Here's Your First Look at the Mad Box Controller Concept

[GTPNewsWire]

This is the discussion thread for a recent post on GTPlanet:

Here's Your First Look at the Mad Box Controller Concept

This article was published by Michael Leary (@Terronium-12) on January 22nd, 2019 in the Hardware category.

 

[Lukanyon]

I'd call it the Tron Box.

 

[TheGeologist]

Oof.

Man, I feel like they're trying to incorporate too much tech into their stuff. I don't like the design at all.

And why does every controller have to be xbox style?

 

[sparkytooth]

This really is an extension of their misunderstanding of controller setups for their games, seriously what is that controller and how do I hold it in any semblance of comfort?

 

[flamingchariot]

Looks more like a tray you might eat food /serve drinks from than a controller, never mind how uncomfortable it will be talk about missing the point...so what if it looks great

 

[Oyashiro-sama]

This really is an extension of their misunderstanding of controller setups for their games, seriously what is that controller and how do I hold it in any semblance of comfort?

My thoughts exactly, it doesn't look ergonomic at all. But pictures can be very deceiving and I'm failing to get a proper scale of the hardware.

 

[MikeV27]

Doesn't look very comfortable lol.

 

[PzR Slim]

I wonder how many people actually understand what a concept is?

 

[2clicks]

That console reminds me of the Mazda Furai for some weird reason.

 

[IngRobNy]

A futuristic looking PS4 with a futuristic looking Xbox One controller and still @IanBell made fun of Soulja Boy for his attempt .

 

[Crazy Taylor]

Reminds me of Batman.

 

[TheGeologist]

One of the controller screen pictures shows "boost available". Do people look at their controller while playing?

If I'm racing, my eyes are concentrated on the screen, not the controller. I'm never gonna see that notification. Same goes for the RPM display.

 

[IngRobNy]

One of the controller screen pictures shows "boost available". If I'm racing, my eyes are concentrated on the screen, I'm never gonna see that notification. Same goes for the RPM display.

And that controller will use a lot of power, so I would believe this controller would always be connected, or it will come with a huge external battery , but the controller looks very uncomfortable to hold and play with, so maybe you have to rest your hands every 5 min and charge the controller in the between.

I don't even like the light bar or the speaker on the PS4 controller, it's just draining the battery faster, so this controller is not for me, not this Mad Box console either for that matter.

 

[GT_Alex74]

Anyway the only they have on these concepts is a graphic render. Once they'll figure out costs, nobody will hear about this anymore.

 

[IngRobNy]

Anyway the only they have on these concepts is a graphic render. Once they'll figure out costs, nobody will hear about this anymore.

And if they make this and if they don't have a solid lineup of games for this when released, this will just be a flashy looking brick with a pricetag like Xbox One or PS4 which have a solid lineup of games.

 

[Sick Cylinder]

How important is a fancy controller for the buyers of a Mad Box console? I would expect most potential customers to already have a wheel if they are into racing games and if they are into other genres, they would already have favourite controllers. Isn't the important thing for the console to be compatible with existing wheels and controllers. Surely any controller supplied free with the console needs to be cheap so that maximum value can go into the console itself. This controller looks very expensive and if I bought a Mad Box that expensive controller would sit unused on the shelf.

 

[Elitekilla29]

That looks super uncomfortable. Why go with the Xbox style when it comes to how the analogs are placed?

 

[Auditore]

Looks uncomfortable,too flat it looks like a NES controller

 

[TurismoBad]

I got RSI just looking at it

 

[HarlemG27]

Seems like people are very cynical on a forum that's frequented by the creator of the console in question. Would y'all rather he just scrapped the whole idea?

I think the design is modern and doable, especially with lithium batteries. If it can run all steam games for under 600; I'm in.

Nothing wrong with critiquing the controller design. But let's keep in mind they might be using us during research and development.

 

[Reameb]

The console looks amazing but the controller shape could be better, That's a little bit too big and boxy.

 

[Tornado]

Seems like people are very cynical on a forum that's frequented by the creator of the console in question. Would y'all rather he just scrapped the whole idea?

That'd be fine with me, honestly. Still haven't seen the benefit, speaking as someone with no frame of reference to who Ian Bell is or why he pisses everyone off so much beyond all the fights that break out every time GTP posts something about him.

 

[WJHMH]

Doesn't look very comfortable, I know they are trying to be unique but come on, function over form.

 

[Mr Grumpy]

Seems like people are very cynical on a forum that's frequented by the creator of the console in question. Would y'all rather he just scrapped the whole idea?

Yes

 

[Moby45]

Looks like a glorified xbox controller. Hard Pass.

The PS controllers are the only ones I have ever really liked aside from the SNES and Sega Genesis. My hands just don't work too well when the joysticks are set up like they are on this controller.

 

[Russ Petersen]

I've come to believe this is not real. It's too crazy so the more sane answer is SMS is just playing with us all. If real then they truly have lost it.

 

[Corsa]

That'd be fine with me, honestly. Still haven't seen the benefit, speaking as someone with no frame of reference to who Ian Bell is or why he pisses everyone off so much beyond all the fights that break out every time GTP posts something about him.

You know who Ian Bell is, and to the rest, you guys still use controllers to race?
Let's see the mad wheel prototype.

 

[Tornado]

You know who Ian Bell is

I do? The "beyond all the fights that break out every time GTP posts something about him" part was pretty important for that sentence. It provides context for how indifferent I am to another game console on the market without the bias that comes against him for reasons I have no idea the origins of.


He runs a company that makes a bunch of games I've never played, and half the people on GTP seem to hate his guts. Before he started getting free ad space from the GTP staff over the past month, I had never heard his name.

 

[IngRobNy]

and to the rest, you guys still use controllers to race?

What kind of question is this ? Of course some of us is using a controller, I say some instead of many so I'm not accidentally starts a controller vs wheel war.

 

[SlipZtrEm]

That looks super uncomfortable. Why go with the Xbox style when it comes to how the analogs are placed?

As someone who spent a solid decade predominantly playing with three generations of DualShock before ever putting any serious time in with the Xbox controllers, I have a hunch: it's far easier to tap the d-pad with your right hand if needed during play.

I'll admit that sounds like a strange requirement. But when playing Star Wars Battlefront 2, I've occasionally needed to hit the d-pad while walking around (which uses the left analog). On the PS4, that means awkwardly arching my left hand. On the XB1, it's an easier stretch for my right hand over to the d-pad. The left hand tends to be occupied with more constant use, so the right can afford to be more mobile, at least IMO.

I thought the asymmetric layout would be a huge hurdle for me, but it gets comfy pretty quickly. The front face layout aside, the XB1 controller is also so much better than the DS4 for racing games thanks to its better triggers. They both even have unique rumble features, which makes threshold braking much easier.

That said, the biggest hurdle here is the same one that bothers me on the DS4: the battery-suck that is the light bar and touch pad. I can't imagine this Mad Box controller concept wouldn't require even more juice than the existing controllers, and I can drain a DS4 in about six hours.

You know who Ian Bell is, and to the rest, you guys still use controllers to race?
Let's see the mad wheel prototype.

The vast majority of console players do use a controller, and good luck to any company that'd want to sell a console without one.