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Now Xbox faces lawsuit over drifting controllers

M1chl

Currently Gif and Meme Champion
Good, dropping 180 USD on a fucking broken controller is worth of lawsuit. I don't know, but my Project Scorpio edition, is fine. Still.
 

wvnative

Member
Really? I find that very difficult to believe. I have 6 DS4 and never had drift. Half of my joycons have had the issue.

The percentage of DS4s that suffer from drift is low. For you to get it 9 times in a row would be less likely than winning the lottery twice.

A long time ago I made a topic about this. Been a serious issue for me. None of my friends have had it though so i dunno.
 
Now Xbox faces lawsuit over drifting controllers

Plaintiff alleges Xbox is aware of joystick defect, following similar action against Nintendo

iI0VT3B.jpg


A class-action lawsuit has been filed over ‘drifting’ Xbox controllers.

Drifting issues have been experienced by a large volume of Xbox owners across various controller models, plaintiff Donald McFadden claims in court documents seen by VGC.

The lawsuit was filed by McFadden on April 28 in the US District Court for the Western District of Washington. Customers experiencing problems after their 90-day warranty expires are paying to repair a known fault, it alleges.

Drifting occurs when controller movements are registered even when the analogue sticks are left untouched.

A similar class action was filed against Nintendo last year concerning drifting Switch Joy-Con controllers. Last month a judge approved Nintendo’s move to compel arbitration but denied a request to dismiss.

McFadden claims to have purchased an Xbox Elite controller (RRP $179.99) and that after a short time he noticed the joystick on it had started to drift.

He eventually decided to purchase a second Elite controller only to experience the same problem “three or four months” later, it’s claimed.

gLbDZJA.jpg


The plaintiff claims he then spent “a considerable amount of time” attempting to fix the defect on his own, including manipulating the dead zones via Xbox settings, to no avail.

McFadden alleges that Microsoft is fully aware of the drifting defect after numerous online complaints received from its customers, and yet “failed to disclose the defect and routinely refuses to repair the controllers without charge when the defect manifests.”

The lawsuit claims the potentiometer within the joystick component—the mechanism that translates the physical movement of the thumbstick into movement within a game—contains a design flaw.

It says the wiper component of the potentiometer scrapes resistive material off a curved track, resulting in unwanted electrical contact without input from the user.

The suit claims Mcfadden’s experiences are not isolated and that “a large volume of consumers have been complaining about stick drift on Xbox One controllers since at least 2014.”

It adds: “A simple Google search on this issue reveals multiple forum and message boards dedicated to stick drift; YouTube instructional videos of users attempting to fix the issue on their own; and even replacement joystick components from Amazon and other sellers.”

Shortly after a similar lawsuit was filed against Nintendo, the company stopped charging for repair of drifting Joy-Con controllers and began refunding those who had already paid for a fix, although it doesn’t acknowledge an actual fault with Switch controllers.

Source: VGC
That does ring a bell, denying that it is not a problem with the hardware....RRoD. MS wasmfirst denying that something was wrong with the hardware of the Xbox360, it was the fault of the Xbox360 users. They should not put the 360 in a small kabinet, they should not put the Xbox360 vertical (ore horizontal, cant remember😳) that was the response of MS, "there is nothing wrong with the hardware of the Xbox360". it was not MS fault.
Whe know how the story went shortly after that....😉
 

Shakka43

Member
A lawsuit over unresponsive face buttons sounds more winnable to me. the amount of people with complains about the A button in particular is quite high and I was one of then. Luckily the problem has more or less go away for mine.
 
Thts cool if thts your experience. Og ps4 controllers had tht issue but for last several years I've never experienced tht thy actually changed tht part of the build.

But we are talking about the elite and drifting.
Yeah its rather curious, there is a problem with the MS elite controler...
But but but the DS4 has the same problem...the sticks suck, the rubber is peeling of in no time....i have been trough 8 (🙄) DS4 controllers they all had a drifting problem...but the DS4 controller also sucks...obvious😉
 
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intbal

Member
I've had drift issues for the controllers on both my Xbox One S and my Xbox One X. In the case of the X, the problem began in less than 90 days.
I blame the ever-increasing number of games with the "Click to Sprint" mechanic.
It was rare in the 7th gen. Now it's a plague on the industry.
 

llien

Member
I wish fucking Nintendo would face it.
Drifting controller, which is a replacement of a drifting controller.
Oh, and the friends of my kid with drifting controllers...
 

lukilladog

Member
Also like I mentioned it's about wear and tear, thts a natural result. It's different if you've had your controller a few months and boom drifting thts an issue on mabafacturer side. There is depreciation and breaking downs, controllers don't last forever.

