This PS5 Controller Is $250. Will You Buy It?

How much would you pay to dominate your opponents in style? HexGaming is willing to bet that some gamers are ready to drop $250 or more on the company's newest high-end, super customizable controller, which comes with some pretty unique potential advantages.

The HexGaming Rival PS5 controller is the newest arrival in the company's line of top end, ultra-specialized controllers, which are intended to deliver the utmost precision to gamers competing on a professional level. As the official product description notes, HexGaming Rival PS5 controllers use actual DualSense controllers as a base to retain their ergonomic design. They are then modified to allow for faster trigger response and adjustable thumbsticks, as well as to make way for two new rear buttons.

Of course, this all circles back to the question of whether these changes justify a price tag that's over three times that of an unmodified DualSense controller. Here is how the HexGaming Rival controller might truly change the PlayStation 5 experience.

Functionally, the most significant change that gamers will notice when using the HexGaming Rival are the two rear buttons on the back panel. Some gamers were disappointed that the PS5 DualSense arrived without back buttons. This omission was likely due to cost issues, despite Sony having filed a patent for them. On the HexGaming Rival, those buttons are not only available, but are mappable for all of the DualSense's buttons, save for the Share and Options buttons.

The HexGaming Rival also has an adjusted trigger response, as noted in an official press release. The primary trigger now activates after being pressed in by just 2mm, instead of the original 7mm required by the standard DualSense. Likewise, the shoulder trigger activates after 0.5mm, as opposed to the original's 1.2mm, as seen in a diagram on the controller's Amazon listing. In other words, the HexGaming Rival quite literally has a hair trigger.

The HexGaming Rival comes six interchangeable joysticks with three different heights and two swappable thumb grips, one which is domed and another that is concave. The controller's overall aesthetic is also highly customizable, with options for different color schemes for individual buttons, custom touchpad graphics, as well as choices between chrome or patterned faceplate designs.

Of course, gamers should be aware that adding on some of these changes will drive the price of this $250 controller even higher. That said, anyone with the cash to spend on what might be the most customizable PS5 controller currently available will probably find what they're looking for in the HexGaming Rival.