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OTBWY on 03 April 2019
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OTBWY said:
It's not just Nintendo. The whole industry just forgot how to make good d-pads.

OTBWY said:

I wholly disagree. Vita d-pad is too clicky and the DS d-pad was never good. The gaps are super uncomfortable after long plays, you cannot deny that. Try comparing these two d-pads to let's say the Saturn d-pad or the SNES d-pad. It's so inferior it's not even funny.

I think the gaps are part of what make it more comfortable for my thumb to move around from one input to another. That they're indented near the center also helps. And lastly, but perhaps most importantly, the position of the D-pad is very important.
Sony are well aware that the analog is used far more often than the D-pad, and that seems to be the reason why most (if not all) other controllers switched their position around. But that results in the d-pad being placed in a position where your thumb constantly has to be angled far inwards, on top of making precise inputs. This is not so much an issue with an analog because it protrudes further out from the controller, and you can make a "Right" input on the analog by positioning your finger at the edge of the left side, and tilting it inward.
That's not possible on a d-pad. Your finger has to be on the right side of the d-pad to make a right input.

So to me it seems they made a conscious decision to place the analog in a 'good' position, and the d-pad in a 'great' position.
While other controllers prioritize placing the analog in a 'great' position, and the d-pad in a 'not good' position.

I can't really use those non-gap d-pads (if they're shaped like a +) any more since they start giving me blisters after an hour or so. But for the ones that are saucer shaped, if they work properly, they feel the most gentle to me. Like this one:

I'm sorry but the DS d-pad was never done because it was some ergonomic breakthrough in terms of d-pad design. At that time, the d-pad was done that way because of certain patents. Sony got around it with that contraption. And now we accept it because the PS1 was successful, despite the controls not because of it.

Why I think the d-pad is awful. You can't slide your thumb comfortably cause:

- The edges will wear your thumb when rocking it back and forth. The rocking motion on the d-pad is needed for many games, not just for games that require individual taps on a single direction.
- The plastic separations are noticable when you rock the d-pad or try to press it diagonally between the usual directions. First you have a gap (I think only the Saturn and some other SEGA controllers have this perfect) then you have the plastic separation making it uncomfortable.
- It's stiff.
- The middle gap is the biggest offender. When I use a d-pad, I like the rest my thumb on it, usually on the center. So with the DS d-pad, when your press it, you get an x-shape imprint and it does not sit on actual soft plastic. With Nintendo's and Xbox's d-pad there is something physical to put my thumb on and it will not wear as much.