8BitDo Ultimate 2 review: 4 reasons it’s the best third party gamepad money can buy

You’re spoilt for choice when it comes to good video game controllers these days. Long gone are the times when picking up a third-party pad was a sign that you’d not been investing your pocket money wisely, with dozens of manufacturers now more than a match for Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo’s in-house wares.

Arguably the best of the bunch comes from 8BitDo, who for the last few years have been churning out pads of all shapes and sizes, of jaw-dropping quality. Its original 8BitDo Ultimate controller is Shortlist’s go-to option when we’ve put down our DualSenses and Switch Pro pads, and it’s now back with the new and improved 8BitDo Ultimate 2 pad.

And it’s not just as good as its predecessor, but it’s a cut above that classic too. Here’s 3 reasons the 8BitDo Ultimate 2 should be your next deathmatch partner.

8BitDo Ultimate 2: The specs and features

Before we break down exactly what makes the 8BitDo Ultimate 2 so special, here’s some quick facts:

• Great ergonomics: Lightly textured pad is perfectly sized
• Drift-free sticks: Joysticks here use TMR precision components
• Included dock: Charge the pad and pair to your devices in an instant with the included dock
• Customisable buttons: Including rear bumper pads and additional shoulder buttons
• Hair Triggers: For when a quick fire button is a must
• PC and Android compatibility: Over USB and Bluetooth connections
• Pricing and availability: On sale now, the 8BitDo Ultimate 2 is a steal at £49.99

1. Great in the hand and nifty extra features

8BitDo seems to make a pad for every scenario, from 16-bit style grip-free flat controllers to arcade sticks and pocketable mini pads. This one’s a little more traditional though, following the Xbox controller style layout with A, B, X, Y buttons and asymmetrical sticks. It’s a touch smaller than an Xbox pad, and it grips a little straighter, but we found it perfectly ergonomic for our mitts.

Available in a wide range of colours, including white, purple, green and the black we’re reviewing here, it’s a nice-looking pad, with a lightly textured surface for added grip, and RGB lighting for a little futuristic flair around the joysticks, configurable to follow your inputs around the pad.

What’s really special here though is the additional features built into the pad. For starters, there’s the sticks. They’re using TMR (Tunneling Magnetoresistance) joysticks, which use magnets to track your input — a low power and very accurate method that is designed to prevent phantom input in your controller. On top of that there are four additional buttons over a standard control scheme — two paddles built into the grips, and an extra pair of small shoulder buttons, which can be configured for whichever button presses you need. On top of that, there are toggleable switches on the rear to alter the depth of the shoulder trigger press. You’ve got the full range option, handy for finely adjusting your speed and acceleration in driving games, or a hair-trigger stopper, excellent for quick pop-shots in shooters.

The cherry on top is gyroscope control, which can be easily configured for Steam games and emulated titles to give you motion control over your movements.

Some reviewers have complained that the D-Pad is a bit mushy, but we’ve no complaints — we’d argue it’s actually pretty good for fighting games in particular, letting you roll off special moves with ease.

2. Sitting on the dock of the play

This might be the thing we love most about the 8BitDo Ultimate 2 controller. Included in the package is a curved charging dock that the 8BitDo Ultimate 2 controller can sit in when not in use. With charging pins in the base, it means your controller is always ready to play at full power, while a USB-A connection to your gaming device ensures pairing is hassle free, too.

There’s more than just charging to the dock, too. In its base sits a removable 2.4GHz USB-C dongle, letting it act as a passthrough receiver for the wireless connection to the controller. As it’s removable, it also gives you the option of taking the small dongle component on the go, ready to be plugged in and connected to another device. It makes moving the connection between our PC and Steam Deck dock a breeze, while a switch on the back of the controller itself makes it easily identifiable to Bluetooth devices like Android phones and tablets.

3. Customise to your exact needs

With accompanying software, almost every element of the 8BitDo Ultimate 2 controller is customisable too. You’re able to tweak anything from stick deadzone and sensitivity to button mapping, rumble intensity and trigger response times. It can be completely tailored to your specific gaming needs. Also, the RGB lighting can be turned to any colour you want, or a range of different light patterns through the software. And, of course, if you find the glow a bit obnoxious or just want to maximise battery life, it can be switched off here entirely.

4. Perfectly priced

We’ve gotten used to first-party pads gouging our pockets this generation of hardware. You’re looking at £64.99 for a PlayStation 5 Dualsense controller for instance, while the recently released Nintendo Switch 2 Pro Controller costs a whopping £74.99.

But the 8BitDo Ultimate 2, despite its strong, premium feature set and additional components like the dock, is a relatively affordable £49.99 — a steal in the current gaming climate.

8BitDo Ultimate 2: Final verdict

If you’re on the market for a fresh PC controller or something to wile away the hours with on your Android phone or tablet, you won’t find a better pad than the 8BitDo Ultimate 2. Highly customisable and with great ergonomics, it puts premium features in the palm of your hand without breaking the bank.

• Nintendo Switch 2 review: Powered up in all the right places