Wear, tear, friction, are astronomically higher on a combustion engine... it doesn´t mean cars can´t be designed to last more than a few months.
 

CrysisFreak

Banned
Imagine being as retarded as I am and buying a Switch Lite lmao. Replaced that shitty fucking toy with a proper Switch and a Pro Controller (just throw the Joycons away tbh).
My DualShock 4 controllers all lasted at least 4 years tbh. That's a lot of heavy use ngl.
 

Danny Dudekisser

I paid good money for this Dynex!
Good. And that's only the tip of the iceberg with the issues with the Elites. I have no idea how a $180 controller could be such a shoddily assembled piece of shit.
 

Grinchy

Banned
Good, dropping 180 USD on a fucking broken controller is worth of lawsuit. I don't know, but my Project Scorpio edition, is fine. Still.
Yeah, I'd be extremely pissed to find out my near-$200 premium controller was falling apart in ways that the cheap one bundled with the console wasn't.
 

Gamernyc78

Banned
Wear, tear, friction, are astronomically higher on a combustion engine... it doesn´t mean cars can´t be designed to last more than a few months.

And who is saying anything contrary to that point? I don't understand. Look at my posts I specifically stated "years" of wear and tear resulting in drifting is natural what's not natural is drifting as an issues after a few weeks or months of use.
 
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OH damn! Drifting happened to me with my switch so thts very real. I didn't know the "praised" elite controller has this issue. None of the consumers on here have posted that issue. Surprising.
you kidding its been known since forever. All controllers get drift if there actually used. I think it just happens to quickly for such a premium controller. iirc N64 controllers had shitty af drift too.
 

CatLady

Selfishly plays on Xbox Purr-ies X
Annoying problem. Even my DS4 have.

Interesting. As much as I bitch about the DS4 I never had this issue with them.

I never had the issue with any Xbox controllers either though. I usually end up with a broken RB since that's where I usually use my hairbrush or TV remote to beat the shit out of my Xbox controller when I die too many times.

Halo on legendary has sent many Xbox controllers to the graveyard.
 

Gamernyc78

Banned
you kidding its been known since forever. All controllers get drift if there actually used. I think it just happens to quickly for such a premium controller. iirc N64 controllers had shitty af drift too.
Everyone as enthusiasts here know or should know all controllers due to wear and tear and daily use get issues like drifting after several years. Read my posts, I've mentioned tht multiple times. The issue is ppl not differentiating issues from regular daily use over the years and wear and tear as opposed to you having a controller for a few weeks or months and getting wear and tear. These class action lawsuits aren't based on "oh my name is Tommy I had this controller three years and it just started drifting" they are based off "hello my name is Kenny I just got this switch three months ago and my controllers are fucking drifting" thts wgat happened to me in real life.
 

Pantz

Member
Feels like I've had drift in at least one controller for every console.

I also have a theory that Amazon sells drift controllers as new. I tried buying some replacements from them in the past and they were drift right out of the box. Could just be bad luck.
 

Fake

Member
Interesting. As much as I bitch about the DS4 I never had this issue with them.

I never had the issue with any Xbox controllers either though. I usually end up with a broken RB since that's where I usually use my hairbrush or TV remote to beat the shit out of my Xbox controller when I die too many times.

Halo on legendary has sent many Xbox controllers to the graveyard.
Xbox 360 controler was good. Get two more for my brothers to play, both came with this problem besides horrible button problem. Send to Microsoft for repair, they send me just one (I send two to fix, just one came fixed). This for me the worst experience I ever have in gaming because I was so much busy with my new job at Embratel, so was fucking time consuming explain the situation for Microsoft call center.

Got my first Dualshock 4 via combo with PS4 slim and got a problem months later. Get another one, this time color red and rev, one year or more he got the problem again.

Not going to waste money anymore, at least getting a new DS4. Better wait for DualSense to release and give him a try. Who knows if Dualsense will come with back button.

Either DualSense or Xbox Elite rev this time. Microsoft will probably release an Elite to match seX controller.
 
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Peter303

Member
Easy to fix. Dismantle controller and spray electrical contact cleaner in the sticks, wiggle about, reassemble controller. Job done.

Did my PS4 controller last week.
 
OH damn! Drifting happened to me with my switch so thts very real. I didn't know the "praised" elite controller has this issue. None of the consumers on here have posted that issue. Surprising.
The elite controllers still uses the industry standard for the controller joystick.

