Scuf Infinity1 Custom Xbox One Controller Review

A Closer Look

Right, that’s the plethora of accessories and extras taken care of, so let’s take a closer look at the star of the show! It’s immediately apparent that this is a very different controller from the standard ones that you get with the console. The most immediate thing that stands out to me is the colour, a mixture of lightly textured silver/grey and glossy reds certainly makes it stand out. Obviously, this colour scheme isn’t going to be to everyone’s taste, but you can pick your own colour combination when ordering your own controller.

The finish on the controller is faultless, really clean lines, nothing feels or looks like it’s been rushed; it certainly looks and feels every bit a premium quality product.

Of course, there’s been a lot of work done to this controller and one of the most notable changes is that the D-pad has been replaced with the Scuf Control Disc. It gives you increased grip, control and surface area. Of course, if you don’t want to use it, just lift it straight up and you’ve got the fully functional D-pad underneath. I’ll be honest, after just a few minutes of using this controller, that control disc is staying right where it is, it’s fantastic to use and actually made the D-pad usable again in Soul Calibur. As an optional extra, you can also choose to have the rumble removed from the controller. This is obviously a personal taste thing, as I like having rumble, but removing it means less distractions and a lighter controller, so the choice is yours on that one.

The sticks are really nice too, they feel better than the stock ones and a little smoother too, which will give you a clear advantage when playing FPS games. There’s a good range of stick options too, domed long, medium and regular length, concave long, medium and regular length, or if you’re feeling a taste for vanilla, you can have the stock sticks left in place. Each of the stick lengths have a 2mm difference, perfect for those with different hand sizes or who just prefer the feel of the longer or shorter controls.

The sticks are also fitted with Scuf Rings, these are available in a range of colours to suit the rest of the controller or your personal preferences.

Of course, even the buttons can be colour customised although I don’t think there’s anything that’s can’t be customised, just to be clear. The buttons are obviously of a very high quality and perform just as you would expect.

These two buttons are also colour matched but have been stripped of the stock decals to give them a more uniform look. The Scuf guide button looks pretty cool, and if you want to pay a little extra, you can have it set to red, blue, green or a white LED backlighting.

The rear triggers look just like the stock ones, albeit a different colour, however, they perform very differently. The top ones are pretty standard, but the main triggers have an adjustable hair trigger. With the triggers fully adjusted, they only have a tiny bit of travel to them, meaning you can simply depress them lightly and they trigger, cutting response time from press to on-screen action. While gaming, I found this quite strange at first, as I would hit the trigger with force to push it all the way in, only for it to stop after a short distance. However, once you get used to it, the instant action you get from the trigger is freaking awesome and it really sharpened up my K/D ratio when playing Swat on Halo MCC. It’s all but useless for driving games, but you can always adjust them on a per game basis, but for FPS gaming, you’re going to want these tightened up.

The adjustment tool looks pretty unique, but it’s actually just a tiny Allen key, it’s really easy to use and simply slots into the discrete hole located below each trigger.

One of the most popular features for a Scuf controller is the paddles on the back. You can have it with two or four paddles, giving you fingertip control of any button on the controller. When using dual sticks for an FPS game, you have to take your right thumb off the stick to press melee, jump, weapon change or anything like that, now you don’t have to! Again, this takes a bit of practice to get used to, but after a few days of “learning” the new buttons, you’ll wonder how you did without them. I put them through their paces in Borderlands, Halo, Call of Duty and a few other games, and being able to have full control of the sticks while swapping weapons and laying down some melee action is a real game changer.

They have a nice mechanical feel to them too, with a gentle click that feels like an MX Blue switch at the back, while also having a contoured shape that makes them easy to feel under your fingertips, giving you extra control.

When you need to reassign the paddles, you can use the Scuf Mag Key to make quick and easy adjustments. This is an optional extra and one I must admit is essential, as it opens up a world of possibilities for literally any game you can think of. Another cool feature, as if the controller is short on those at the moment, is that the paddles are compatible with the current range of Astro and Turtle Beach headset adapters, giving you extra controls over game audio. The paddles are also removable, allowing you use between 0-4 paddles as you desire and even install different paddle heights, shapes and sizes if needed.