When it comes to controllers, I must admit, in recent years, I’ve always played it safe by sticking with the official offering. It doesn’t matter if it’s the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series, I’ve just never felt the need to go outside the box for third-party alternatives.
With the Nintendo Switch 2, though, I’m breaking that trend by trying out the PowerA Advantage Wireless Controller for the console, and after giving it a good test run for the better part of a week, I have to say if the overall quality of this peripheral is anything to go by, then I’ve been missing out for years.
Let’s start with the most important factor when it comes to any controller – how does it actually feel in the hands? Well, pretty damn good to be honest. In fact, very close to Nintendo’s official Pro Controller. From a sizing perspective, there’s minimal difference – a perfect fit for my rather large hands. As for the weight, it certainly does feel lighter, but not so much the controller has a cheap feel to it. While the front of the controller has a smooth matte finish, the back is far more textured, a choice I’m not 100% sold on, especially given how nice the front feels. Sure, it may help with grip, but on the Pro Controller, I never had any issues with this area, and that thing is silky smooth.
As for the buttons, they have a clicky feel to them that, while nice, is perhaps a little too clicky for me, especially compared with the Pro Controller softer feel. What does feel much better though is the D-pad (more on why later). Controls sticks too, also feel of a decent quality. Where the controller perhaps stumbles most in this area, however, are the positioning of its plus and minus buttons. Whereas on a Pro Controller these are located toward the top center, here they’re shrunk and shifted toward the bottom amidst a row of five buttons. These include the capture button, home button, plus and minus buttons and GameChat button. While moving the lesser used buttons here seems like an appreciated move, moving the plus and minus makes it tougher to hit pause in a rush especially as you have five same sized buttons squashed alongside.
I tried the controller out with a range of games covering multiple genres. Platformers of course need a controller that feels natural and accurate and sitting down with Donkey Kong Bananza and Super Mario Galaxy 2 the PowerA Advantage checks those boxes. For puzzles and fighting games that require quick and rapid reflexes (not to mention accuracy for dropping Tetrominos or pulling off combos) again there’s little to complain about. In fact of all the games I’d played I found myself concluding I could quite easily use the PowerA Advantage as a substitute with no downside in control accuracy.
As far as battery life goes, the thirty hours boasted in the box is pretty much on the money. While not exact, I did my best to keep track of my playtime on a full charge and clocked in my total at around 29 hours. Compared with my PlayStation 5 controller which I feel I’m always charging, it’s such a welcome feeling not worrying if the next time I get back to my console I’ll be greeted with a low battery warning. Still, with a 10-foot charging cable, the distance is more than long enough to use the controller while plugged in.
A neat feature the PowerA Advantage possesses is the ability to remap buttons on the fly (no menus required). While it’s something I’m not likely to make use of, it’s a great bonus for those that want to up their game by making use of the back buttons. Also unique to the PowerA Advantage are its various designs. While you can opt for a controller that sports the same black look of the official thing, two other variants are also available: Super Mario and Friends, and Pokémon’s iconic electric mouse. I got the chance to try the Super Mario option and I have to say it’s nice to have something with a little more pop and colour to it. Plus my kids love it too.
The PowerA Advantage Wireless Controller for Nintendo Switch 2 is a decent alternative to Nintendo’s Pro Controller. It feels nice in the hands, accurate to play with and even offers a few more flavours than the standard black look. If you’re in the market for a second controller and the cost of Nintendo’s option feels a little too expensive then PowerA has you covered.
Review unit provided by PowerA