These things are made out of plastic and tend to bend or break overtime which causes the drift that we all hate.
t0c9y6p.jpg


now if they spent more money and made them out of more durable material maybe we wouldn’t have these issues.
 
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Everyone as enthusiasts here know or should know all controllers due to wear and tear and daily use get issues like drifting after several years. Read my posts, I've mentioned tht multiple times. The issue is ppl not differentiating issues from regular daily use over the years and wear and tear as opposed to you having a controller for a few weeks or months and getting wear and tear. These class action lawsuits aren't based on "oh my name is Tommy I had this controller three years and it just started drifting" they are based off "hello my name is Kenny I just got this switch three months ago and my controllers are fucking drifting" thts wgat happened to me in real life.
Why would i read your posts? Im not arguing against the lawsuit, i just dont think this problem is unique. Like if you bought a $20 controller would you still be complaining? problem with the Elite is its a "premium" controller.
Elite controllers are sick AF just not built to last which i agree is BS for that price.
 
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lukilladog

Member
And who is saying anything contrary to that point? I don't understand. Look at my posts I specifically stated "years" of wear and tear resulting in drifting is natural what's not natural is drifting as an issues after a few weeks or months of use.

And I don´t see the justification for these gamepads to crap out after a few years of use either. I wouldn´t complain if the critical component that is causing this failure wasn´t so extremely cheap (like sub $1 cheap), there would be at least a cost excuse, but this seems intentional. I don´t remember game stores dedicating so much important shelf space to official gamepads before, which seems strange since 1 console multiplayer games are so rare nowadays.
 

Nikana

Go Go Neo Rangers!
The elite controllers still uses the industry standard for the controller joystick.

These things are made out of plastic and tend to bend or break overtime which causes the drift that we all hate.
t0c9y6p.jpg


now if they spent more money and made them out of more durable material maybe we wouldn’t have these issues.
Does it? I thought I read it uses a different module that was indeed similar but new.
 

n0razi

Member
Funny thing for me is that all my Joycons are fine but I have 2 xbox controllers with drift (one regular and one elite)
 

lukilladog

Member
The elite controllers still uses the industry standard for the controller joystick.

These things are made out of plastic and tend to bend or break overtime which causes the drift that we all hate.
t0c9y6p.jpg


now if they spent more money and made them out of more durable material maybe we wouldn’t have these issues.

They could use plastic in non critical areas no problem, but the parts that handle the tension or torsion should be made of some durable metal. That´s why cherry keys last so much while retaining precision:

iu
 

lukilladog

Member
Does it? I thought I read it uses a different module that was indeed similar but new.

Last time I checked it was the same part number and look identical. But they use magnets in the upper stick assembly so they feel better.
 
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EctoPrime

Member
The standard Xbox one controller is the only gamepad that I have had any issue with. The right analogue drifts and is very obvious to showoff the problem by loading the web browser and have the entire screen shift horizontally. The launch 360 controller I now use for the pc has been used constantly for the last 15 years without issue.
 

ILLtown

Member
Stick drift is pretty much the only issue I've not had with Xbox One controllers.

Regular - I've had a bunch of them develop an issue where either a shoulder button or a direction on the D-pad starts intermittently failing to register a press. That includes 3 that had the issue out of the box, my Day One controller being one of them.

Elite V1 - I've had 5 or 6 of them. Issues I've had include the same issues I had with regular controllers, the bumper piece snapping internally, and the rubber grips peeling off.

Elite V2 - I had 4 of them in a row that were faulty out of the box, so I gave up and got a refund. All of them had an issue where pressing A sometimes didn't register a press. A couple of them developed an issue where pressing RB once would register 2 presses and once that started happening, it happened a lot, which was really annoying. A couple of them had an issue where the left stick could not be clicked when in certain positions.

I'm currently back using an Elite V1, but even that has had the bumper piece replaced and the rubber grips superglued down cos they were peeling off.

Before this generation, the only controller I had an issue with was an Xbox 360 controller that developed stick drift after a few years of heavy use, but I'm fine writing that off as wear and tear given the use it had. I'm yet to have any Xbox One controller, whether regular or Elite, last longer than a few months and 7 or 8 of them were faulty right out of the box.

It sucks, cos now I'm used to using an Elite controller there is no going back to a regular one. I would try a completely original third party controller like the Razer Wolverine Ultimate, but MS won't let companies use Xbox Wireless for controllers (unless they are just modified MS-made controllers, like the Scuf) which means they're all wired.

