one’s On January 26, Sony's DualSense Edge, a PlayStation 5 controller akin to Microsoft's Xbox Elite Series 2, will be made available. This marks the company's entry into the market for professional-grade controller variations. In our review, we give the Edge high marks for its customizability, praising its swappable analogue sticks, trigger stops, and custom button-mapping profiles — even though its $200 price tag may be a bit much for those who don't play in tournaments.

The fact remains that, if you're anything like me, you play your PlayStation 5 a lot. To determine whether the DualSense Edge's features result in an improved gaming experience, I've been doing just that over the past four days by playing a variety of games (both new and old). And while I do not believe that the new variation is necessary for enjoyable sessions in the Old World, the Lands Between, or the Wild West, I have discovered that the Edge makes some of my favourite PlayStation games feel much more fluid.

I've included the five games I've played with the Edge below to show how its features clear away annoyances, fix input issues, and create a better overall experience.

ALBERT RING

You can never have too many buttons, as my late granny, a skilled seamstress and frequent fixer of busted shirts and coats used to say. Elden Ring wasn't the topic of her conversation, but she wasn't avoiding it either.

In first-person shooters, when taking either thumb off the analogue stick might mean certain death (more on that below), The Edge's two additional back buttons may seem perfectly designed for the genre, but they're also a godsend in the finest game of 2022. I can switch between items, spells, and incantations without pausing my character during the intense boss encounter by shifting the D-Pad Left and D-Pad Right inputs to the corresponding back buttons. If you weren't aware, there are a few of them in this game. For the same reason, you may also transfer the sprint/dodge feature from the circle button to one of the back buttons.

I haven't switched from the clicky half-dome variants of the two interchangeable back buttons. Even while they are still useful, the paddle versions are harder for me to press with my middle fingers and don't feel nearly as fulfilling. Fuck you, Malenia, about the middle fingers.

A sequel to Red Dead Rebirth

The story is a classic. a genuine American urban legend. Arthur Morgan, a gangster, thief, gentleman, and raconteur, strolls into Valentine's puddle-filled street. Alcohol is strongly odorized in the nighttime air. “Hey! The impending occupant of a pine casket screams out, "Arthur Morgan." "People tell me you can fire a pistol pretty quickly." He pulls his dependable smoke waggon.

Arthur responds with a groan and squares his shoulders to his incessant enemy. Now that I can adjust the analogue sensitivity of my DualSense Edge, it will happen much faster. A man approaches the mud after hearing gunfire. The other man, Arthur Morgan, in case it wasn't obvious, strolls out into the distance.

Red Dead Redemption 2 has a lot of appeal to me, but I'll also concede that it's not the best game ever in terms of pure mechanics. Whether on horseback or in the intense close quarters of a bank robbery, it always feels more like I'm managing Arthur's motions than I am. The Edge's adjustable stick sensitivity greatly reduces these irritations; by switching from the "Default" sensitivity to the "Precise" setting (there are a total of six options), Arthur's floaty aiming now flits from enemy to enemy, without having to rely on the auto-aim function, which can make for dull gunfights.

(The back buttons in Red Dead 2 are also really beneficial for the same reason they were in Elden Ring: the less time I have to spend using the D-Pad to cycle among the stuff, the better.)

AVOIDING WEST HORIZON

The Edge's programmable stick sensitivity is really helpful in Horizon Forbidden West, just like it was in Red Dead 2. But in this situation, I discovered that the "Steady" option, which favours fluid, steady movement and aiming over jerky flicks, was the most helpful. It enables me to regulate hip-firing when the same attacker closes the distance while also allowing me to fine-tune my aim when shooting a specific machine component from a distance.

The back buttons are also helpful in this situation, to sum up. (Are you beginning to notice a pattern yet?) Moving my thumb to the D-Pad for a health item or explosive trap during a challenging monster hunt has never been optimal. I understand that protagonist Aloy has a lot of tools and weaponry at her disposal and that Guerilla Games creators did their best to fit them all onto a regular controller. The back buttons completely take care of that problem.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

The Edge truly starts to shine in this area. The ability to switch between pre-set settings instantly is far handier than the aforementioned back buttons and sensitivity adjustment options.

This feature is also available on the Xbox Elite Series 2, but the PlayStation 5's pop-up menu makes it easier to use. I may press a face button to switch to the appropriate profile by holding down one of the "Function" paddles (the buttons below each analogue) for a short period. The analogue sensitivity will return to "Steady" while using the "Forbidden West" profile, along with the adjusted dead zones and back-button inputs. The settings I thought were best for Arthur can be switched back to by selecting the "Red Dead" profile.

With this function, you can be even more specific: Depending on the multiplayer loadout I was using, I altered all four preset profiles in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. I can move between the optimal settings for a Sniper, Machine Gunner, Close-Quarters Assailant, and other characters just as quickly as I can change classes in Modern Warfare 2.

VERMINTIDE 2 in WARHAMMER

The DualSense Edge's advantages were most clearly displayed in a game that was released over five years ago. Yes, switching between potions, tomes, and explosives that were previously confined to the D-Pad is now made easier via the back buttons. And certainly, switching between different characters as well as classes within each character's roster is a breeze with the pre-set profiles. I spent much of Sunday enhancing Marcus Kruber, switching back and forth between his Mercenary, Huntsman, and Foot Knight professions, each of which bloomed with a distinct level of analogue sensitivity and tactile feedback.

But of all the capabilities on the Edge, I valued the ability to change the "Stop" zones for the R2 and L2 triggers the most because the game involves quite a bit of pushing, stabbing, bludgeoning, slicing, smashing, flailing, firing, blocking, and impaling. The triggers then stop around one-fourth of the way into their normal depth by lowering the notches next to each trigger to their lowest extremes. Instead of repeatedly pushing a shallow button, I now have to repeatedly press a deep-set trigger to swing my halberd. It may seem insignificant, but it relieves a lot of stress from my fingers when playing harder levels. Enjoying the violent style of combat in Warhammer: Vermintide 2 is now made simpler than ever thanks to the adjustable trigger stops, configurable profiles, and additional button space.

Launching in February 2023, PlayStation VR2 will cost $549.99, according to Sony.