
Best of all, you can do this from your PC, Mac, iPhone, or Android device.

You can choose one of three profiles, then remap buttons, change the sensitivity of your thumbsticks and triggers, modify vibration, and craft macros that can be deployed in a single button press. With it, you can change just about every part of a controller's functionality. 8BitDo Ultimate Controller – SoftwareĨBitDo's Ultimate Software is what makes its controllers so special. 8Bitdo is also selling a 2.4g-only version for $49.99 that also comes in pink.

There is a white and black option available for $69.99. The Ultimate is compatible with Nintendo Switch, Windows, and SteamOS (including Steam Deck).Īt 228 grams, it weighs noticeably less than the Xbox Series Controller (287 grams). You can switch between Bluetooth and 2.4g modes with a toggle on the back of the controller and onboard profiles with a button on the front. Underneath the charging cradle, there's a 2.4g dongle, which you'll need to connect to a PC. Unlike the Xbox Series controllers, the Ultimate comes equipped with a rechargeable battery (rated for 22 hours) and a sleek charging cradle. There's the home button, a start, and select button, a profile switcher, and a star button. Most noticeably, the Ultimate features five menu buttons near its center. That's no accident the Ultimate borrows its basic shape, functionality, and "ultimate" moniker from the company’s officially-licensed wired Xbox controller, the Ultimate Wired Controller for Xbox.īut closer inspection reveals a few fundamental differences between the Ultimate and Xbox controllers. You'd be forgiven for confusing it for an Xbox controller at first glance. Unlike the Pro 2, which looked like a streamlined PS1 controller, the Ultimate takes on a boxy shape with thicker handles and offset thumbsticks.

It features two prominent rear paddles and the ability to change button functionality quickly, customize stick and trigger sensitivity, modify the vibration intensity, and even assign macros to a single button through the 8BitDo Ultimate software. In that vein, the 8BitDo Ultimate Controller is a proper pro controller. (That means the stripped-down Elite Series 2 Core gamepad doesn't qualify – sorry, Xbox!)

What constitutes a "pro" or "elite" controller is relatively subjective, but to me, it requires two things: robust customization software and back paddles or triggers. 8BitDo Ultimate Controller – Design and Features