It's a fucking joke, really. If my Elite breaks I don't know what I'm gonna do.
 
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Kagey K

Banned
Controllers break down, sooner for some, later for others depending on how you hammer them.

Suing for stick drift in 2020 with no other information seems silly.
 

Cato

Banned
Man the fucking Dualshock4 analog sticks are absolute basura too. I go through the rubber on those things like nothing. I feel like controllers in general need to be better. I'll pay more if it's immensely better quality.

System vendor controllers and joysticks have always been shit. Not news. Almost all vendors of controllers suck.

At least in the 80s we could by WICO COMMAND CONTROL joysticks. Those fuckers were indestructible.
Bring WICO back and let them make xbox/ps controllers and the problem will go away.

(I had a friend that used to showcase wico joysticks. Lay them on the side so they balance on the top of the joystick and the side of the base. Then slowly drive over them with the car. They wouldnt break.)
 
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Funny, it happened with my day 1 controller way back when, Microsoft sent me a new one and I got to keep the old one, though I never use it.

Happened to one of my DS4s that I know wasn't under warranty, so I bought a new one at Target with plans on returning the old one. Jokes on me as they aren't takimg returns until after this covid crisis is over, so I guess jokes on me. Lol
 

Max_Po

Banned
I have had 6 Elite controllers (including Gears of War ED) and a collection of all Special Edition controllers. ...

I usually sell off the Elite Controllers because the stick is just the same quality as normal controller and it becomes loose very quickly. I mean a month later its loose. So I switch over to PS4 for Call of Doody fix w/ Astro ps4 c40 and purchased 2 spare stick modules for 20 each.

MS needs to copy the modular approach....
 
So for every product in your life that breaks after the warranty expires is valid to a lawsuit? That'd be every product in your life! That's why they have warranties, so you can know the day it'll break, the day after.
 

zombrex

Member
All the console manufacturers are guilty of this bullshit. They need to stop penny pinching on parts. Joyscons are the absolute worst controllers for reliability this generation and a $180 Xbox should last a decade and be gold plated. I'm still using my wiiu pro controllers from 7 years ago with thousands of hours of gameplay (and even these controllers feel cheap as shit) so there is no excuse.

Funny story:
I had a PS4 V2 controller go bad with not reading left and right inputs.
I was playing for months not knowing WTF was wrong because the issue was very inconsistent. I only played GT sport at the time, I thought I was braking too hard and locking the wheels because I randomly could not turn at all, it happened like two or three times a race. Was extremely frustrating. I thought an update made the game more realistic or that I turned off an assist. Then I played a shooter and realised the controller was stuffed. This is also a common issue when you search online.
 
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GHG

Gold Member
and here I am, was about to purchase an Elite this coming weekend and I see this...

Get one of these instead if it's for PC use:


Seriously, this controller is good. It has 4 buttons on the back so if that's the primary reason you're looking at the elite then it will suit you fine.
 
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skneogaf

Member
I didn't know xbox one pads drift, I have 4 or 5 and none do but non are after the xbox one x pad.

Edit... Its the elite controller he's on about.
 
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PocoJoe

Banned
Noooo I've had drift issues on my PS2 due to wear and tear but again who knows. I can only speak of all my controllers and I buy alot bcus my son is 13 and destroys them by raging lol

How about being a responsible parent and stop feeding his clear anger management issues by allowing him to break controllers and just replace them?

You say it like "yeah it is completely normal to 13 years old to get epic mental breakdowns and break controllers, nothing I can do, just gotta buy em controllers!"

No wonder many adults have issues of self control if they never have to learn responsibility and parents are enablers instead of teaching them self control. Unless they are of course similar, no self control and they think that it is normal to get so angry to a game that you have to break something.

I have been gaming +30 years and only broke one TAC-2 around 7-8y old when I got mad to a game, then felt bad and saw how stupid it is to break something because of your inability to handle your feelings. So I fixed the controller (loose wire had to be soldered) and never broke any item because of rage after it, but I guess not every kid/adult is smart enough to analyze their actions.

Yeah, you probably take this as personal attack and rage or whatever, but I am right. Parents should not let their kids break shit and be fucking morons, age is not an excuse for bad behavior. Just stop buying those controllers if he breaks em, and tell that it is not right to go ape shit over a game.


I have known people that play NHL etc and then throw controller to a wall. Adults. Just sad and nobody should be like that, it is not normal behavior while I may be common among some.

People that "output their emotions in nanosecond" are the worst kind and it makes them really hard to be around, because you cant never know if they snap because of some minor shit with their non-existing self control. And it is hard to teach for adults but kids should have a chance.

