Asymmetrical makes the analog stick left of thumb and buttons right of thumb.

Symmetrical makes theSe positions mirror Each side. I’m just rambling.

It depends on the kind of game, really. 2D and shooters symmetrical, else assymetrical.

This sums up my feelings as well.

I can make anything work, but I prefer the Xbox layout (and what is hopefully the standard Nintendo layout moving forward).

Yes, whit the side of my index. Most of the time I hold the control in a "standard" manner and when I need to use the D-pad I slide my index onto the D-pad and press the desired button easily. Believe me, it works very well and in many situations this option is much better than removing the thumb from the analog stick (something that can leave your character immobile and defenseless, or make it difficult to execute a command). I use this technique for about 10 years, I never felt pain and i agree that it is not perfect, but man... it is much better than dropping the analog stick in the middle of the action to press the D-pad.

Truly, i can't see myself using Asymmetrical, it contains a inferior level of access to the buttons, i mean it is certainly possible to play on a Asymmetrical control  but... I would undoubtedly feel uncomfortable and maybe I could not do some advanced moves.

This video shows a bit of what i'm talking:

I just think the ergonomics of symmetical/lowsticks is better, and seems like more people complain about fatigue on Xbox than viceversa (despite ~230% more PS4 users). In basic grip shared by both, moving thumb forward "wants" to move down (toward palm), and opposite for the opposite movement = least effort with symmetric/lowsticks. While assymetric/highsticks means moving thumb forward to stick now must move up, or moving thumb back to D-pad must move down, opposite of natural/least effort.

As for the claw grip, I feel like the ultimate version of that would be if you could have D-pad buttons on front or back of controller, always under finger while thumb is on stick. Fair to say, I think single piece / 8-directional D-pad is way to go, I guess fortunately for Dualshock that is simple to modify with cover over the standard 4x buttons.

Looking forward to new triggers and haptics in PS5 Dualsense, hard to say from descriptions so far, but sounds like it can add alot to games when used well.

Both for me since I'm use to them. However, I do tend to side more with symmetrical due to fighting games. Shooters I prefer asymmetrical.

Symmetrical. Character movement and coordinating camera angles go hand in hand which is normally employed with both analog sticks. Symmetrical makes the better sense.

With the Switch and WiiU gamepad, my left thumb start aching after a while because the left stick is in an unnatural position. With my hands in a 'natural' position, my thumbs fall 2/3 rds on the analog sticks of a DS4, slightly off the the side of the d-pad / face buttons. It is 'unnatural' for me to use the d-pad on a DS4. When using the D-pad in streets of rage for example, I can't use L1 since my index finger is now too low. Trying to use the D-pad and shoulder buttons is uncomfortable.

For racing perhaps swapping the right analog stick with the face buttons (to use for shifting) might make sense. I can't comfortably use the R1 button together with the face buttons either. Yet I haven't seen any controller design with the right analog stick in the high position, left in low. Switch, WiiU and XBox are all exactly the opposite.

For any games where you use both analog sticks, DS4 is most comfortable for me.

Symmetrical, just like my hands.

I, too, have to go with symmetrical sticks, specifically the DualShock layout (as opposed to the Wii U Pro Controller). My thumbs naturally rest in the place of the DualShock's analog sticks (1-3 more than 4). The asymmetrical sticks of the Xbox's Controller S (can't speak for the Duke), 360 controller, and the One controller all hurt my wrists (mostly my left, but somewhat my right as well) something fierce, while the GameCube controller just hurt my hands generally. I can say that, despite the original Xbox being my favorite system of its generation, I actually had to hook up a DualShock 1 (not 2 because all face buttons were analog on the DualShock 2) to my original Xbox with an adapter in order to beat the last boss in Ninja Gaiden Black on the hardest difficulty. I ended up buying a similar adapter for my GameCube and never went back after that. I can't really speak to any other asymmetrical layouts off the top of my head.

I'll also add that though my thumbs naturally rest on the DualShock's sticks, I still use my thumbs to push the D-Pad and face buttons. Manlytears's photo reminds me of playing Monster Hunter Freedom Unite on the PlayStation Portable :D. It can definitely be effective, but I personally was thrilled when I was able to download MHFU to my Vita and use that second analog stick instead.