INTRODUCING THE NEW EVIL-DPAD FROM EVIL CONTROLLERS

Well it's finally out, we've been excited for it's release for awhile now and it really couldn't have come out at a better time for you guys. Black Ops is just around the corner and Super Meat Boy is $10 until the end of the month. Both of these games, while massively different, benefit from our Evil D-pad.

While shooters may not use the d-pad as often as the analog sticks, typically used for aiming and movement, the d-pad is still an essential part of the experience. Anyone that's played Gears of War to a competitive degree testify that the original Microsoft d-pad is often a failure in critical moments. Bungie ditched the use of the d-pad with Halo: Reach limiting it's use to that of a light switch: night vision goggles on/off. Medal of Honor on the other hand gives gamers four different commands with the d-pad, one for each direction, while it may not appear to be a big deal it's still frustrating to bring out a grenade launcher when I don't intend to. The problem is obviously a larger issue in online play when every second not utilized could be detrimental.

Super Meat Boy on the other hand, is a side scrolling platformer that makes the use of the d-pad feel intuitive, the thumbstick suffers from being too tall to really feel as though you've got a grip on the action. Especially in a game like Super Meat Boy when you're climbing and sliding on walls, you want to feel as close to the action as you can. Those of you that have played N+ can probably imagine what I mean. For games like these, the Evil D-Pad is perfect. Super Meat Boy can require ridiculous precision in the later stages, I don't think anyone in the office has heard me swear like I have today. Just glad I have our new d-pad for it.

Reading comments about our Evil D-Pad on news sites like Joystiq.com is awesome, but a few of the critics commenting don't quite understand that diagonals are still easy to execute. It's not hard guys, you press two buttons instead of one. While the d-pad may not be as perfect for fighting games as a devoted arcade stick, the Evil d-pad is definitely the best option out there since an arcade stick is exclusive to fighting games while the Evil D-Pad is perfect for everything else.

Written by Evil Ambassador Carlos Reyes