No wonder some claim that "LOL ds4(or any controller) is shit! it breaks all the time, i'm on my 9th already!" if they have tantrums like babies and normalize it.
 
I feel you and I believe you. Must not be widespread I seriously have tons of controllers I've never had tht issue with.
And I don´t see the justification for these gamepads to crap out after a few years of use either. I wouldn´t complain if the critical component that is causing this failure wasn´t so extremely cheap (like sub $1 cheap), there would be at least a cost excuse, but this seems intentional. I don´t remember game stores dedicating so much important shelf space to official gamepads before, which seems strange since 1 console multiplayer games are so rare nowadays.
👍🏽👍🏽
 

M1chl

Currently Gif and Meme Champion
The elite controllers still uses the industry standard for the controller joystick.

These things are made out of plastic and tend to bend or break overtime which causes the drift that we all hate.
t0c9y6p.jpg


now if they spent more money and made them out of more durable material maybe we wouldn’t have these issues.
Well "plastic" is wide term, some "plastic" is really durable. If they would use something like aluminium, it would probably be worse. Obviously, the issue is construction and material type.

Nice nick by the way, keep working yourself towards the wizard status.
 

Kev Kev

Member
i have an old xbox controller with the same problem lol, fucking sucks. i was thinking about getting a new one soon.... guess im not now
 
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I hope it's an improvement in build quality for sure. DS4 was a good technical successor to the DS3. It was better in almost all ways. But I would like the Dualsense to feel more premium and use better materials.
 

Gamernyc78

Banned
How about being a responsible parent and stop feeding his clear anger management issues by allowing him to break controllers and just replace them?

You say it like "yeah it is completely normal to 13 years old to get epic mental breakdowns and break controllers, nothing I can do, just gotta buy em controllers!"

No wonder many adults have issues of self control if they never have to learn responsibility and parents are enablers instead of teaching them self control. Unless they are of course similar, no self control and they think that it is normal to get so angry to a game that you have to break something.

I have been gaming +30 years and only broke one TAC-2 around 7-8y old when I got mad to a game, then felt bad and saw how stupid it is to break something because of your inability to handle your feelings. So I fixed the controller (loose wire had to be soldered) and never broke any item because of rage after it, but I guess not every kid/adult is smart enough to analyze their actions.

Yeah, you probably take this as personal attack and rage or whatever, but I am right. Parents should not let their kids break shit and be fucking morons, age is not an excuse for bad behavior. Just stop buying those controllers if he breaks em, and tell that it is not right to go ape shit over a game.


I have known people that play NHL etc and then throw controller to a wall. Adults. Just sad and nobody should be like that, it is not normal behavior while I may be common among some.

People that "output their emotions in nanosecond" are the worst kind and it makes them really hard to be around, because you cant never know if they snap because of some minor shit with their non-existing self control. And it is hard to teach for adults but kids should have a chance.

No wonder some claim that "LOL ds4(or any controller) is shit! it breaks all the time, i'm on my 9th already!" if they have tantrums like babies and normalize it.

Lol smfh there is always one. You cant be serious, right? A response like this tells more about you than the nonsense you are spewing. And I suggest you seek help. I'll not write what I really want to say because I know your type and you'll just report it. How do you know what I do or how I raise my son? Firstly I was being hyperbolic and joking, my son really messes them up with the insane building teens do on fortnite that eats up controllers which I mentioned in another post. My son never physically throws controllers or anything. We pride ourselves in growing a respectable, young man. We don't allow that type of behavior.

What I detest are know it all, snowflakes, that think they sit on high horses. If you want to be a psuedo psychologist, a judge and juror and a & #ck this isn't the site for tht, this is a gaming site. Gtfo with tht bs and go read your dsm elsewhere. Judgemental People like you are sad but also I know it's a sickness.

People that think and judge like you tend to actually be what is ruining this society and are creating these overtly sensitive teens you can't even scream at because they'll want to hurt themselves.

Next time stick to the direct topic and don't be a..... I know your type very well and usually are the biggest offenders of oppressing people and trying to make them conform to what they believe.

I know you thought you were dropping jewels but just ended up sounding and looking like a.........

For reference sake snowflake that sits on his high horse spewing manure out his mouth 👀😊

"None of my ds4 have ever had this issue until I either dropped them or they are like three years in and are dying. Hence no class action on Sony about this issue. I have about 8 controllers laying around lol some destroyed bcus my son and his damn crazy building in fortnite. Controllers take punishment with fortnite for sure"
 
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