Revamped Xbox One Duke Controller Gets Price And Release Window
The original Xbox controller, commonly referred to as the Duke, is oddly making a comeback by the end of March according to Hyperkin for $70 USD. Official international pricing hasn't been stated but one can estimate £50 GBP and $90 AUD.
The Duke is returning with some nifty additions. First up is a working OLED screen situated behind the infamous Xbox jewel that actually plays the original Xbox’s old bootup sequence when pressed. Buckley says it’s a feature that he wanted to include from the outset almost two decades ago, something that seems to lend decent credence to the idea that the proto-Xbox was essentially a spiritual Dreamcast 2 complete with an almost-VMU. Blackley also says that he’d “love to let game developers use the screen for other purposes, but Microsoft hasn't yet approved.”
Other important changes include two new shoulder bumpers that make modern gaming possible, a USB cable that allows connection to both PC and Xbox rigs, as well as an omission of the archaic memory card slots at the top of the device. It’s looking exceptionally solid so far, though despite all my retro cheerleading, it might be a bit disorienting going back to such a massive peripheral.
"Nintendo and other companies have released nostalgia products but those are ... different types of exercises, and I don't want to criticize them but this is a much purer thing,” Blackley told CNET. “This isn't a nostalgia trip where you can play all your 8-bit games, this is the place we started from. You can play the most modern technology we've released with the most modern games we've released with this controller.”
