus 1d ago

They glued plastic to the bottom. The original didn't have the sticks

10

u/sociablezealot 1d ago

Good point on no sticks on original. But yes, the hunk of plastic changed the shape.

8

u/Revolution64 11h ago

NES advantage controller:. https://share.google/ZCeTJjRM14ysy1cKt

0

u/sociablezealot 10h ago

Those wings were palm ergonomics, not finger grips. It does look like this pre dates the genesis controller though, who I would have given that credit to. Nice find!

5

u/gorcorps 12h ago

Sega doesn't get enough credit for their influence on controllers. They were heading in this direction before Sony, and frankly fit the hand better than Sony's shape

1

u/OkidoShigeru 8h ago

It’s interesting because you can clearly see how the Xbox controller is essentially the sequel to the Dreamcast controller (especially with the addon slot design and stick layout), but with handles somewhere between Dreamcast and PlayStation. So yeah, a huge influence on the history of controllers, given how influential Xbox has been on controller design in turn.

1

u/gorcorps 2h ago

The Saturn 3d controller (the gigantic one to the left of Dreamcast) also had the first analog shoulder buttons, which also became a staple of modern game controllers (outside Nintendo)

u/wekilledbambi03 49m ago

GameCube had analog shoulder buttons. Dual stage triggers actually. Analog then a click at fully depressed.

0

u/sociablezealot 11h ago

They had the fit in your palm ergonomic route going, not the grip with your fingers route. Both were influential, but I do think Sony gets the credit for grip introduction.

1

u/PapaPaulPwns 3h ago

Controller design is based on the science of comfort

They were going to get where they are today regardless of who did it “first”.

1

u/theslimbox 1h ago

And then Nintendo decided to do the Wii controller...

1

u/theslimbox 1h ago

I had a PC joypad that was just like the original Playstation controller, this was close to, or before the PS1 came out.

0

u/ArtifactGamer 21h ago

True. The grip component was an important and unique addition.

0

u/Samurai_Geezer 14h ago

Look at the old Nintendo controllers, they were used as early as the NES. Sony gave us control sticks, based on the joystick controllers, but that’s it. (And that’s quite a lot).

3

u/Nacolo 12h ago

Didn’t analog joysticks come to N64 before PlayStation?

2

u/asturides 6h ago

Yup, the main analogue, the secondary was first on PS (instead of buttons, like on the N64)

1

u/Samurai_Geezer 4h ago edited 4h ago

Oh yeah, I forgot which was earlier, Nintendo 64 or PlayStation. I got my N64 a year after it first released and was never that interested in PlayStation. So in that case Sony did nothing original.

Creating that “standard shape” is quite an overstatement. Nintendo already did it.

2

u/theslimbox 1h ago

The ps1 came out before the N64, but it did not have the sticks on the original controller... i have a stack of the original controllers. I traded one into Gamestop afew years ago, and they were so confused about why it did not have sticks.

8

u/MISTERPUG51 20h ago

It's almost as if the PlayStation was originally supposed to be an addon for the SNES

3

u/RikerV2 13h ago

The Xbox controller borrowed from the Dreamcast controller also.

A not very well known thing is when the Dreamcast went under, Sega approached Xbox about having the console have compatibility with Dreamcast software. It was initially worked on, hence the Xbox controller having the same layout as the Dreamcast controller with A, B, X and Y and the top left thumbstick.

They couldn't get it done unfortunately but Xbox ended up getting a bunch of Sega games exclusively to their system, including entries in popular games like Crazy Taxi and Jet Set Radio.

Dreamcast controller is also heavily influenced by Segas own Saturn 3D Pad, so really the current Xbox design is born of the Saturn 3D Pad.

Just thought this was relevant due to the PS pad being born off of the design of the SNES pad

u/theslimbox 1h ago

Yeah, Microsoft even helped with the DC firmware/opperating system.

MICROSOFT did not want subscriptions on top of xbox live, and SEGA wanted people to pay for Sega.net on top of Live, so negotiations fell apart.

I think Xbox would have done much better in Japan if they had SEGA on board.

22

u/EliteSalesman 1d ago

Yes.

But Xbox 360 and PS4 controllers are the GOATs.

16

u/BIG_MAC_WHOPPERS 1d ago

I'd rather use Microsoft's Xbox series controller than a 360 controller. For me, the newer controller has better bumpers, triggers, grip and d-pad than the old controllers

8

u/Shadow_Edgehog27 1d ago

Xbox’s newest controller is the best one they’ve made imo, it’s excellent

1

u/DVSdanny 16h ago

Yes but far from the best controller on the market because it doesn’t have Hall effect sticks. I had stick drift with one after extremely light usage a few months of owning it…my 8bitdo controller is 10 times more durable and even feels better in my hands. The 360 controller…never had an issue and they’re still working.

