It was easy to overlook the loss of vibration feedback when Sony first introduced the PlayStation 3. The console offered a ton of great new features--HD graphics, Blu-ray, multimedia support, wireless controllers, the PlayStation Network--that, at least conceptually, more than made up for the missing rumble support. The console's new Sixaxis controller also had tilt controls that let you control games by tilting or moving the gamepad in the desired direction. Unfortunately, it took most of us only a few minutes with Lair to figure out that we had been hoodwinked out of rumble like a general manager on the wrong side of a Billy Beane trade.
Sony tried to downplay the importance of rumble, referring to it as a "last generation" feature on several occasions before and after the release of the PS3, but Sony's legal skirmishes with haptics company Immersion may have also contributed to the feature's disappearance. Sony finally relented last year at the 2007 Tokyo Game Show when Sony Computer Entertainment president Kaz Hirai announced the Dual Shock 3 controller, just months after working out a deal with Immersion.
The new Dual Shock 3 looks just like the Sixaxis controller. The D pad, action buttons, analog sticks, shoulder buttons, and analog triggers all feel the same. The only way to tell them apart is to pick one up to feel the weight difference, or to check for the controller labels printed across the top edge of each controller. The rumble-enabled controller is noticeably heavier than the Sixaxis and has blue Dual Shock 3 text written across the top, directly above a Sixaxis text label. The Dual Shock 3 sports the Sixaxis tag because it retains the tilt-control support introduced by its predecessor. It's easier to think of the Dual Shock 3 as a Sixaxis with rumble.
The controller is available in US stores now for $54.95. It's available only in black, but you can import ceramic white versions from Asia through your favorite online importers. All PlayStation 3 consoles upgraded to firmware 1.94 or later will support Dual Shock 3 vibration. Note that the controller doesn't come packaged with a USB charge cable. You still have the one that came with your PS3, right?
We first fired up Assassin's Creed to see how Altair rumbles on the new Dual Shock. The game wasn't listed on the official Dual Shock 3 vibration-enabled list, but we've read reports that the game actually does support the feature. We spent close to half an hour running through early parts of the game trying to get the controller to budge before we discovered that the controller seemed to rumble only when our character took damage from a fall or while in combat. The controller didn't give any feedback when Altair rode on horseback, made small jumps, or defended himself in swordfights. Our testing reminded us that the quality of the rumble experience depends on the game implementation as much as the controller. We expect almost all games to support the Dual Shock 3 moving forward, but it might take a while for developers to patch support into existing games and we wouldn't be surprised if some older games never get support.
Lesson learned, we picked Burnout Paradise, a title from the official Dual Shock 3-supported games list for our next test. Racing games have always made extensive use of rumble in the past, and Burnout didn't disappoint. Racing though Paradise City felt great on the Dual Shock. The controller provided varying amounts of rumble feedback in response to our in-game environment, such as a sharp jolt when running through a light pole, or a sublime vibration when gliding over the grass in the road median. Wrecking the car gave the biggest and longest vibration, but we did notice that the Dual Shock 3 didn't shake quite as violently as the Xbox 360 controller does on the competition's system. Even so, the Dual Shock had enough rumble power for a satisfying amount of vibration feedback.
Next we broke out Burnout Dominator to see how the Dual Shock 3 handled PlayStation 2 games. We actually tried out Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters first because it happened to be close at hand, but we didn't find enough vibration in the PSP port to make it a good test for rumble. The Dual Shock 3 did rumble in the few places that the game had activated vibration, but we quickly switched over to Burnout Dominator where we could enable rumble more easily with a swerve into the rough or by activating boost.
We tried out the game first on a PlayStation 2 console with the Dual Shock 2, after which we switched to the PlayStation 3 and the Dual Shock 3. The vibration effects felt the same on the Dual Shock 3 as it did on our original PlayStation 2 Dual Shock. That makes sense because the internal motors are very similar. We should also note that the Dual Shock 3 worked in both games without any patching. We just inserted each PS2 game into the PS3 and the rumble simply worked.
The fact that Sony is replacing the Sixaxis with the Dual Shock 3 makes the buying decision easier for new PS3 owners. Anyone looking for additional controllers will soon be able to buy only the Dual Shock 3 as the Sixaxis disappears from retail. Early adopters who have already bought extra Sixaxis controllers face a more difficult decision of whether or not to replace one or more of their working Sixaxis controllers with Dual Shock gamepads, given that each controller costs almost as much as a new Blu-ray game. Rumble vibration feedback makes it worthwhile to replace at least one controller right now. You can always replace the others as they break. Sony will eventually bundle all systems with the Dual Shock 3, but those looking to buy a complete package guaranteed to contain a rumble controller might have to wait for the Metal Gear Solid 4 PS3 bundle coming out this June.
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474 Comments
amazing technology and mechanic functions
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cooL.. ^^ i love it..=] its better than xbox because xbox 360 need AA batteries it sucks.. and you need to buy charger and battery pack.. it very suck..=[
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To be honest I had forgotten how much I missed the Dual Shock until it was brought up in Metal Gear Solid 4 while fighting Mantis. Dual Shock controllers are a must have on the PS3 console!
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GTA4 makes good use of the dual shock 3 if you fire a shotgun the vibration is stronger than firing a pistol. it also responds to crashes and thunder during a storm the controller also has a nice weight and feel definitley recommend it.
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very cool
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I want this
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im gonna sell my 2 ps3 sixaxis ones and buy 4 dualshock 3's
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Al fin! asi si dan ganas de jugar! jajaja! que bien!! yes!!
