In the series of interviews with Manager of the Product Planning Department Toshimasa Aoki, he has already talked about how they tried using the Xbox 360 analog stick layout for the DualShock 4, before ultimately scrapping it.
However, they did look at some other aspects of the Xbox 360 controller when creating the DualShock 4, especially when it comes to the grips, as Aoki told GamesBeat:
A lot of people felt that the Xbox 360 controller fits in their hands [better]. With the DualShock 3, you have to hold it. With the DualShock 4, you don’t really have to hold it. It just stays in your hand. We kind of merged the good parts of the Xbox grip while still keeping that iconic PlayStation shape.
After saying how Japanese testers found the larger size of the DS4 to be “fine,” Aoki gave out some good news to heavy sweaters by revealing, “The bottom side is where you sweat a lot. We made it a little more textured, so it helps keep from getting slippery after you use the controller for a while.”
Of course, along with a bigger size to the controller, it went up in weight as well, with Aoki explaining:
The Xbox 360 controller – some people said it was too bulky, but a lot of people said that the weight felt good in their hands.
We were discussing trying to add weight, which is not something Sony really does. We always go for smaller and lighter. But that was more at the end of our to-do list, because we needed to fix everything else first. After we’d fixed the design and all the features, it became heavier than the DualShock 3. We had more stuff in it. We were thinking about adding weight on top of this, but in the end, it already had a weight that was pretty good.
Unfortunately, Japanese gamers do find the DualShock 4 to be a bit heavy after playing with the DualShock 3, mostly because “there aren’t many Xboxes around in Japan.” Laughing, Aoki said, “So, sorry, Japanese people!”
For those of you who have played with the DualShock 4, what do you think of the increased weight? Let us know in the comments below.
