Ever since I bought the Playstation 2, I’ve had the standard controller that came with the system itself. Countless times, the distance between the furniture would prove for an uncomfortable gaming experience of either leaning forward, sitting on the rather hard flooring, or leaning back in fear of the plug popping out. When time came to purchase a new controller, it seemed only natural to go wireless. The problem is that there are so many different wireless controllers out on the market, most of them being third party, and unreliable. I then came across the Logitech Cordless Action Controller for the PS2. Being officially licensed by Sony (as indicated by the sticker in the package), this seemed like the best bet, but the question is, does this stand out in the crowd, or fail like many of the other third party counterparts.
The Action Controller is the second-generation wireless controller for the PS2 that’s made by Logitech. It is much lighter, smaller, and comfortable, all while packing in a 30 foot 2.4 GHz frequency. Two AA batteries power the controller, and the battery life can last for hours of gaming. In addition to working with the Playstation 2, the Action Controller also works on the PSOne as well as the original Playstation model, so gamers can play their favorite classics on the older systems with newer, more comfortable wireless technology.
Logitech did a nice job on recreating the feel of the official Playstation controller. Like mentioned earlier, the design is smaller than the original Logitech wireless PS2 controller, but it has also been remolded into a more comfortable feeling controller as well. The back of the controller is molded to better fit the structure of the human hand, while the front has some indentations, although they accommodate the look more than the feel department. The controller is small, but not too small, and it’s about the size of the original Playstation controller. It fits very comfortably in the hands, although the placement of the L and R buttons feels a little strange.
The button placement mimics the official Playstation controller. All the action buttons are in place, as well as the L and R buttons, start and select buttons, and D-pad. The mode button sits on the upper left of the controller, while directly across to the right is a vibration button that turns the vibration feature on and off. Like mentioned in the last paragraph, the L and R buttons feel a little awkward. It’s not so much that the placement is off but more that the buttons no longer sit atop their humps like they do with the official Playstation controller. It feels strange at first, but once you get used to it, it isn’t so much a problem. All the other buttons, and analog sticks are fine, but the D-pad feels very fragile. When you first touch it, it feels sort of cheap and easily breakable. It has held up very well through excessive gaming, but it still has that feeling that it may one day break.
All in all, I had a very good experience with the Logitech Cordless Action Controller. It is very well made, possibly the best third party wireless controller available for the entire Playstation family. It resembles the original Playstation controller in both size and build, so people should have no problems picking it and automatically becoming accustomed to it. The frequency never fails, and the miniature receiver plugs into the controller slot, allowing to keep in at all times while the user simply stores the controller away with no need of wrapping any cords up. If you’re looking for a wireless controller for the PS2, or even the PSOne, you can’t do much better than the Logitech Cordless Action Controller.
