Sony’s “professional” gamepad was expected back in the days of PS4, but it came out only two years after the release of PS5. The Japanese took a long time – while Microsoft released its Elite Controller in 2015, Sony gamers were content with third-party solutions like Scuf, Nacon and others. But now we’ve waited – DualSense Edge with petals, interchangeable modules and stick attachments, adjustable triggers and deep customization. Let’s find out if expectations were met, if it’s worth its 200 bucks, and who to buy it for.
Unpacking
Inside a simple cardboard box is a white zippered case. You pick it up, wow, expensive, rich. No sarcasm. High-quality, hard, matte and pleasant to the touch, it gives the impression of an unbreakable case where nothing will happen to the gamepad. There is a Velcro “door” on the end to charge the device directly in the case. I don’t know who would seriously use this. It would have been better if they had made a built-in charger, the kind the Xbox Elite Controller has.
Open it up, admire it, take pictures and brag to our friends:
Mesh pocket on top, silicone mold with accessories on the bottom. The set is rich:
- DualSense Edge gamepad
- 3-meter USB-A to USB-C fabric braided cable
- cable clamp
- 2 pairs of differently shaped petals
- 2 pairs of sticks of different heights
Don’t look at the additional stick module. There is a slot for it in the case, but it’s not in the case – it’s sold separately.
DualSense Edge design
Externally, the Edge differs slightly from the standard controller. There’s no rich metals, it’s all plastic. If you were waiting for new tactile sensations, you’re unlikely to get them – Edge feels like a native one.
The main design changes are only external (except for the new buttons, of course). The buttons and the crossbar are now black. The touchpad became angular and got engraved with PlayStation brand icons. The black center insert has become glossy and it’s a minus – matte is less scratched and dirty. Under it appeared two identical Fn buttons, which open a special application for gamepad customization.
The inner grip is rubberized for more grip, and the L2/R2 triggers are perforated with the same icons to keep your finger from slipping in sweaty matches.
The rear end now has holes for LB/RB petals and toggle switches for adjusting trigger travel.
In my hands, the Edge feels just like a regular DualSense. And that’s fine, because the shape is great, the ergonomics are a ten, and overall I’ve never had any issues with the standard controller. Thanks for not reinventing the wheel and breaking what works. The only difference in feel is the weight. Edge became heavier, but you get used to it in a couple of evenings, so it’s not critical. When you first plug it in, PlayStation will kindly show you a visual guide to the gamepad’s capabilities. Here it is:
LB/RB petals.
There are two pairs of them – long and short. They are made of metal, monolithic and magnetic. It looks solid.
They are attached to the gamepad very easily, just insert into the slot. You can flip them during the game. You can put in any combination, if you like to have a short one on the left and a long one on the right.
You can assign any other gamepad button to the petals. For example, in Call of Duty I have jump on R3 and squat on circle. I assigned them to the right and left petals respectively via the app, but more on that later. The stroke of the petals is very pleasant. Accidental presses with unaccustomedness happen, but then they come to naught. I didn’t like the short buttons, my finger lies somehow high on them, so the grip of the gamepad changes. But the long ones – they fit like a glue, and I mostly ran with them. Another plus – Edge is compatible with the original docking station, unlike custom gamepads, where the petals often get in the way.
Stick attachments
If you’ve been dreaming of the magnetic ones from the Xbox Elite Controller, I’m going to disappoint you. It’s all plastic – remember? On the Edge, the attachments simply snap on with a special mechanism and change in a less “elite” way. You pull, remove, put the other one on, and push until it clicks into place. Easy.
It comes with two pairs of interchangeable tips – two standard height and two slightly higher, which are usually used for “more accurate aiming” in shooters. Sounds great, in reality – I didn’t like the nozzles at all. They have a convex shape like the DualShock 3 from the PS3. Your fingers have less control over such a stick, and if you have sweaty hands, you’ll have a hard time with them at all. Maybe it’s a matter of habit, but I don’t see the point in changing a stick for a soap.
Very strange decision to put two pairs of convex sticks in the set and not to put standard sticks, but of higher height. Who thought of that? Why? DualShock 3 was once criticized for the awkward shape of the sticks and triggers, and now all of a sudden it’s like this. We can only hope that the Chinese will make different attachments. So far, changing the sticks in Edge makes about zero sense, although it’s a matter of taste of course.
Stick module
Stick drift is a classic gamepad problem since the time of King Peas. When the sticks are killed, the camera starts to twitch or drift to the side. Sometimes it’s solved by adjusting the dead zone in a particular game, but more often – by repairing it in a service center or buying a new gamepad. Sony, instead of solving the problem at the root, decided to make money on consumables and made a removable stick module in Edge. Overall cool, not even the Xbox Elite Controller has something like this.
Although for such a price they could have put one module in the kit, especially if they made a place for it in the case. But alas, if you want a module, buy it for 20 dollars. You can install a new stick without additional tools right “on the go”. On the back side of the gamepad you need to pull the button and remove the glossy center panel. Then lift the metal lever at the desired stick and remove it. Put the new stick in and reassemble in reverse order. Not as easy as changing the petal, of course, but you won’t be doing it often either.
