An early render of the Xenon controller in the original Xbox 360 white. It will also come in black, pink, and red. | Image: Hyperkin
Hyperkin is introducing an officially licensed remake of Microsoft’s original Xbox 360 controller, which looks poised to bring the 2005 nostalgia trip to modern Xbox consoles and Windows PCs. The Xenon controller, named after the Xbox 360’s first internal development codename, brings back the 17-year-old design and modernizes things with Menu, View, and Share buttons, as well as a 3.5mm headphone jack and detachable USB-C cable. In addition to the original white, it will come in black, pink, and red.
Pricing and availability have not been announced yet, but if Hyperkin’s $70 Duke controller remake is any indication, this may be quite a faithful and somewhat pricey recreation. Perhaps even too faithful in some small aspects, as these early renders show a D-pad that has the same left lean as the originals. Personally, I used to sand the inner left wall of the D-pad surround on my Xbox 360 controllers to give a left directional press a little more room. We’ll see what the actual controller is like upon release, though I can say with confidence that contrary to the Duke, the Xenon may be a controller you may actually enjoy using and not just displaying on your shelf for the sake of nostalgia.
Image: Hyperkin
Early product info and colors for the Hyperkin Xenon.
Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge
An original Xbox 360 controller for comparison, which came in wireless or wired versions. The remake is only wired.