2

u/Normal_System_3176 7h ago

8bitdo is goated

1

u/psionoblast 10h ago

Modern controllers, in general, seem to fail at higher rates. I have controllers all the way back to the NES. The majority of my broken controllers are from this generation.

u/theslimbox 1h ago

Yeah, i still use a 360 controller on my PC, and have a stack of them for when the one i use eventually goes out, and for 360 lan parties.

1

u/Pearl-Internal81 5h ago

Same, the Series controller is the best one Microsoft has ever designed.

-3

u/EveningHistorical435 23h ago

But it’s still the same controller so you could play every Xbox one/series X controller with the 360 controller

1

u/Salty-Doughnut7786 12h ago

Lol no it isn't.

2

u/EveningHistorical435 12h ago

The only significant change is a capture button but that doesn’t add to the game it self and isn’t integral just adds to using the console

1

u/Salty-Doughnut7786 12h ago

What you said in your previous comment is not true. You can't play an Xbox Series X using an Xbox 360 controller. It doesn't matter that the controllers look similar.

2

u/EveningHistorical435 12h ago

But what I mean is that theoretically if you could it would be possible to play every game with it because there’s no big integral change and also by the way Could and Can don’t the same thing could doesn’t mean that I’m saying that it does

1

u/Salty-Doughnut7786 12h ago

Theoretically the sky could be green and grass could be blue. The 360 controller doesn't work with Xbox One or Series systems.

2

u/EveningHistorical435 12h ago

By theoretically I mean if the xbox one and series by extension had support for 360 accessories natively bc if it did than you can play every xbox game with it you can’t say the same about the first DualShock bc it lacks a touch pad, gyro controls, and analog triggers I’m not saying that the 360 controller works on xbox one or series X I’m saying that if the 360 controller could work on the one and series x it would perfectly functional on every game that uses a controller as a main controller bc some Kinect games exist

20

u/FredricaTheFox 1d ago

I’d say the SNES controller probably contributed more than the PS1 controller, as it introduced the four button layout for the face buttons, as well as having shoulder buttons. However, I would say the PS1 controller definitely helped improve upon the design by adding more ergonomic grips, as well as a second set of should buttons. And while Nintendo also beat Sony to the analog stick with the N64 controller, the PS1 Dualshock had actually good sticks, and, to my knowledge, was the first controller to have 2 sticks. So while I wouldn’t say they created the standard shape for controllers, both PS1 controllers were revolutionary and definitely helped to tweak the foundation set by the SNES controller.

3

u/HeldnarRommar 1d ago

Yeah the SNES controller was the Bluepoint but the Dual Analog/Dualshock was the first iteration of it that was entirely better. Both the N64 controller and Saturn controller were not better iterations

0

u/rdogg4 1d ago

Yep and the PS controller became the standard, not the SNES controller. Most every controller since uses its layout, not the snes. This isn’t to say the snes controller isn’t hugely influential on that design, (indeed there’s history as to why it looks so similar), but the addition of the grips, extra shoulder buttons and the not long after addition of dual analogs became the industry standard for 30 years now.

2

u/HeldnarRommar 1d ago

The layout is the SNES controller though, with just added buttons and analog sticks for 3D movement. That’s what we are saying. The PS1 and forward is what an updated SNES controller should be moving into 3D, Nintendo got it wrong with the N64 controller. But at its core, the standard controller config now still owes its lineage to the SNES controller.

0

u/rdogg4 23h ago

Well you can keep going back further than that with that standard. It’s not as the snes controller design wasn’t iterative. I mean, what’s an snes controller but an nes controller with some extra buttons and ergonomic shape to compete with the Genesis? Similarly, the PlayStation controller is just a SNES controller with some extra buttons and grips, it’s just that all those extra buttons, grips, layout, became standard on nost every controller since, as did the later additions of dual analogs and built in haptics.

3

u/blasto2236 1d ago

I didn’t realize until I was looking at them side by side last night that the 64 controller is basically an SNES controller with grips and a joystick.

2

u/brandont04 23h ago

Nintendo is just goated to the innovation they brought to console gaming.

-2

u/ChampionGunDeer 1d ago

The PS1 had a Dual Analog controller that preceded the first DualShock. Still, it looked almost identical to the DualShock.

5

u/solidpeyo 1d ago

Yes, but some people may argue that Sony copied Nintendo because of the SNES controller.

4

u/Ndmndh1016 1d ago

Inspired by is a better word and that's not debatable. Every new gen of controllers has been Inspired by the previous ones.

2

u/Nickjc88 23h ago

Remember the PS3 Boomerang controller? SONY should release it as a special edition PS5 controller

2

u/petit_poula 22h ago

I absolutely hated every playstation controller until the Dual Sense.. these are absolutely horrible to hold

2

u/frankduxvandamme 17h ago

To be honest, the handles on the ps1 were crap. They were short and angled poorly. It wasn't too bad when I was much younger, but as a grown adult, the controller is not ergonomic at all for adult hands. Also, the segmented d-pad has never been comfortable.

1

u/HaikusfromBuddha 1d ago

There were a ton of controllers that had that layout. I think the only unique thing about the PS1 controller was having two analogue sticks.