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sony was so gready that they refuse to pay for the company that made the rumbele featur on the play station 3 but now after som loses and slow hardware sales they paied?
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So heres the summary of this lengthy page....... it rumbles.
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Finally!
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might get this soon
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BAAAAAAAAAAAAAD
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I'm glad they put motion sensing in the controller.
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Yes! I've Been waiting for Rumble!
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Very nice... Need it!!!!
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I am hoping to get the MGS4 bundle hope they don't run out of the 80 GB one I need it
!!!!
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When is it available seperate in the UK?
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sony should work with us and whoever sends in one controller with a reciept and serial number of the ps3 purchase should be allowed to be switched for a dual shock 3. $55 is extremely steep for one add on feauture. man... why cant we go back to the old days where games were 40 to 50 bucks and controllers were 20. lol
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I need to get this after MGS 4, really short in cash...
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i actually like the feel of a dual shock controller. I have a logitech controller for PC and i love it but when i grabbed a dual shock controller it felt much more comfortable. anyways i am a PC gamer but i might get myself a PS3 for some games like MGS4 for example and just as a home entertainment system.
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I'll stick with the sixaxis for now =), i'm not attracted by dualshock at the moment.
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I have a Dual Shock 3 and it works great with all games even GTA4 and GT4..
Got it 6 weeks ago from Amazon uk.....
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Can't wait to get this bundled with Metal Gear Solid 4 80Gb PS3 =D
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finally i can actually be able to get comfortable in my 11 ft.room
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think i'll keep my keyboard and mouse
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The rumble will shake the remote which will be detected by the sixaxis which will interfer with the game so i think it is stupid
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what was sony thinking while developing the sixaxis????? no vibration! dualshock 2 was good. brilliant in fact. but i dont know about the dual shock three. i'll buy it when I get my PS3.
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I really think that Dualshock 2 was great but yeah I will definetly get mysefl the Dualshock 3 after I get my PS3
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bought mine at launch but still only have one controller. So ill get me a rumble one. Im due for an extra one.
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i dont have one of the converter things to use a dualshock 2 through the usb, but does anyone know if it works just the same?
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does any1 have any info on this "Metal Gear Solid 4 PS3 bundle"? Send me a pm, thanks in advance. BTW thank god for bringing back duel sock.
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i love it good stuff
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Has anyone else tried this with Resistence? It doesn't exactly work if i shoot or get hit. If this is how it is... what a waste.
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typical sony
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hey is dual shock3 ganna rumble gta4
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whatta bout mlb 08?
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Cool deal. Will the Eros get it in their new GTA bundle? All I know was Dual 2 worked vary well. And if you bought a cheap third party. It just went wild and over rumbled on everything. If its anything like DS 2. Thats about as good as you can get. Its their to keep you aware, and feel things, to whats going on. And the right ways. Its not shock treatment. And DS2 did that well. So,, DS3 sounds good. I need to get one soon. My original sixaxis, is getting a tad worn on the analogs.
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I have had mine since japan has had them, I also paid 10 bucks less shipped to me over seas. I have had a great time with the games that offer rumble in it most noteably Warhawk and Devil ay Cry 4. The sword play and neros cool hand make for some great feedback. I in my opinion find this to be a must have for all PS3 owners, because with all future games it will take form the game if you don't have one. sure it adds a cost to it. maybe just trade a couple of games you dont play anymore to offset the cost or do as i did and look for a deal on ebay or Amazon for some type of heavy discount. I also find it great to see the battery life seems almost the same as the Sixasis was.
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That last comment was the most irrelevant thing that I have ever heard
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garibaldi14. Your comment is good, but hints towards fanboyism with the word "scams" at the end of saying microsoft. Buying a charging pack isn't really a scam at all. Madcatz, joytech etc make charger packs for the wii, call that a scam if you like. But the thing is, HOW sony would replace the battery. Surely, opening the pad yourself would void any manufacturers warranty, so sending it to sony for them to replace would be the next option. But then, you would be without a pad for however long it takes for you to send it, and them to send it back. But nobody really needs to worry about that since the battery life will probably last a few years. But thats with the sixaxis, rumble tech takes more power - it will probably require almost twice as many charges. So thats why I just thought it'd be a better (and more exciting) release if they included a LONG cable for charging.
Plus, you can't compare the 360 and ps3 anymore. Both are great and seperate systems
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sooner or later consoles will cost just as much as custom built PCs
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whoa whoa guys... calm down..........from the start Sony have said that when a controllers battery dies they will replace it so that we don't have to be subject to microsoft's "optional extra's" scams which would make us, despite the xbox's lower retail price have to pay even more than a ps3 to get it up to the same standard of system.
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I can't wait to pick up a Dual Shock 3. Sony Europe hurry up and announce a release date already!
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Think I am going to wait for the Metal Gear Solid 4 PS3 bundle bec I want the game and you get the pad as well, easy going!
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i recon people might start feeling a bit odd playong with rumble now that PS3 owners have gotten used to no rumble
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I love the controller, can't wait to get a PS3
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People stop complaining! If you don't like the controller go back to your 360. No-ones telling you to view this feature.
Or maybe your just jealous that Sony is much better at designing things than Microsoft?
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Finally, i kinda missed the vibrations in the sixaxis controllers but there is one thing that bugs me, it is easier to call it sixaxis dual shock 3 than just dual shock 3 because when i started reading this article i was unsure if the sixaxis function would be implented.
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