PlayStation 4 controller could have used Xbox 360's controller layout

It is no secret that Sony has tried out quite a few prototypes for the DualShock 4 controller which is making its debut with the PlayStation 4. The company has now talked about some of these prototypes with VentureBeat. One of the most interesting things Sony almost did with the DualShock 4 was a prototype which used the Xbox 360's controller layout.

What we eventually ended up with

“For the analog sticks,” said Sony's Toshimasa Aoki, “we did test having the analog sticks on top, since the Xbox has the left side on top [above the D-pad]. Especially from the shooter teams — we got feedback that that’s what they wanted. They knew that consumers liked the 360 for shooters.”

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However, Sony scrapped it in favour of the more traditional DualShock 4 we saw back in February. "The feedback from the user test team said that we needed to test this version, the Xbox version, and this version," said Aoki. "[But having the two sticks symmetrical on the left and right sides] is kind of in our DNA. The prototype team, myself, and also the management team really felt that having this look is the PlayStation look, and we had to keep that."

The PlayStation 4 will be hitting store shelves in America and Europe in November.