The PS5 controller is probably the best right now but not even close to VR controllers, will console controllers become as brilliant as VR controllers?

Tbh, I think the Wii was on the right direction. I want controllers to become so intuitive that it would be like wearing a glove. 

I don't see how it could be improved any further, or any need to do so. But who knows what the future will bring.

Simply splitting the in two like with the dual cons was genuis. I'm sure there's room, it's just a pity they won't follow motion controls on ps5 and X. I seen a patent years ago for a helmet from Nintendo where you control the game with the electoral feild from your brain. 

Alas, that ps9 commercial where you snort the nano bots and enter the game is something. 😀

I personally think modern controllers totally suck.  It's mostly this way, because that's what modern "hard-core" grognards like.  And when I say "modern controller", I mean anything that is some variation or improvement to the PS2 controller.  This controller is actually too clunky and complex to further gaming.

For most 2D games an arcade stick is ideal, and I really think 4 buttons should be the max.  For 3D games, there need to be more advances in the Wii remote & nunchaku design.  That is the right track, but there is a lot of room for improvement. 

Also, sometimes a touch screen or mouse is the right controller.  And back in the day we had light guns and trackballs and all sorts of other controls.  I would like to see more experimentation in the types of controls that are used in various games.  As it is, most games are just designed for the PS2-style configuration, which I would call a one-size-fits-none design.  It's not suited for any type of game in particular, but it's more about a controller that can somehow play every game, even if it controls poorly.

I don't think it can be improved in any way that won't be far more expensive. I'd love more touch-free controls, but they are too clunky and unresponsive for a lot of games. Largely because there are no haptics.

Oh I miss light guns so much, what I'd do to have my PS1 hooked up to one for Time crisis or that contraption for the Wii that turned it into a gun. I guess VR controllers are the closest to that now. 

This is why I made the thread, it seems everything since PS2 and duel cons have stagnated. Noone takes advantage of the new tech they put into these, no use of the six axis nor touch pad nor even the haptics. It's like devs are lazy when they could use the tech to make games better. I'd so love to see haptics taken advantage of and most certainly controllers that split in the middle like the Joy cons, more gyro etc. 

But devs won't take advantage of haptics 😞

Not in the drastic sort of ways that controllers in the past use to improve. But that's par for the course, these days. Everything has been done. We're now in the age of expecting the mean. Like telephones in the 90's.

I think the way controller is now is fairly great and don't mind if that layout is fairly set in stone.

If I'd want anything is to just include back buttons as a standard. Those expensive "pro" controllers and 3rd party controllers have them. Last gen the PS4 controller even had an add-on for back buttons.

Using the Wiimote when it came out just wasn't for me, and if every gen kept coming with different gaming controllers as the default then I probably would've lost interest in video games.

I think so. I'm generally in the party that somewhat prefers simplicity in interface, but complexity in what it can execute. A very good example is what a computer mouse, the DS's resistive touch screen, the Wii's IR pointer and gyro controls, and the iPhone's capacitive touch screen achieved in past times for their various applications. The Switch's multi-use joy-cons don't get enough credit for the design philosophy it achieved either: a simple single controller, dual-handed controls, a traditional controller, and a handheld.

I also still likes the simple NES controller design: A, B, and D-pad. It was an elegant solution to the complexity barrier that had sprung up during that generation. Maybe it's nostalgia. It's still a good design for certain games even today as was shown on Wii, and even the Switch today.

But the real question, are we done? I don't think so. It's not necessarily going to be about bells and whistles but how simple and intuitive the interface can be made while expanding its capabilities. How does that look? That's the multi-billion dollar question. But, some of the examples above are a fairly good indication that these are difficult to predict unless we're heavily considering software design.