The Xbox 360 controller is well-known for being one of the very best controllers ever made. Microsoft's evolution of the original Xbox 'S' controller felt like a truly refined effort for the company's second home console, and third-party accessory maker Hyperkin has decided to bring it forward for Xbox One, Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S.
Enter the 'Hyperkin Xenon' - named after a somewhat niche reference to early Xbox 360 motherboards. Fear not though, unlike lots of those Xenon chipsets from circa 2005, Hyperkin's effort won't melt after a few hours of use.
See, we've been hands-on with this controller for almost a week now, getting a good chunk of game time in across various modern Xbox and backwards compatible titles. And to be honest, we don't really have too much to say about it other than this feels so much like the real thing that — aside from a material change to the analog sticks — we wouldn't know the difference from an official, off-the-factory-line Xbox 360 controller.
Like Hyperkin's previous revival of the original Xbox 'Duke', the Xenon is an officially licensed wired controller - using a detachable USB-C cable for connection. To be honest, we quite like this wired choice for the 360 pad remake. Going back and using wireless Xbox 360 controllers always reminds us of that awkward battery compartment trade-off that always came when going wireless, and over the years, we've begun to prefer wired 360 pads anyway. Sure, Hyperkin could have redesigned a wireless effort, but for sticking to the original designs, we much prefer the flat back form factor of this wired setup.
Elsewhere, you've got your modern Xbox features here like a share button and a 3.5mm headphone jack, but the rest of the pad is as you remember it. Yep, that includes the more 'mushy' d-pad that came as part of the now-classic controller, which we never minded but is something to be aware of if you prefer a more conventional 'clicky' d-pad.
While the stick tension, shape and the rest of it is like-for-like compared to the original, we must mention our only real complaint with this controller. The analog sticks on the Xenon feel quite plasticky, and less soft and comfortable than the ones on an original pad. They'll probably end up being more durable in the long run, and maybe that's why Hyperkin went down this route, but they're just not as comfy and we may end up applying some rubber grips once we pick some up that fit.
The triggers, bumpers and face buttons all feel identical to be honest, and it's been really nice to just feel and use a 'new' Xbox 360 controller in 2023. We've become super accustomed to Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S pads in the last decade or so, and both of those generations have great controller options, no doubt. Yet, the 360 pad is an absolute classic and the Hyperkin Xenon is making us question whether it really is the best Xbox controller ever.
While that debate rages on in our minds, we'll take solace in the fact that we can now play our modern Xbox games on a 360 controller with ease. Xbox fans - if you love the 360 pad, the Hyperkin Xenon is an absolute must.
Conclusion
Wired controllers in this day and age can often feel a little antiquated, but we think it's worth making an exception for the Hyperkin Xenon. The decision to go wired helps with the form factor anyway, and analog stick material aside, this feels so much like an Xbox 360 pad that it's transported us back to booting up Gears of War for the very first time.
This reviewer hasn't touched an official Xbox Series X|S pad since acquiring this thing, and to be honest, it might stay that way unless there's a need to rock a wireless option for whatever reason. The Xbox 360 controller is simply one of the very best, and at $50, we can absolutely recommend picking up Hyperkin's modern version to tackle your Xbox libraries - whatever generation of game you're playing.
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Is the Xbox 360 controller the best gamepad ever? Let us know if you're considering getting a Xenon!
Comments 20
How many pads do we need?
ok well i absolutely need the pink one 😍
Need a cheap controller with extra buttons for remapping. I detest press clicking the left of right sticks as run. I'm starting to unistall games that i find on game pass that does this.
@Ephexis83 welcome to Xbox, a new controller every week. And an extra one on Sundays.
Lol, as you can tell I'm new
Semi-interesting fact: Xenon was actually going to be the name of the console before they decided on Xbox 360. I managed a Game store in the build up to the 360 launch and we had tons of demo videos and marketing material that referenced it as Xenon. There was also a DOA4 demo video that had a message from Team Ninja in the background of a fight saying 'Congratulations on the Xenon launch from all at Team Ninja'
If the pad is the same as the pad from the xbox360 : NO THANKS ! Too bad we didn't get the "moving" D pad from the last controllers on xbox 360.....
@johnK I have recently purchased the Turtle Beach React R controller which has 2 back buttons you can map. Got it for £30 on Amazon.
@RetroMan71 I love the Turtle Beach controllers. Find them more comfortable than the official ones.
No, to use a wired controller is to travel back 20 years in the gaming world. Would have been interested if it was wireless though.
@Joabra01Swe I remember using wireless controllers with a megadrive 30 years ago. It has always been personal preference, little to do with the advancement of technology. Personally i prefer wired unless I’m fairly far away from the console.
Wired = don’t care
I already have enough controllers as is, so no loss lol
I love these retro style controllers, I'd love to add this (and the OG Xbox) to the collection I have for my Switch (8bitdo's SNES Pro and PowerA's GC pad) but being weird only is a problem for me. (I get it's not as "simple")
It was a problem when I was little and my brother wandered about, it's a problem now with 3 kids wandering about.
I did want this, and will still probably buy it, but they really needed to skip authenticity and put a better d pad on it. The 360 controller was great, maybe revolutionary even, but the dpad was always awful. I remember getting my console on launch night, excitedly setting it up in the early hours... and initially thinking that my controller was faulty, that's how bad it was to get accurate movement, thankfully most games used the analogue pad, but yeah, it was terrible.
My first reaction remains the same, dont see much reason to get this. The layout is identical to the current one. At least with the Duke, I can justify the differences in layout with the jewel white/black buttons that make playing BC OG XBox games more intuitive, as on-screen prompts match the layout better. But this? It's simply nostalgia and I still have tons of working XBox 360 controllers in the house.
I could potentially see myself buying this as a display shelf item if I ever see it on a deep deep discount, but really wish Hyperkin went middle-ground and gave us a version of the OG XBox S controller. THAT I might jump into instantly, since it would be so much more comfortable for those situations I described earlier.
They should bring back that Xbox Arcade joystick for 360 that kinda looked like an Atari 2600 joystick.
Had it been wireless....
Why does the Amazon listing still have the placeholder release date?
Also, Amazon ships to EU, right?
@FraserG Yeah I was pleasantly surprised when I first started using it. I was expecting a more plastic and creaky feel, but it's so well put together and it feels no different than the official one I had.
Eh I can totally live without this, unlike the Duke there just isn't much about the 360 controller that feels unique or appealing to me. It was a fine controller in it's day, but I always felt like the Xbox One controller took what was good about that and improved upon it.
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