So I ended up caving to pick up the 2 controllers I'm deciding between, the
GameSir G7 Pro (Shadow Ember color) on the left and the
8BitDo Ultimate 2 Wuchang Edition on the right.
Got to try them out on a few games, and each have aspects I like more than the other. Both of them feel better than any other Xbox or Playstation pad I've used, just because the accuracy of the TMR sticks, and both can lock the analog triggers...but instead of my Xbox Elite 2 where locking the trigger just feels like I'm clumping my thumb on the lock, both have this nice click because you're tapping a switch instead. Bumpers are also a step up on both, with more satisfying feedback, and the latency improvement I can feel in Ninja Gaiden 4 rotating the camera or in Everspace 2 aiming my ship's guns.
Comfort -
Gamesir Wins
Both are pretty solid in terms of comfort, though I haven't tried either for a longer play session. Each is a bit smaller than my Xbox Elite 2, but I don't really have any kind of cramping issue. The 8BitDo feels more like a Switch Pro Controller, and the G7 Pro more like an Xbox controller. I prefer the Xbox shape overall, the rubber grip on the back and etching on the front give me better grip, the triggers are bigger, and the back buttons can even be locked if you're not using them.
Negative note: One thing that hasn't changed with third-party controllers is I feel like the rumble is just
fine on both, but worse than the Xbox Elite 2 or even standard Xbox pad. Not strong enough, nor feel as precise. Still good enough that it's not a huge deal though.
Buttons -
Gamesir wins
No-contest this goes to the G7 Pro for me, since I like the clicky switches over the membranes. They got that nicer feedback without taking too much force to press down, and yet are super quiet. That feedback with the click also made it easier for me to time how many button presses I did to pull off stuff like the inazuma drop in Ninja Gaiden 4.
D-Pad -
8BitDo Wins
This one easily goes to the 8BitDo, just because the G7 Pro's d-pad because of how it sets in with the replaceable plates rattles more, along with the actuation being a bit too soft like my Elite 2. I like both more than my Elite, but the 8BitDo d-pad has the right amount of firmness to more easily control myself in Hollow Knight Silksong. I wish this d-pad was in the G7 Pro, because it would be an easier choice for me.
Customization -
8BitDo Wins (for now)
Main issue on the G7 Pro I knew going in is that it lacks Steam Input support, so you're reliant on just their windows app to customize the gyro, bind back buttons to keystrokes like a mic bind, radial menus, action sets, and have different controls per game. You can at least on the controller itself hold down the "M" button to bind those extra buttons to other gamepad inputs without the app, but if I move more to Linux in future it puts more of a limit because I won't have the app.
8BitDo on the other hand all I had to do was once hold the B button + the power button once so it switches to Dinput instead of Xinput, and then it just worked in Steam perfectly on Windows + Linux. I did however hear on the GameSir discord that Dinput support is coming to the G7 Pro, and on their subreddit before the G7 Pro came out there was a video of a prototype of it using the Steam logo...so seems a firmware update could fix this issue.
Conclusion
I kinda thought the G7 Pro was just going to win outright pretty easily, and it's still what I'm likely to pick...but I like both controllers a lot. I wanna mess around with them for a bit, before I return one of them. If Amazon gets the G7 Pro Wuchang version in before the holiday return period, I might spend the extra on that because it apparently improves the d-pad. The value on both pads is insane though when the Xbox Elite 2 and Playstation Dualsense Edge are $200 MSRP, and makes me never want to recommend those first-party options.
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