Best Controllers for Rocket League – 2018 Top Choices

Since its release, Psyonix’s unique combo of soccer, racing and motorized action have attracted more than 20 million gamers all over the globe. Rocket Leagues surprising achievements are built on years of hard work and passion from the developers.

Likewise, this challenging sports game requires a lot of work and practice to make your place among the masters.

But is it just the player’s skill?

Yes, almost all games achievements are mostly dependent on the player’s skills and playing styles. However, you can always improve your gaming skills just by improving your controllers. The better your input devices are the better your response time is.

Similarly, a controller that is comfortable for you can fully unleash your gaming potentials.

 

Best Controllers For Rocket League – Top Choices From The International Experts  

For the above reasons, we went deep into what the top teams and players use and recommend as best gamepads for Rocket League. Thus we came up with the following controllers. Before we get into the core, let’s take a glimpse into a chart of the controllers used by top players from top teams all over the world.

The top joysticks for Rocket League may vary from cheap to very expensive. So it’s obvious that the experience of selecting a suitable controller for yourself may vary upon your experiences.

I won’t say that you should have to consider hundreds of facts to select a good controller for Rocket League. On the contrary, you should do some research and get to know a few key factors such as responsiveness of switches and sticks, shapes that best suit your grip, programmable vs. non-programmable buttons/keys etc technical elements.

Nevertheless, now that we have a basic overview of the controllers the top players use, let’s move on the reviews by ranking the top controllers for rocket league.

Before you go for the reviews I would like to request to watch the epic saves and let me know in the comment box if you have already wasted your enemies.

 

Razer Raiju PS4 Controller

With a unique feature to customize the buttons, Razer Raiju is one of the best controllers for games that require your fingers to be glued on the sticks. Even with an expensive range, Razer Raiju doesn’t support wireless connectivity.

So it may not be a choice as an everyday controller for everybody, but that doesn’t make it any less of a good joystick for Rocket League.

Even though the Raiju is dedicated for PS4, it comes with an almost similar Xbox One controller structure. It’s a little bigger than usual PS4 controllers offering extra grip.

However, a small portion of users may find the analog sticks a bit stretched out if they have smaller grips. There are four quick access buttons below the analog sticks which can be used to switch profiles & mute or control audio level.

The directional pad has four individual buttons rather than a rocking pad that consists of a single piece of the base for all four buttons. A rocking pads left button will raise if you press the right button and vice versa for up-down too since all buttons have the same base.

On the other hand, individual buttons have separate bases so there’s less or almost no chance to press the wrong pad. It depends on the user as well as the genre of the game to pick which is best, but nowadays most people go for a D-pad rather than a rocking pad

Don’t mistake it for a usual Ps4 controller, it’s almost similar to using a mechanical keyboard instead of standard keys. This is mostly because of how CLICKY the face button feels.

Pros:

Cons:

 

Microsoft Xbox 360 Controller with Transforming D-pad

The original Xbox controller was hideous and very uncomfortable comparing to DualShock 1 & 2.  But that was way before, and Microsoft went into a lot of work to improve and re-design its perversion.

The Xbox 360 controller is a worthy choice for almost every type of games, Rocket League is just one of them. In a budget-friendly price tag it comes with a lot of features, for instance, now it comes in both wired and wireless versions. It also has some options such as manufacturers like Razer & Logitech’s Xbox controllers. The newer versions support both DirectInput and Xinput switchable with a simple flip.

From the primary to the latest Xbox 360 controllers, they are always widely preferred. If you don’t have any problem with the placement of the analog sticks, it is almost flawless and perfect.

The reason I mentioned ALMOST is that of the issues with the directional pad/D-Pad. It’s not tactile as latest controllers and turns out to be a bit inaccurate from time to time. Nevertheless, the latest versions have transformed the D-pad, as well as upgrading the thumb-sticks. Overall, it’s a user-friendly controller for most games and also a top choice in the list of best for Rocket League.

 

DualShock 3

Just like Microsoft Xbox, Sony came a long way their controllers. The DualShock 3 was introduced with the later versions of PlayStation 3. Comparing to older versions it comes with rumble support which would have been very useful if it was available from the beginning of PS3. Sony was forced to leave this feature out before due to legal issues. Since then a lot of gaming, purists were craving this feature.

The price tag may be a higher catch comparing to the features. However, it still makes it a very handy and hefty six axis controller. Where the usual six-axis controllers weigh around 5 ounces, the DualShock 3 is 7 ounces in weight. This little extra weight isn’t a very big deal, but it adds a very extensive feel in your hand.

The up-to-date wireless/Bluetooth controllers still have the six-axis motion sensor. However, the built-in Li-ion battery may become a trouble in the long run as it’s a non-removable lithium battery. Even though it usually takes several years for the battery to wear-out, you would still have to buy a new controller whenever it happens. Another drawback is that the USB charging cable isn’t included with the controller & have to be bought separately.