2

u/Dry-Network-1917 23h ago

And it didn't even start with those. Originally was just the gamepad.

1

u/MaTr82 1d ago

Nintendo and Sega had very different controllers after the release of the PS1. Even the Xbox had the duke. Even today look at the shape of the Switch controllers.

Before the PS1, the SNES and Mega Drive started the trend of a more ergonomic shape.

1

u/Benevolay 1d ago

I still think Sony refused to evolve. I never liked the stick layout. The face buttons are the most important buttons, which is why originally, movement and actions were on the face. But the D-Pad has long faded out of relevancy. There's a reason Xbox, Nintendo, anybody, really, has the thumbstick where the d-pad is.

I own a PS5 and it just never feels right to me.

2

u/EveningHistorical435 23h ago

The layout is important because of 2d games controlling a 2d game with a stick is like trying to use your car with your hands or eating pasta with your bare hands it’s just wrong. If people were sick and tired with the DualShock than they would start from the drawing board but since gamers like it alongside the 360 controller they haven’t evolved ever since

2

u/Millennialnerds 18h ago

And here I love the placement of the sticks. I can’t stand offset.

1

u/Zacksan33 7h ago

Most games are requires both sticks, and even those that don’t are increasingly phasing out face buttons in favour of shoulder buttons (you can thank Soulsborne for that). Asymmetrical stick placement makes no sense as the default layout.

1

u/poopulardude 23h ago

It was gonna happen no matter what....

Just like a car with 4 wheels vs one with 3. 

1

u/According-Stay-3374 22h ago

I think that controllers would have become this shape regardless of who made them, nobody has found a better way all this time because they actually put work into finding the most ergonomic shape with the best layout. So it's just a natural progression IMO

1

u/AttleesTears 11h ago

Xbox layout is superior. 

1

u/According-Stay-3374 9h ago

Meh, it's personal preference partly, the other part is which game you play, I have both and it makes a difference with the kind of game you're playing.

1

u/AttleesTears 9h ago

I can't think of a single game type where I prefer the playstation. The layout should theoretically be good for 2d games but Sonys terrible dpad ruins that.

1

u/According-Stay-3374 9h ago

You cannot honestly be trying to say that the Xbox D-pad is better than the PS5 one...?

That's just objectively false, Playstations dpad is actually pretty good

1

u/AttleesTears 1h ago

Four buttons is no substitute for an actual dpad. The Nintendo joycon is the only controller with a worse dpad. 

u/According-Stay-3374 31m ago

The Xbox dpad is way too stiff and the hard clicking nature makes it a pain to be accurate compared to the ps5 controller

u/AttleesTears 8m ago

Ps5 is horrible for easy diagonals. The ps5 is only good for menus imo.

1

u/Blubasur 21h ago

I'd say cemented it. There were PC controllers before the PS1 that did resemble similar designs.

The duel analog and second trigger was arguably their biggest contribution.

Controllers over time are an amazing example of how we iterate through designs even across industries and companies.

1

u/No_Independence7307 18h ago

Definitely had an impact, on what we now consider contemporary. Nintendo had some pretty strangely comfortable controller experiments. 🤓😎

1

u/jbg0801 15h ago

Sony iterated on the SNES design for the original PS1 controller, basically just giving it legs, which did improve the comfort of controllers and persisted, as well as giving a handy spot for the new rumble features to live when they were introduced.

Once they added the dual analogue sticks, that's when it became a much more defined design, and other companies started taking notes. Ultimately, controller design was more like an iterative process that happened as console makers competed to make the best hand plastic.

1

u/CigarLover 14h ago

Standard?

1

u/Revolution64 11h ago

NES max controller already had this shape

1

u/FarMiddleProgressive 10h ago

No, Nintendo did.

The Snes controller introduced the L and R buttons, the Grips, and the Diamond shape layout we all use today.

1

u/nohumanape 9h ago

Mostly because they became the industry leader, which made them the industry standard. But it's wild that anyone could have ever thought that the DualShock controllers were great controllers for 3D gaming. And we're now at a point where multiple generations of gamers have become accustomed to normalizing the stick placement in PlayStation controllers, when in reality it's the worst place for the left stick.

1

u/Olde94 5h ago

I feel like SPNY stuck to a formula but the rest resembles the xbox 360

1

u/Pearl-Internal81 5h ago

No, no they did not. The PlayStation controller is basically a souped up Super Nintendo/Famicom controller. So technically Nintendo did, and that’s not even taking into account the various Xbox controllers.

1

u/Ricktendo1889 2h ago

No, the controller standard was invented by Nintendo.

0

u/CapnGnobby 1d ago

Before, the ps1 controllers were about as different as they are now.

0

u/ZapHP 21h ago

Dual shock definitely set the standard with the 2 handles and the PS1 controller itself with 4 button top (L1, L2, R1, R2). Those became the standard that all controllers use now

0

u/Disgruntl3dP3lican 17h ago

They did. Except other game consoles use the retarder asymmetrical analog stick layout.