So one thing to keep in mind here is that I'm of the perspective that the Xbox 360 controller was already almost perfect, other than the crappy D-pad. If you didn't like the 360 controller, you may not agree with this opinion.

The best controller so far is probably the Nintendo Switch Pro Controller. It's a super conservative design, almost identical to the 360 controller, but with a Nintendo-designed D-pad. It also has a high-quality integrated accelerometer, which is fantastic for precise aiming, and generally premium construction throughout. It even has replaceable elastomer-coated grips that are shockingly quite nice to hold and not at all creepy like most elastomer-coated things.

I haven't tried it with the PC yet, but I've heard they work perfectly fine. So this is more of a general statement. Some of the controllers also have faulty D-pads, but if you get a good one, it's real good.

Interesting. I absolutely love the Xbox 360 controller, it's one of my favorite controllers of all time. What do you think of the Xbox One controller, though? Some people have problems with it for some reason. I have both an Xbox One regular controller and an Xbox One Elite controller, and I like them even better than the Xbox 360 controller. I don't even have an Xbox One. I have a PS4 and while I consider the DualShock 4 to be serviceable, I don't like it nearly as much as the Xbox One controller (or the Xbox 360 controller for that matter).

Your post made me want to get a Switch Pro controller to use on PC. I'll look into it.

No idea. I use the d-pad enough that I'm reluctant to spend the money on a new Xbox controller. The 360's D-pad problems were due to its internal hardware design, so even if they changed the exterior appearance to look more like a Nintendo D-pad that doesn't mean it will feel like one. The last Xbox controller I bought was one of those 360 controllers with the transforming D-pad, which did nothing.

Right. I remember those 360 controllers with the transforming D-pad. I recently played Cupman with my Xbox One controller and mostly used the D-pad for movement. It was alright, but from what I remember, the Nintendo D-pads are still better. My last Nintendo pad is the Wavebird, though, so it's been a while. I still have that lying around. I also had a Nintendo DS Lite, and that was somewhat more recently and of course had a Nintendo D-pad as well. But that was a long time ago, too...

Aaand all my purchases have been refunded.

I briefly entertained myself with the thought of getting one of those new RTX cards - namely because I couldn't believe how awful the screenshots of Quake 2 RTX (available on Steam) looked in comparison to Quake 2 + Berserker@Quake2 or q2xp installed (both available on ModDB).

Then I found out that apparently the RTX equivalent of my pre-ancient GeForce GTX 1080 costs like 500 €, so that was the end of that idea. Maybe I'll reconsider if they'll cost 193.78 € at max including shipping - and if they're actually marginally better than my GTX1080 of a gone-by era.

That said, I sincerely don't believe that fancier light effects would really make Q2RTX look any better than it does in the screenshots. Stupid hype.

Makes more sense, yeah. It still looks like bums to me compared to q2xp.

... even if q2xp currently adds a shiny white box to my screen that can't be disabled and thus makes the whole game kinda unplayable:

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Boh.


[UPDATE Dec 21, 2019] whoops turns out I hadn't installed the very latest beta build patch update type thing, which got rid of the box 8)

don't play a video game, fgr >:(

methinks someone forgot a glclear

I've played around with the Switch Pro controller over the holidays (gave it as a gift) and I have to say, despite the limited time I've had with it, the controller felt really nice to handle. It fit into my hands really well too and no fumbling with the buttons or the d-pad for me. Liked the triggers even though they aren't analog like the Gamecube controllers (and 360 I recall).

Surprised it was designed by Nintendo.

It's weird that nintendo now seems associated with "bad" controllers. When NES came out I remember having a really hard time getting used to the controller. The only other video games I had played were on atari 2600 with the joystick + single button or the paddle-wheel thingies, plus arcade games which also had joysticks. After a few hours of playing I was fine with it. Then SNES controller came out and it was fine, more buttons plus rounded. When N64 came out the controllers were so weird! But they felt good and I never had any issues. GameCube came out and I loved those controllers.

Then the.... ugh, Wii and the waggling. And when you weren't waggling (holding it sideways) it was like the old NES controller again. Then the Wii U and the giant screen controller, which was fine. No major complaints yet. But the default/included Switch controllers are pure trash. They are way too small when separated and even when together they don't feel right. Hate them. The pro controller is good, though, I can't believe the same team designed both.

