We’re in a new golden age for fighting games on consoles, meaning there’s never been a better time to get into the genre that hailed from the glory days of the bustling arcade. Yet it doesn’t necessarily mean you need to buy an arcade stick if you want to get serious.
New releases like Street Fighter 6 and Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves might be prime targets for PlayStation’s recently revealed FlexStrike wireless fight stick due next year, but they also include more simplified control systems designed around playing with a typical controller. Pro players including Street Fighter legends Mena RD and Punk have been using pads for years, even with complex classic inputs. Then there’s the newest meta of leverless all-button controllers, which look like if a keyboard had big buttons and allow for faster, more precise inputs.
Now that the biggest and most prestigious fighting game tournament in the world, Evo, has wrapped up in Las Vegas for another year, I’ve narrowed down the best controllers I’ve used in virtual beatdowns lately. Consider one of these if you’re looking to take your fight to another level – but remember that no one controller type is strictly superior. There’s preference but also you’ve just got to put in the time and dedication to get better.
Best Sticks
Victrix Pro FS
Platforms: PS5, PS4, PC
Although it has an eye-wateringly high price tag, the Victrix Pro FS is hands-down my favourite fight stick, with its joystick and buttons made with arcade-grade Sanwa Denshi parts that makes them durable for many a beating.
Despite being a bulky thing, the handles on each side actually make it easy to carry around, though its comfort factor is largely thanks to the shell featuring a 6.28-degree wrist slope, which makes a huge difference in reducing fatigue for those lengthy sessions in the lab.
With other buttons neatly accessible at the top, which includes a button to lock you out from pressing any of them by accident during a tournament, as well as a quick-access back panel allowing for easy button customisation, including space to store your joystick (also easy to pop off but keeps in place while playing) when not in use or transporting, this is the king of fight sticks, if price is no issue.
Nacon Daija
Platforms: PS5, PS4, PC / Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PC
This stick had a heavy presence in this year’s Evo finals as Nacon, the new global partner of this prestigious tournament, made special gold, silver and bronze versions of the Daija for the winners and runner-ups.
Besides being made with durable Sanwa Denshi parts, including two different joysticks, your other buttons from a standard controller are accessible from the side so it’s unlikely you’ll press them accidentally in the heat of a match, though you might want to familiarise yourself of this layout when you want to capture a winning moment.
It certainly stands out as one of the largest and heaviest sticks around, but that real estate does come with a textured palm rest all the way along the bottom, and this stick has been designed in collaboration with Kayane, whose record Soulcalibur wins has made her the most successful female fighting game player in the world. Plus, you can also freely customise the face plate with different artwork to make this your own.
8BitDo Arcade Stick
Platforms: Switch 2, Switch, PC
Both affordable and more compact, this is a perfect entry-level stick especially for Switch owners, which those NES colours are definitely appealing to. It’s also one of the few sticks to work wirelessly either with Bluetooth or 2.4G (PC only), though rest assured, it also comes with a USB-C cable to ensure lagless play.
I do have an issue with its joystick, where I seem to have more trouble having it recognise my double quarter circle motions compared to other more premium options. That said, you’re also able to change whether the joystick is functioning as a digital or analogue input.
One of the cool things is that when you turn a knob to set its compatibility with Nintendo’s consoles or PC Xinput, it displays the appropriate button letters in red LED. There’s also two additional P1 and P2 buttons that can be used for programming macro sequences, such as any complex super moves, though Switch users will need to program this with 8BitDo software on PC first. Just don’t try and get away with that kind of cheat in tourneys!
Best Pads
8BitDo Ultimate 2
Platforms: Switch 2, Switch, PC / Android, PC
If you’re playing fighting games with pad, 8BitDo’s flagship Ultimate controller is one of the best out there that rivals even official console controllers, while also at more of a bargain.
Whichever of these Ultimates you pick up, they both come with extra mappable buttons, two that can also be macros on the back, and two smaller additional buttons on the bumpers (note: you’ll need 8BitDo PC software to map them). You can also switch between having Hall-effect analogue triggers or digital triggers for more immediacy.
Of course, movement inputs are vital in a fighting game, so you’ve got a solid d-pad that’s both clicky and smooth. But 8BitDo has also made use of the latest TMR (Tunnel Magnetoresistance) tech alongside drift-free Hall-effect sensors for its sticks, so they feel even smoother and more accurate, making it easier to pull off those double quarter-circle motions.
