During the decades long before consoles established a foothold in the gaming industry, coin-ops were using arcade sticks to provide precise input for games and many genres would be designed around them; with some games evolving around them. As we moved forward in the industry, Atari would be one of the few console companies to exclusively use Joysticks in their controller designs until the crash of the gaming industry. During the revival, non other than Nintendo would design the extremely popularized and patented D-pad shape. Sega and Sony would follow suit and design D-pads for their first-party controllers which would also become standardized across the gaming industry. D-pads have come a long way going through a nearly limitless amount of experimental phases catering to specific player's needs and requirements. Some gaming enthusiasts have sworn by one D-pad shape their whole gaming career, casual gamers could care less as long as it gets the job done. I find myself in a position where even when I might have found what could be the most versatile D-pad, I find greater joy in simply trying out every peripheral that comes my way exploring its quirks.
D-pad research stems deeply in the theoretics realm because each player uses their thumbs differently. Besides, how often are you paying attention to your D-pad unless you’re looking for something to blame for your setbacks? It's a big list of speculative ideas that renders one shape redundant between a particular set of players while being perfectly fine for another set. This is where benchmarks become extremely handy and some games provide a decent amount of feedback that could help define what D-pad shape your thumb is going to work well with. In all of my benchmarks, fighting games are the last genre I will use because of the undeniable fact that this genre has been heavily influenced by arcade sticks, disregarding how many amazing D-pad players exists. I am of the belief that the most reliable testing can be performed on platformers with fast gameplay and are heavy in frame-perfect execution. What I personally look for in D-Pad shapes is long-term comfort while guiding the character through any given direction and the adaptability to my thumb allowing for proper and precise execution of direction and techniques. With that said, I am not claiming to be a competitive player, all statements made in this article originate strictly from observations made over the decades of gaming I have under my belt; documented or not.
[Note: The use of the term "shape" specifically covers the geometry of the D-pad.]
As more games are released, my lineup of benchmark games tends to change as soon as I find one game suiting the purpose better than the previous entry. Every game on my list provides the opportunity for frame perfect execution of certain techniques without fail in order to test the adaptability of my thumb to the shape. Each game must also do their job of highlighting key platformer marks required to get the feel of a D-pad for myself.
[Note: Here are some example questions I would ask myself while experimenting with a new shape
•How many times can I execute that technique consecutively?
•How well is my muscle memory adapting to the shape in order to execute techniques I’ve had down to the frame in the past?
•Is this shape comfortable enough for long sessions?]
While not genre defining at all, Super Meat Boy represents platforming in the rawest form which is why it's the very first game that comes to mind every time I encounter a new D-pad out in the wild. It will most definitely teach you to appreciate how far the horizontal flexibility of a good shape will get you in this game since the majority of the motions are almost exclusively left and right. This is where the underlying mechanism can come into play; Did the controller designers care enough to put a functional D-pad that is not plagued by misinputs or if it’s there for secondary functions? On a side note, horizontal flexibility is one reason I stray away from fighting games for shape feedback. Abilities like Ryo's Zanretsuken, which requires extreme horizontal precision and timing prove to be strenuous on D-pads, especially in the middle of a match, but is really easy to pull off on an arcade stick. On a fresh set of un-calloused thumbs, this consistently proves to be far too stressful but might otherwise make for a great horizontal flexibility test for people that use controllers in fighting games.
Cuphead is a multi-purpose entry in my benchmark roster because it brings about many elements from different 2D genres, not just platforming. Simply being able to comfortably beat a boss or run 'n gun stage without stressing out my D-pad or thumbs is a huge plus. It’s very hard to think of a game that can satisfy multiple needs that much at once so if you're looking for a reliabilty or versatility test then look no further than this gem right here. Another game you may want to experiment with for versatility is Duck Game due to its heavy use of the d-pad for certain maneuvers where a great shape will give you an edge at your next couch gaming kickback.
One game that might rival Super Meat Boy in the horizontal flexibility department is Super House of Dead Ninjas, but the reason it's one of my benchmarks is also because many actions outside of movement are tied to the D-pad. Other games that will provide similar feedback for directional based functions are Volgarr the Viking and Rivals of Aether. The D-pad is a tool there to assist you, not work against you. So when it comes to execution of directional specific actions, the shape will tell you right away how well it is willing to lend itself for that purpose.
[Note: D-pads that hold a permanent place in controller lineup are Sega’s for Genesis and Saturn and Sony’s SCPH-1080’s D-pad.]
During the Christmas of 2018, I came into possession of Brook’s Mars Wired Controller which is compatible for the Sony PlayStation 3 & 4, Nintendo’s Switch and PC. It comes with three Interchangeable cross, faceted and disc D-pad shapes. The cross shape takes inspiration from Nintendo’s own shape which has seen many revisions since the NES. Out of the three, the cross shape surprisingly falls short from a point in overall performance due to the stiff feel during gameplay even though all inputs register yet there is a lack of feedback. The faceted shape takes its form directly from the Xbox One Elite D-pad. I could not find any platformer or fighting game that lent themselves well to this shape, but in 3D games that let you use the D-pad for movement, like a racing game, fared sort of well but still not satisfactory. Finally, the disc shape was the least expected shape to perform to my liking. It’s super versatile and provides the comfort I seek in D-pads. I was able to fly through many of the early Cuphead levels trancing away from the thought that I was exercising a D-pad.
Logitech is much more known in the personal and business computer space but has also been around since gaming on a PC was being taken more seriously. If a genre exists on PC that requires expensive or specialized peripherals to get ridiculous levels of immersion, Logitech has something for you. The Precision and Dual Action Rumble Pads featured a D-pad shape similar to Sega’s which the F310/F510/F710 controllers also have. It’s one of the most versatile D-pads in existence and I hope that Logitech’s next controller follows the formula. Considering it shares this shape with fightpads who also took inspiration from the Genesis 6-button controller, there’s no question this is what you want to check out first if you’re new to PC gaming or just looking for a new controller. F310 controllers are extremely cheap to replace as well but do not offer the rumble function from F510 (discontinued) and F710.
Strictly an honorable mention, but Saitek’s P2500 Rumble Pad is a truly underappreciated controller that I have never heard praise about. Let's forget about the fact that it has analog sticks, the D-pad is why you’re even gonna look at this controller. Again, it all boils down to versatility, something other non-round shaped D-pads fail to offer me. It’s a shape that does appear to be functional but it pulls off every technique without fail. Whatever you wanna try, it does it satisfyingly well. I wish an XInput compliant version was released since x360ce does not work well with a few games though.
So what are your favorite D-pads? Are there any games that would also make great benchmarks?
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