The SCUF Vantage is an aftermarket controller designed for use with the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 4 Pro. It can be used both wireless and wired, and it has the rare ability to remap buttons on the front of the controller, to any of four paddles on the rear of the controller. It is very similar to the Xbox One Elite Controller, which is manufactured my Microsoft for use on PC and Xbox One.
This controller is aimed at the hardcore console gamer, or “pro” console gamer. It is not meant for new gamers or gamers who don’t understand the need for the paddles on the rear of the controller – which are the most important feature of this controller. If you are a ‘First Person Shooter’ (FPS) player, this controller is made for you. I will cover a lot more about the controller features and usage in the video review, so be sure to check that out below.
First impressions of this controller were excellent, even with the product still in the box. SCUF put a lot of time, thought and design into the packaging, and it shows. It reminded me of the level of effort and design that Apple puts into every one of its products.
After opening the packaging, I was even more impressed to see how SCUF laid out all of the pieces that come with this controller. There is a ‘hard’ shell carrying case, a nice braided micro USB cable, and a nice large pill-shaped container to hold the various little pieces that you can swap out and modify on this controller.
Holding the unit in my hands for the first time, I was first surprised by just how light this controller is compared to the Xbox One Elite. In general, lighter controllers are preferred, as you are holding it up for the duration of your gaming session. The controller had zero flex when I tried to flex it in any direction. The paint on the controller was solid, with no blemishes from manufacturing or packaging. I got the plain silver cover plate with yellow accents, but you can actually order a multitude of different face plates to suit your style. The thumbsticks are plastic, but solid, and they have a full range of motion in any direction, as well as the 360 degree circular motion. I also love that the thumbsticks are offset like an Xbox controller, and not next to each other at the bottom of the controller like a typical PS4 controller. The four main buttons are also solid, without harsh clicks or mushy compresses. They feel just right. The touchpad is clicky, and the texture feels great as you slide your finger across it. The right and left triggers and bumpers work great. There are some additional side buttons, more to the top (faceplate area) of the controller, with SCUF calls SAX buttons. Their purpose is to allow you to use your full hand when playing and have more options available to you, but I haven’t used them yet. Lastly, the paddles on the back are great. They are plastic, have a distinct and satisfying ‘clicky’ sound when you activate them, have nice grooving and grip textures toward the bottom where your finger touches them, and they are remap-able to any of the buttons on the controller.
Overall, my impressions of build quality and gaming experience were great. Considering the price of the controller is $200, I expect that the overall experience would be nothing less than great. I would say that the quality and user experience definitely live up to the price of the controller. It delivers on what it claims to do, and I didn’t feel like I was lied to or ripped-off by buying this.
The product is very user friendly. There are clear instructions on how to use the unit in the box, and pairing it with my PS4 Pro was painless. This unit is a little bit more complicated than a factory PS4 controller, as it allows you to modify various things like thumbstick height and button mappings, but those are par for the course on any ‘pro’ controller.
I hesitate to even list this here, but it may matter to some gamers. This particular controller is only usable with a PS4. You cannot use it with a PC. This was a bit of a bummer for me, because I can use my Xbox One Elite controller with my PC, Xbox and even Nintendo Switch (with an adapter). The SCUF Vantage only works with PS4. I even reached out to SCUF support about it, and they replied that not only does it only work with PS4, they do not have an ETA on if or when there will be a driver for Windows 10. This tells me that there may never be. To be perfectly fair, the SCUF Vantage was never advertised to work with Windows, it does not say so on the box, nor in the instructions. That was simply my assumption based on the use of the Xbox One Elite controller.
The second thing to note is that my unit was purchased before November 2018. Why does this matter? It seems that some units shipped before that date have had firmware issues. Mine had these firmware issues – mainly around bluetooth pairing. Updating the firmware seems to have helped, but I usually play with my controller wired in – in order to have the least amount of latency in an FPS game. SCUF has published a support document around this, so if you are not sure if your controller has the updated firmware, please read the support page and follow the appropriate instructions. https://scufgaming.com/s/vantage-firmware-updates/
There aren’t many alternatives at this level of play. As mentioned before, if you are on Xbox or PC, the Xbox One Elite controller is probably your best bet. Likewise, if you are on PS4, the SCUF Vantage is the only game in town at this quality. I realize there may be other companies that have similar types of controllers, but I have not tested those, so I cannot offer any commentary on those. I can tell you that the SCUF Vantage is an excellent controller that does everything it says it does.
Should you buy it?
So the TL;DR verdict here is YES, buy it. If you tend to play a lot of FPS games on PlayStation 4, and you prefer the offset thumbsticks of the Xbox controller design, this controller is your jam. I am primarily an PC and Xbox gamer, so the reason I initially bought this was to have a controller for my PS4 that felt like my Xbox One Elite controller – mainly the offset thumbsticks. This is an excellent controller overall, and I could easily see using for any games on PS4, not just the FPS games. Though, for the price, you are really only going to want this if you need ultimate control over button mapping, sensitivity and thumbstick movement. For most games, this controller is overkill, but for competitive shooters, this controller is almost a must. Yes, buy this controller if you meet the criteria above.
Pros
- Excellent build quality.
- Lots of configuration and customization options.
- Excellent response time from button presses.
Cons
- Price is high at $199. It feels more like a $150 product.
- Does not work with PC, only PS4.
Check out the video review on my YouTube channel here..
I’m Mnemonic Tutor, a long time gamer who plays literally any and all types of games. I’ve been playing games since I was five years old, and my reviews come from decades worth of experience with gaming.
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