In what initially seemed like some sort of macabre joke, which turned out to be completely true, Hyperkin has not only announced a partnership with Xbox, but revealed that it is releasing a new controller called The Duke One that is being based on the much maligned 2001 Xbox controller. Yes, that one.
Now if you are of a similar age to me (cough 21), then you will have memories of the original iteration of this controller coming out with the original Xbox. The Duke is a perfect replica of the 2001 original, meaning it is probably only useful for Halo and bloody awful for anything else.
Whilst looking like an almost perfect visual representation of the original RSI-inducing control pad, The Duke has made some changes. Whilst it still has those tiny white and black buttons above the now standard Y, X, A, and B buttons, the Xbox logo in the middle is being replaced with an LCD screen which will show an animated logo.
Just like the original controller, The Duke will have a nine-foot long detachable cable, and comes with the added caveat of being able to work with the Xbox One and any PC running Windows 10.
Hyperkin has not yet announced the price of The Duke, but they announce in the video that it will be available later on this year. It is being referred to as a ‘limited edition’ release. Which is probably for the best for those of us who value comfort and function over odd aesthetics.