Retro-Bit Sega Saturn 2.4GHz Wireless Pro Controller
Platforms: PC, Switch, Sega Saturn
Sega’s consoles were some of the best places to play arcade fighting games at home, none better than the wholly under appreciated Saturn – why, yes, I am a card-carrying Sega fanboy. Retro-Bit’s officially licensed wireless controller, based on the Saturn’s Japanese model 2 design, is actually designed to work on OG Saturn consoles, but it comes with a 2.4GHz USB adaptor allowing it to work on PC and Switch too (a firmware update is coming soon to make it work with Switch 2).
That’s where the twin analogue Hall-effect sticks at the bottom come in for modern 3D games, though it also functions properly with Saturn games that support 3D controls. With its excellent d-pad and six-button layout, it’s the perfect controller for playing many of Capcom’s classic collection of fighting games, from Capcom Vs SNK to Marvel Vs Capcom 2, on modern systems.
Retro Fighters D6 Dreamcast Wireless Controller
Platforms, PC, Switch 2, Switch, Sega Dreamcast
Another one for Sega fans, the Retro Fighters D6 is modelled after the six-button ASCII pad released for the Dreamcast, and also sports very nostalgic Dreamcast coloured buttons (you can also get this in black if you prefer). As such, this was also designed specifically as a wireless controller for Sega’s final console, using a wireless dongle that also doubles as a port for the VMU. But with a USB receiver, it can also work on PC and Switch (and Switch 2 with the updated firmware).
While it’s got comfortable rounded grips, and uses Kailh switches for its buttons and d-pad, the latter suffers from not travelling as deep as the Saturn’s. While I don’t have any problems launching hadoukens when rolling a quarter-circle, super moves requiring double quarter-circle motions felt tougher to pull off, so you may have to acclimatise yourself to its quirks. Unless you’re a huge Dreamcast fan, you may be better off with Retro-Bit’s Saturn controller.
Best Leverless Controllers
Razer Kitsune
Platforms: PS5, PC
Although Hit Box was the pioneer, Razer was one of the first major players to get in on the rising trend of all-button controllers for fighting games. The result was the slick Kitsune, with buttons using lightning-fast optical switches for movement (with the jump being mapped to a slightly larger button at the bottom, like a space bar) and attack inputs. It’s ultra thin design also makes it very easy to store and carry especially if you’re going to be attending tournaments.
As you’d expect from Razer, it’s also got some fancy programmable RGB lighting for its buttons, while you can also customise the top plate with your own designs (Razer also often brings out special limited edition versions that’s worth keeping an eye out for, especially during an event like Evo).
The downside is of course its price. That’s also more egregious when you consider that you don’t have options for adding more buttons, as is the case with the next one on the list.
Victrix Pro KO
Platforms: PS5, PS4, PC / Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PC
Victrix had released an all-button controller before but the Pro KO is a smart redesign that makes the form factor lighter and thinner – albeit not as much as Razer’s – while still featuring that important 6.28-degree wrist slope that its flagship stick has.
The standout here is that you have more buttons to play with to really customise your setup, thanks to four extra spaces you can add more cherry switch buttons, if perhaps you thumb could be resting on the jump button in a more comfortable position, or perhaps having a one-button parry in Street Fighter 6 could be better placed next to your directional buttons.
Alongside a dazzling array of RGB lighting you can programme for individual buttons, and with all the tools and buttons you need kept beneath its top plate, the Pro KO is one of the most customisable leverless controllers you can buy.
8BitDo Arcade Controller
Platforms: Switch 2, Switch, PC / Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PC
The latest all-button controller (and not shipping in the UK until September) is also the most affordable option that’s light, thin and packed with some interesting customisation options. Compared with 8BitDo’s arcade stick, it uses different buttons though retains that attractive NES colour scheme and LED lighting to distinguish Switch and Xinput buttons.
It also has four additional bean-shaped buttons surrounding the standard directional and attack buttons (the box also includes four spare buttons if these need replacing). You’ll need to connect the controller to PC and 8BitDo to map the buttons, but you’ll be be able to assign them either as alternate buttons or as macros.
One different to point out is that the Xbox version only has two remappable bean buttons because the other two have been assigned as the left and right stick clicks. The same L3 and R3 buttons of a Switch are available as separate buttons on the top-right of the controller.