L2/R2 trigger stroke adjustment
Will come in handy for all fans of shooters. The logic is simple – the smaller the stroke of the button, the faster the shot is fired in the game. There are services where you can put clickable triggers like mouse keys. True, in this case you lose the adaptive trigger with vibration, one of the main features of DualSense. If you, like me, didn’t want to lose the adaptive, but dreamed of L2/R2 adjustment, this is it. Sony has managed to do it. It’s certainly not mouse clicks, but it will be enough for most.
Each trigger can be configured separately in three positions. The adaptive response only works in the standard position, and is disabled in the other positions. But it is disabled only on the trigger where you have reduced the stroke – this is a good detail. In singles it makes no sense to limit the stroke of the trigger, otherwise you will lose the adaptive response, but in multiplayer shooters it’s a good idea. I set L2 to the second position to aim a little faster, and R2 to the third position to shoot as fast as possible. The difference will be especially felt on pistols or DMR’s.
Customization application
You won’t have to download any separate software – that’s a plus. Just press the Fn button on the gamepad at any time and a menu of functions will appear:
There are four profiles here: default and three custom ones, which you can customize as you like. They are saved directly in the gamepad’s memory, so you can go to a friend’s house with your build and you don’t need to customize anything. Additionally, you can create 30 custom profiles in the console’s memory and assign them as needed in the function menu, which is also customizable:
Changing profiles is performed by a combination of pressing Fn + pressing the key that corresponds to the profile. This is accompanied by a pleasant vibration, similar to the Taptic Engine in the iPhone, and indication on the touch panel. If you don’t like it, you can turn it off in PS5 settings.
All gamepad customization takes place in the section with special profiles. Here you can create, delete and transfer them from the console memory to the controller memory:
To give you an example, let’s create a new profile for Streets of Rage 4 (the best thing to happen to bitemaps in recent years). Each profile can be fully customized individually to fit your play style, genre or even character – only your imagination is limited.
Many people will not even do it, but those who like to twiddle sliders and test different builds have a lot to do here. I will tell you about each item separately.
1. Button reassignment.
This is where you assign actions to the petals. You select the desired key and put any other key on it. You can do anything you want, even disable it.
There’s essentially complete freedom here. You could even do this:
2. Stick sensitivity and blind spot.
It can be set for each stick separately. If a stick starts drifting or falsely triggering, don’t rush to get a new gamepad or in this case a stick module – try adjusting the dead zone.
A great emphasis in the application is made on different sensitivity curves. There are as many as six of them, each made for a certain genre of game. You can read the description on the screenshots:
I honestly tried all of them, but went back to the standard linear curve, because in my opinion it is more predictable. Plus, getting used to another one to maybe someday get some perks is questionable fun. I’m not ready to suffer for a week to get used to it yet.
At first glance, the difference in curves is not so noticeable, but when you can’t get the aim on the enemy’s head in Warzone, that’s when the questions arise. In general, it’s for hardcore gamers.
3. trigger blind spot
If it is not enough for you to physically limit the trigger travel, you can adjust the trigger range with software.
4. Vibration and Adaptive Triggers.
Just adjusting the intensity just like the regular DualSense. In the end it all depends on your gamepad and game requirements. You’ll definitely be able to reassign buttons (and if not, why do you need Edge?), but sensitivity is not a sure thing. In any case, the possibilities for customizing the controller are quite extensive. Many of them may yet reveal themselves over time.
The only thing missing, perhaps, is ready-made presets, at least for PlayStation exclusives. Everything will always have to be customized from scratch, but they could have figured out builds for God of War or Horizon 2, for which DLC will be released soon.
Cable, clip, autonomy
The USB-A to USB-C cable is a cannon. It’s three meters long, thick, fabric braided. It looks like it will outlive even your grandchildren with daily use.
But the plastic clip to fix the cable in the gamepad is the stupidest thing in the kit. You won’t use this plastic clip because it’s too much unnecessary manipulation: open it, put the USB-C tip in, close it, insert it into the gamepad and slide it into Lock mode.
With a sleight of hand, a wireless gamepad becomes a wired gamepad. Why? Ask Sony, but my versions are: either they wanted to throw in another accessory to justify the $200 price tag, or they were trying to mitigate the lower battery life. Yes, the battery in the Edge is 33% smaller than the regular gamepad (1050 mAh vs. 1560 mAh), but in reality it doesn’t feel like much. The charge is enough for 5 hours of active game play with vibration, adaptive triggers and all gamepad features. In a pinch, a 3-meter cable that will reach any couch will help.
Conclusions
DualSense is a great gamepad. DualSense Edge is even better. They took the base, added useful features and buttons, and what else do you need? Yes, the included stick attachments are so bad, yes, the battery is smaller, but all these things are trifles against the background of one main disadvantage. The price. It’s very expensive.
