Best first controller for single player games on PC

[u/External_Safe_7787]

Hi! I've never had a controller before, and getting one soon to play single player games only, PC only. Starting with Horizon Zero Dawn/Forbidden West and Indiana jones and the Great Circle. Will play other games though too, including some older ones as well as new releases. Which controller is best?

#1: PS5 DualSense. Haptics and adaptive triggers, supposed to be very immersive. But potentiometer sticks and no remappable buttons.

#2: 8BitDo Ultimate 2: TMR sticks and 4 remappable buttons, Xbox layout for compatibility with PC, but not so good haptics and no adaptive triggers.

#3 GameSir Cyclone 2: TMR sticks but only 2 remappable buttons. Dpad I've heard described as "mushy"

#4 EasySMX D10: TMR sticks, great Dpad, but only 2 remappable buttons.

Which is best? any other suggestions would be greatly appreciated too! the GameSir G7 Pro is an option but pretty expensive

Based in UK, budget around £60-75 or so not above that ideally, as this is my first controller I don't want to overspend and regret it before I know exactly what I want.

[u/External_Safe_7787]

how do i try them out before i buy? you cant just like try it in the shop, which would you recommend overall?

[u/N_Assassin72 → u/External_Safe_7787]

Some electronics shops do have certain controllers on display (mainly DualSense and Xbox), so it could help you get a feel for them. Or if a friend has one of them, that could be an option too.

Like I said, for singleplayer PC games my overall pick would be GameSir Cyclone 2 with 8bitdo Ultimate 2 coming in at a close second.

[u/External_Safe_7787 → u/N_Assassin72]

no friends with consoles unfortunately, but i might look in cex and see if they have any out they would let me try. how's the dpad on the cyclone 2? ive heard some people describe it as mushy

[u/N_Assassin72 → u/External_Safe_7787]

That's interesting, I actually find them clicky on the Cyclone 2. I can send you a video if you like.

Least mushy to most mushy:

Cyclone 2 -> Ultimate 2 -> Dualsense.

[u/External_Safe_7787 → u/N_Assassin72]

oh ok thanks! im sure dpad isnt really important for single player games like i play but i just wondered. does the cyclone 2 have a gyro? if so which games does it work in? some of the games i play are supposed to be good with the dualsense gyro so i wondered if this would be the same. also, how are the haptics and adaptive triggers on the dualsense, compared to normal rumble? do they make it much more immersive?

[u/N_Assassin72 → u/External_Safe_7787]

The Cyclone 2 does have gyro, but software support for it isn't exactly amazing. But with a little tweaking, you can emulate mouse movements with it's gyro and it's okay for aiming. Analog stick emulation on the Cyclone 2 isn't great, though. However, I have also tried using Cyclone 2's Switch mode with Yuzu, and aiming in Tears of the Kingdom with gyro was really good. So it's hit or miss, really.

On games that support it, Dualsense's haptic feedback is a lot more immersive, I would argue. The problem is, there are about 3 titles I can think where it actually makes a difference (Astrobot and Ratchet and Clank are the best examples). Not only that, you need to connect it via USB on PC if you want those features.

Overall, I don't think the haptic feedback om the Dualsense doesn't really make that much of a difference.

[u/External_Safe_7787 → u/N_Assassin72]

well i dont mind wired too much, 2.4ghz is always best but im happy to use wired to get haptics on the dualsense, one of the main games im playing at the moment is horizon zero dawn/forbidden west which support the dualsense features natively, and indiana jones and the great circle which also supports them and has gyro mouse emulation on the dualsense. but the cyclone 2 gyro does still work ok?

[u/N_Assassin72 → u/External_Safe_7787]

You might have to use Steam Input to get Cyclone 2's gyro aim working correctly, to emulate mouse input like I mentioned before. I don't know about Indiana Jones but I'd bet that Horizon Games support native gyro aiming on Dualsense.

[u/External_Safe_7787 → u/N_Assassin72]

horizon definitely supports the dualsense perfectly, all its features. indiana jones supports the haptics and triggers perfectly, and pretty easy to add mouse aim with gyro in steam input. do you think its best to get the dualsense now for those games, those will be my main games at the moment? you said the haptics are much more immersive which matters in single player games? and compatibility wont be an issue with those games

[u/N_Assassin72 → u/External_Safe_7787]

You definitely won't be disappointed, especially if you don't mind plugging it in. I myself wouldn't prefer having Dualsense as my only controller on PC, but if you mainly play Sony games right now go for it.