HORI Fighting Commander Octa Designed for Xbox Series X|S By - Officially Licensed by Microsoft - Xbox Series X

You're going to hear a lot of negative talk about this product's D-Pad. I was used to a more traditional playstation or NES style cross pad, and this one did in fact initially hurt my thumb when I started using it. However, after a couple days of use, the pain went away, and the controller continued to outperform my arcade stick, nailing inputs and letting me bind Parry and Drive Impact to the right shoulders, and taunt to the Left shoulder.The D-Pad doesn't cause any pain for me personally anymore. The analog stick is a nice option for running around in World Tour. Camera controls are a little wonky in this mode without a right stick but it is what it is. This eight way stick gives the game pad more usability as a general use PC controller for different types of games.I have two of these... the first was unknowingly shipped from another country so it took awhile, I ordered one locally and they happened to arrive together. I ended up having an account on PC and an account on Xbox so I just kept them both and I love them. I do better than on a fight stick or a stock controller.Important note, however... you MUST update the controller's firmware or it will drop diagonal inputs on the D-Pad. You can do this by running an app called HORI Device Manager while the controller is plugged in. You can also remap some controls this way, although I believe duplicate bindings are not allowed.The only thing better than this is gonna be an old Xbox One Fighting Commander... and frankly while that had a better D-Pad technically, it wasn't better by a whole lot, and it goes for 250 dollars or more on auction sites and will come used of course, presumably without a long life span ahead of it. The Octa is your best, most affordable option if you don't play on PlayStation or Switch (those systems have other options).It's a much better option than people reviewing it poorly would lead you to believe, though. Good enough that it's my main fight pad for PC fighting games as well. The clicky micro switches in the face buttons are a very nice touch as well.

UPDATE again: I think my inputs dropping out was due to the controller being plugged in to a cruddy USB hub. Whoopsie.First off, I don't really understand everyone's issues with the d-pad. For me it feels just about the right size to get clean inputs without having to move my thumb tip very far. Maybe if you have larger hands it could be an issue, though. The analog stick has a great snappiness to it, and the octo gate is tactile yet doesn't get in the way of smooth rotation movements. The six mechanical switch face buttons are the best buttons I have ever felt on a gamepad controller. The shoulder buttons are sufficiently wide and have a very short travel, but I do wish they also used mechanical microswitches. On the ergonomic side of things, the controller feels just right for my smallish-medium sized hands, but I do wish the handles were angled slightly more towards the outside. If you hold the controller close to your body and fully grip the handles, your wrists are going to be bent about 45 degrees, which probably isn't good for long-term use.Still, this is overall one of my favorite controllers I've ever had.However the real issues begin at the software side of things, as many have said. If you get a first production run, you're gonna need to download a firmware update exe from Hori's website to insure the d-pad inputs work correctly. Secondly, there's the Hori Device Manager software. This lets you change the sensitivity of each d-pad direction, and reassign the buttons. At least, it does the second part *in theory.* Many of the menu sections in the device manager can only be controlled by the controller itself for some mysterious reason, while others can detect mouse clicks. The graph for the d-pad sensitivity is pretty confusing at first and lacking in information, but I'm pretty sure that moving the dots closer to the center means reduced sensitivity in that direction. The major problem is the button reassignment menu. You'd think it'd be as easy as just telling each button what to do, but no. Each time you change a button assignment, it changes not only that button, not just the other button that already had that assignment, but ANOTHER, third button also gets changed for no rhyme or reason. I have yet to decipher this arcane dance of musical chairs and actually gotten the buttons set up in a traditional layout for non-fighting games. This is the biggest issue holding this controller back and I can only hope Hori improves their software soon.Still, the controller itself feels so nice to use that I can't help but give it four stars rather than the lower ratings others have given it. But if the software would simply do what I want it to, I would have easily given this five stars.

Since this controller is still fresh on the market, I can't vouch for its durability yet, but it's definitely the best 6-button pad I owned. I'm using it mainly for Guilty Gear AC+R on PC as it got a reworked netcode.Pros:* Very comfortable to grip* 8-way gate for the analog stick is genius (makes 360 and tigerknee inputs very easy).* I usually dislike 8-way d-pad buttons, and prefer just 4, but the d-pad is excellent on this one.Cons:* Only gripe I have so far is that the pad itself is light, and feels plasticy. If Hori had made it a bit bulkier, it would have been perfect.Again, can't say how the durability is since I've only been using it for a few days, but I love this controller.