There are other similar wireless PS3 controllers which exclude this drawback, like the Nyko Zero which comes with a charging cable as well as a detachable battery. On top of that, it will cost a few bucks less than the official DS3 controller. Yet, it’s hard to suggest other controllers over the control and handiness of the original DualShock 3 controller.

Overall, with very minor disadvantages; the DualShock 3 is a very handy and useful choice for most games as well as Rocket League.

 

Xbox One Controller

Like I mentioned before the Xbox 360 controller had its own share of flaws, yet it was widely popular for being comfortable and ergonomic in that primary era of the latest consoles. However, the latest Xbox One is a whole different story.

With a much more sleeker and cooler design, the Xbox One also has a much more minimal approach compared to the 360 controllers; especially the older versions. It has a  much slimmer feel and design as well as a sleek visual appearance when you look at it from the sides. Unlike the 360 controllers, its built with the unnecessary plastics trimmed off. The bulky look of the 360 controllers also made them look low quality and was more likely to get dirty.

Similarly, the Xbox One has more details and an attractive over-all look due to the sparing paint. Unlike the older versions home button with an over-bright backlit; the Xbox One Controllers home button has a mild & elegant silver hue. The Start & Back buttons like the older versions are now replaced with Menu and View button which are much more user-friendly.

The Xbox One controller is equipped with a wide variety of color patterns and special features, thanks to the Microsoft Xbox design lab who let the users get their custom designs.

Xbox One lets the users are to customize almost every aspect of the controller such as:

With everything above considered, as well as the responsiveness; Xbox One controller allows you to have everything it can offer plus extras. Overall, it is a top-notch controller with improved functionality, comfortability and visual structure.

 

DualShock 4

2013 was not only a year when Sony’s PS4 console got back, it’s also the year when Sony release their DualShock 4 controller. In the following years, rival companies kept up with the competition through various designs and better upgrades. Nevertheless, Sony kept delivering plenty of updates and still now it’s a distinguished controller as well as appealing visually.

Besides the innovative design, the response time is excellent along with a better battery for longer wireless operation. The improved button quality ensures that you don’t have to smash down on the controller to make your character move.

What makes the DualShock 4 exclusive and distinguished is a trackpad on the controller on them. With the latest updates, the trackpad has a light bar right above. The light bar is a charging indicator as well as it glows different hues upon various actions. There are a handful of reports about the trackpad not being able to respond in different actions since there are various swipe patterns to define certain moves.

However, it seems to be minor setback considering the superbly responsive analog stick with a slightly notched down top to fit your fingertips. The controller is also equipped with multi-axis gyroscope and accelerometer. Nothing new about it, however, they are highly sensitive which makes them quite accurate comparing to usual gyro & accelerometer.

As a final verdict, the advantages overrun the disadvantages by a vast majority. So far the only report seems to be the trackpad issue which was faced by a very minor portion of the users. All in all, It’s quite enjoyable to hold it in your grips as well as playing with this marvelous controller.

 

Steam Controller

Being fairly new it may not be a very popular choice among top rocket league players; nevertheless, it’s the last on our list as a controller supported by Rocket League. Additionally, after reviewing the features and specs we couldn’t resist adding it to the list of best controllers for Rocket League.

The first and foremost thing which makes it unique compared to the above controllers, as well as any other controller, is how it’s built. You see, all the controllers are mainly differed by a common build structure. The main difference which makes you say whether it’s a PS style or Xbox style controller is the position of the left stick and the D-pad. Both types have two analog sticks and PlayStation controllers tend to have both sticks at the bottom with the D-pad at the top left; whereas Xbox style controllers have the D-pad at the bottom left with the stick placed the top left.

However, the Steam controller has only one analog stick and at the top left & right it has to touch sensitive pads instead of D-pads and the usual four buttons.  This is where it gets interesting. Since the majority of users are used to with two sticks and traditional, It may take a while to get used to it. So some users may find it distressing whereas the others may get used to it so much that they will switch to it completely.

Does this uncommon structure affect your gaming skills? Maybe at first due to not being used to it. However for me, when I got used to it I revealed a few new skills which I may never have revealed with the usual controllers. So it turned out to be a well-performing controller not only for Skylines, GTA V or Star Citizen; it also turned out to be an impressive controller for Rocket League.

 

 

Concluding Verdict

There’s nothing much to put as a conclusion about which is the best controller among the above since it’s a matter of personal choice between which style are you familiar with. Hence there is no ranking between the above controllers, you go for whichever meets you’re playing style as well as your budget.

So go for your heart, try out your friend’s controller before buying it if it’s possible. Nevertheless, if you are a pro you are most likely to end up with Xbox One or DualShock 4 like the majority of the players. Let us know your preferences and choices in the comments and let’s see which stands with the most users!

 

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