Xbox One Elite Controller: A perfect present.

Hey everyone, I thought I'd wrapped this week off with a small piece about a little bit of kit I have been playing with for a year now. I received the Elite Controller for last Christmas and I have to say it's one of the best gifts I have ever had.
So I thought I'd tell you a bit about what you get in the box, how it feels, some of the features but before you even read what comes, you have to know, it's possibly the best peripheral I have ever had for a console, ever.

First let me tell you, everything about the controller oozes quality. It's has some weight that gives a sense of durability. I love the way it feels in your hands, there's a velvety smoothness to the casing. The sticks are solid and responsive, the triggers are light and the paddles feel sharp, depressing with a positive snap.
You can tell that Microsoft have spent a lot of time and money on refining this controller, it is aimed primarily at pro-gamers as a competitor to the Scuf controllers so if you compete it comes with a handy carry case which is rigid and has plenty of storage for the controller's adaptors, so when you travel you needn't worry about it being damaged.

The triggers have built in switchable stops, so if you're playing a game like Call of Duty and you use a lot of semi-automatic guns, the stops really do help speed up your firing rate. Then when you go back to say, Forza you can flick the switches and regain full travel. It's a neat little feature that's no fuss.

Attachable paddles are perfect for busy fingers, they can give you a huge advantage in certain games. I used the paddles extensively in Infinite Warfare, the ability to jump without moving my thumb off the analogue stick really helped my reaction times and accuracy. 
The paddles aren't just useful for jumping in shooters, you can customize what button the paddles will bind to in the consoles built in menu. 
You can create two button maps that are stored onto the controller and switch between them on the fly with a single switch on the controller face. I personally never used this, as I find the standard button layout is fine the majority of games.

You also get three pairs of analogue sticks, two standards, two extended and two convex sticks. I found the extended sticks to feel quite uncomfortable when used in conjunction, but use one on the right analogue stick was good for improving aiming finesse in shooters.
I have yet to find a use for the convex sticks, I think that's just something for personal preferences but I was glad to see you can swap between a standard d-pad and what I call the "toffee" d-pad. I prefer my d-pad non-toffee. 

I like how the interchangeable parts connect, it's all magnetised and once it's connected it's solid. I never experienced any slack in the sticks or paddles which just shows the quality of the product.

It does come with some double A batteries, which is the weakest element of the whole package. Instead of buying overpriced charge packs I just purchased some suitable Energizer rechargeable batteries. You can buy some very competitively priced batteries and the ones I use last weeks with regular use. 
You do get a plug in USB cable. It's got decent length if you're connecting it to a PC or laptop, but a comfortable distance from a TV, maybe not so. 

If you know someone who loves their Xbox, you couldn't go wrong with an Elite Controller as a gift. It's like getting a pair of really nice leather driving gloves for your vintage sports car, it's a small thing that lifts the whole experience up.  
It's like going back to the stone ages using the original small, plasticy controller that just doesn't compare. 
The price tag starts at £119.99, over double the price of a standard controller, but its worth every penny. 
You won't disappoint your loved one this Christmas with an Xbox Elite Controller.

That's all this week, but we have some exciting games coming out next week! Resident Evil 7 Gold comes out on the twelfth, along with Okami HD and Axiom Verge. Three games that if you haven't played yet, your seriously need to!

As always, have a good weekend everybody!