All that said, the history of playstation controllers is even worse. I have never felt comfortable with any of the PS controllers, from original ps all the way through the PS4. The ergonomics are terrible and the crappy d-pad makes me want to cry.

Xbox isn't so bad; I hated the original xbox controllers but the ones for xbox 360 were fine, xbox one are fine (except they feel really cheap, like the plastics don't line up right, sharp edges at the joints, flimsy).

For every nice word I have for the Switch software library, I have about 20 mean ones to say about the Switch platform. What a train wreck.

I only buy physical games for my switch and pretend it doesn't have a UI, store, or online capability. For this use case it seems alright.

The UI feels like a placeholder for a newer one that was suppose to come down but never did.

I think all UIs should be as intrusive as this HUD

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Also the platform in a more general sense, like the hardware design.

The Switch has a screen and attached controls for pure mobile gaming! And it has a TV dock, so you can also use the system with a big screen and pro controller for the best home experience! But also it has a kickstand and detachable baby wii remotes so you can enjoy portable multiplayer anywhere you have a large table but no TV (???). And it comes with a bulky hunk of plastic you can use to couple those baby wii remotes together, so you can enjoy the finest combination of mobile and TV gaming, with a tiny TV screen, low-profile control sticks, and a big ol embarrassing toy that won't fit in your messenger bag. I guess.

Nintendo had no idea what to build, basically. Their answer was to build the single most versatile thing possible (throw **** at the wall) and see how people ended up using it (and see what sticks). Then they could refine the product, tailoring it to how most people actually used it and save themselves money (i.e. make the Switch Lite). This sounds reasonable, but what's actually happened is they made a nightmare system that no two people use in the same way, guaranteeing that the further they get from that original precambrian explosion of a design toward the lowest common denominator, the more they'll piss off the silent majority living in that forest of edge cases.

For me: our Switch and its joycons never leave the dock. Screen, speakers, battery, kickstand, joycons - all of that stuff is just a waste for me. The Switch Lite is an absolute no-go. I mean, I'm happy enough with the system and its games, but I'd be even happier if I hadn't had to pay for all of that mobile **** - especially that ****ing plastic flap over the cartridge slot.

The Switch seems to strangle its internal hardware, and I'm not sure how the mobile GPU and its ARM buddy will suffice years down the road. I really enjoyed BOTW, but it was an exercise accepting a lot of compromises visually and gameplay-wise. I almost want to try the Doom 2016 port since I've heard it was an effort to just get it to be playable for this hardware.

I don't use my switch very often. I played/loved BotW on Wii U and then re-bought it for switch so I could get rid of the Wii U. I only played about ~30% through on the switch before we stopped. I played the Link's Awakening remake and enjoyed it. The rest of the games we have have been meh: street fighter 2, mario odyssey, and then a bunch of other wii U re-releases: mario bros, mario kart, etc. So for me it's basically a zelda box. And like Jon`C it's been docked 99% of the time. The 1% is when some of my nieces came over and they would bring it around the house to play games (usually mario kart) while someone else was watching the TV.

It's gotten more use than the xbox one though.

Windows 7 is nearing its end. I have one machine that's on updated 7 still.

The free upgrade still works if you ever want to update to 10.

YouTube fed me a Steam Controller video which kind of led me down the rabbit hole. The video below, while dated since the Steam Controller and Steam Link are no longer manufactured, is interesting but on the long side. That Bengineer, however has short videos showing different games with the controller that is also interesting.

Basically, while I'm not using it yet I think it might be interesting to play around with more. I don't think Jon's wrong in what he said but it's also really cool what you can do with it and it seems that quite a few people are getting a lot of use out of it.

And for all that, it's still a pretty successful system. Perhaps some kinds of success are not possible without accepting failure in other aspects.

Nothing I wrote in the above should be construed as a failure unless and until Nintendo discontinues the standard Switch.

Based on a quick view and a couple of consultations, it seems like a computer like this one (no need to know Finnish, the part names speak for themselves) seems to be just as powerful or even a bit more powerful than my current 2016 rig:

https://www.jimms.fi/fi/Product/Show/161572/jimms-gtg-buffalo-v4/jimm-s-gtg-buffalo-2060-super-pelitietokone

That said, I still don't have an actual reason to upgrade/get a new one, but "what cost you 2777 € in 2016 would roughly be 1320 € in 2020" is still a good sign.