Cheap and cheerful controller is great for kids, but you may find it lacking if you are a serious gamer.
- Manufacturer: Gioteck
- Platforms: Switch, PC and PS3
- Reviewed on: Switch
- Supplied by: Virtual Comms
The WX4 is a Budget multi platform controller from Gioteck, the brilliant minds behind the previously covered TX50.
Although the WX4 offers multi-platform support, it is mainly aimed at the Switch as an alternative to Joy-Con or the Pro controllers. At just £24.99 it’s nearly half the price of the Pro controller, with almost identical functionality.
The overall construction is a lightweight plastic. It doesn’t feel overly durable but it should be sturdy enough to sustain normal gameplay on a console like the Switch. The buttons and triggers are made from a lightly textured plastic that feels similar to the rest of the controller while the joysticks are the usual rubberized coated material.
Similar in design to the Pro controller, the WX4 has an embossed cut out at the top containing four LEDs that identifies player number and indicates that the controller is powered. The WX4 has fairly nice styling. It’s a simple design, with the main body colour and black accents at the top middle of the controller and the ends of the hand grips. This style ties in really well with the Switch’s simplistic design.
The feel of the WX4 is fairly lightweight and cheap, and the buttons themselves are extremely varied in feel. The main action buttons are spongy when depressed; the responsiveness is perfectly fine, but there is no tactile feel. Similar to the action buttons the triggers feel spongy on depression and from what I can tell are single actuated, meaning the triggers register a press but not the amount of actuation on the trigger. The bumpers, however, feel perfect. They have a sharp click when pressed that give you clear feedback and respond perfectly.
The D-pad is also perfectly fine, having the same clicky feedback that the bumpers have, and feeling as precise and satisfying as needed. They are on the stiffer side but I found that it avoids any misclicks and gives a certainty to use of the D-pad.
Lastly, the Analogue sticks are on the looser side. This isn’t a real issue as it just takes some getting used to and depending on which other controllers you use regularly may feel less drastic. Compared to Xbox or PlayStation controllers it does feel loose, but in comparison to the Joy-Cons and other 3rd party controllers, it’s not so different.
The only issue I have with the analogue sticks is the axis on which the controller seems to be responsive, which is restricted to a four-axis pattern rather than the full 360 degrees you would usually work with. Diagonal movements seem to be a lot harder to make with precision than usual and the controller seems to only have one speed rather than gradual acceleration like most analogue sticks. This means that no matter how little you push the analogue stick it will detect a full speed push.
The controller I received for review is a wired USB weird version but the controller is also available in a BlueTooth wireless variant. has an extremely long, non-removable USB cable that is ideal for docked play. The cable is long enough to sit comfortably far away from your tv or monitor and use it.
Summary
Overall, the WX4 is not the most premium controller and is not ideally suited for competitive or serious gaming, but for the Switch and general gaming enjoyment, it’s perfect. It’s an inexpensive controller that performs to a good standard, and it’s completely usable and perfect for kids. My daughter enjoys using it and has found the controller to be perfectly sized for her tiny hands, and as an added bonus I am happy to let her use it as its cheap price and fairly sturdy construction means it will last a while. Even when it does perish, it’s not as expensive to replace as a Pro controller or a Joy-Con.
