Ummm... I'm drawing a blank.
Dreamcast?
Btw, I'm fine with the sticks where they are. When I'm engrossed in a game I don't really think about where the sticks are - both xbox and sony controllers are comfy for me, all modern controllers are ergonomic enough to not whinge about them IMO. Halo is great on the old Xbox Duke controller though (better than the 's' - esp. the black and white buttons), I wish MS would re-release the initial huge controller for those who want it, and brand it "THE DUKE" in huge (really gaudy) green letters on the top of the packet. 👍
IMO its kinda a situation where something was so awful aesthetically that it eventually became cherished BECAUSE of this - people become affectionate about it, so bad its good as it were. I want my "Duke" controller back...
Ok you'll be saying "what the hell is James talking about the stupid Duke controller so much?" but bear with me. My point is that I actually think if a product is distinctive (even with a bad initial reaction) it eventually gets a place in people's hearts - it gets remembered forever, it has mojo. So long as it works functionally, its fine.
Same idea Nintendo had with the Wii name - make it distinctive (even if in horribly bad taste) and people will grow to cherish it, just like we fondly make endless jokes about how huge the Xbox 1 is (use it as a coffee table, bigger than a Japanese apartment etc etc)...
I think Sony should've stayed with the Batarang - it was
distinctive, looked comfy, and all importantly - had already gained quite a character amongst gamers. We were
cherishing paying it out for it's shape... I feel gamers would've grown to love it, just like "THE DUKE". Even though the entire gaming press hated the Batarang when first announced, it seems that there is a latent dissapointment now that we've got the DualShock shape back, people had come to cherish the Batarang already (even if they couldn't understand why or would never admit it)!
I can imagine playing PS3 with my bro and then throwing him the controller when its his turn, and saying "Catch Batman"! With the normal DualShock shape, all potential humour is gone, which I think actually takes away from the gaming experience, everything becomes too clinical. I think it's good if companies don't take things too seriously, I WANT the controller to look funny, it adds spice to the culture of games.
I just compared the DS2 with my GameCube controller. As you probably know, GC controller also has the analog stick on where the directional pad's on the DS controllers. On GC, it feels natural, I can navigate perfectly. On DS2, it's bit of a reach. Don't tell anybody, because it's kind of embarrassing, but I actually opt to use the directional pad to play Gran Turismo games. I'd rather use analog, but I can't stand the location of it. 
About the analog stick, I think we're cool about it:tup:
) but I actually like the analog sticks where they are. Now they're positioned symmetrically and in some games in which you need the directional pad too it's a lot easier to throw the thumb up on the pad (the thumb gets pressed down a bit too if you know what I mean) than to take it down from the current D-pad position and then lift it back onto the stick. Just think the movement of the thumb joint, the current assignment is more natural.
r, there was alot of bashing around it, gamespot, IGN, gamespy...and most of people in the forums that I visited said that they don't like the look of it, Sony under that situation had no choice but to pull it back. I myself really like it, (me and the dude sit next to me in Computer graphic class argured about all the time
) But I am perfectly ok with the "DS3", really looking forward to try it:tup:
