Mad Catz Control Pad: Review
By: Ben
The Mad Catz Control Pad Pro is a very feature filled controller that acts as a great substitute for the official controller. Before I even received the controller, I had heard nothing but great things about it. It has it all. Rubber grips, programmable combo buttons, smaller size, better button layout. You name it, and it has it. It also has a very cool translucent shell. You don’t see that on many other Xbox pads. Continue reading and I will go through every part of this controller.
Feel: The controller feels great. You will see that it is smaller than the standard controller, and bigger than the controller s. If you didn’t like the mass of the standard controller, and the controller s is too small, this might just be the pad for you.
The Buttons: The buttons feel and act like they do on both of the official controllers, but in the end are a cross section between the two controllers. The x,y,b,a buttons are in the diamond shape like the controller s, but the black and white buttons are in the top right hand corner like the original controller. The Start and back buttons are also in the same position as the original pad. The new “macro” button is placed in-between the digital pad and the right analogue stick. It may sound like a bad place to put it, but you do not use it in gameplay. You only use it for programming other buttons. All in all, Mad Catz took the best of both controllers, and jammed them together.
The Analogue Sticks: The analogue sticks feel and act very different from any other that I have tried. The have a very loose feel to them. There is not as much spring in them, which makes it easier to maneuver around.
The actual feel of the sticks are also quite different. They do not have an inward curved surface as the Microsoft ones do, they have a flat top with a bevel leading up to it. They feel very comfy.
Triggers: In my opinion, the triggers are the worst part of the controller. They are stiffer than all of the first party controllers’ ones. They are slimmer than the original controller, and about the same width as the controller s. This could easily be fixed in future versions of the controller.
Digital Pad – The D-Pad is going to be the reason post people buy this controller. Allot of people thought the Microsoft controllers didn’t have an “accurate” enough d-pad. This is about as accurate as you can get. It brings back my memories or SNES. Pure accuracy. No confusion.
With the games – I tested the controller out with a bunch of different games from all different genres, and I have to say, it’s a very good pad. The programmable button feature is also a great help in DOA3 and Tony Hawk 3. You will really appreciate this controller.
The Extras – The best extra on this controller is the complete programmability of buttons. It’s great for fighting games, and great for Extreme-Sports games.
I also like the rubberized grips. You don’t exactly notice it, but you do have better hold on the controller.
The Bottom Line: You will almost definitely like the Mad Catz Control Pad Pro. It’s comfy. It has good button Layout, and it has extra features w
Score: 9/10
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