Reviewed: June 30, 2003
Reviewed by: Mat Houghton

Manufacturer
Logitech

Type: Wireless Gamepad
System: PlayStation 2

Rating: 8.0

Features

Other than that I’m sure all of you are aware of the benefits of wireless controllers. If you’re worried about having more than one of these things in the house at a time, the all operate on different frequencies so you can have up to eight going at once, at least so we’re told in the specs.

Aesthetics - 8

If the first sentence didn’t clue you in this gamepad looks a lot like a Batarang. Aside from that, the controller isn’t really remarkable aesthetically. The matte black finish and blue sticks match your PS2 well, so this will make a great accent piece if you are trying to color coordinate your living room. However this controller bears a marked resemblance to Logitech’s Xbox controller. While this does lend the Logitech products a visual unity it does do a little disservice to them because an Xbox controller is about twice the size of its normal PS2 counterpart.

That being said, after getting used to the increase in size the controller fits nicely into your hand and isn’t too distracting unless you keep switching between it and a Dual Shock for whatever reason.

Durability - 7

I wouldn’t try using it as a Batarang and still expect it to play, but this is a fairly solid controller. It weighs quite a bit, but then again it has four batteries stuck inside so what do you expect? I haven’t banged the thing up too much in the 50 or so hours I put in on it; however, the sticks start out just a little loose and are difficult to use anyway because the sticks have concave tops instead of the usual convex and with the overall size already being a bit of a problem the sticks take a little adjustment. You will feel like you’re going to lose it a lot at the beginning, but you do get used to it.

The buttons have excellent responsiveness that holds up, and with an on off vibration function you can get that extra mile out of the batteries too.

Performance - 8

As mentioned above just about every aspect of this controller measures up to the original Dual Shock. There are some exceptions though. First is the fact that this is a wide controller and really fills up your hands when you play, making adjustments to the sticks a bit of a shock, but with the set up being so similar and the buttons responding so well that kind of makes up for it.

What really bugs me is the D-pad - this is nothing more than a concave disc set into the face of the controller with tick marks at the cardinal direction points and the diagonals. That won’t bother you at first, and actually does work well for arcing motions, it is completely pointless to try to get any fine tuned control out of it. If you want one definitive direction you just kind of have to pray you hit it on the right spot and not on an angle.

The concave vs. convex design decision will continue to make you question your control over some games even after you’ve gotten used to the new feel. The only other thing I can say is that the triggers are a little farther down than normal, but with the size of the controller being so out-of-whack it really doesn’t make that much of a difference and is just one more thing to get used to.

As far as the wireless functionality goes I couldn’t be more pleased with this controller. You could stand with a wall between you and your PS2 and still play with no problem, aside from that lack of x-ray vision. I had no problems with it losing the signal and was not interfered with by a 900 MHz phone, however a 2.4 gig phone may present some issues though is not supposed to.

Value - 8

At $59.95 this does run a little more than the average PS2 controller, but there is that neat little wireless feature and four Duracell batteries included, so there is justification for the price. If you own more than one system or are just tired of all the wires strewn about your room then this is well worth the price of admission, especially if you are one of the few PS2 owners who have a multi-tap and enough controllers to use them.

Overall – 8.0

Logitech has been known for making quality PC accessories in the past and it looks like they are bringing those same standards to their console line up. I will say that they have cut a few corners or at least made some poor design decisions creating a few issues with this particular controller, but it was a first attempt and it is more than adequate for the job.