Hyperkin’s long-teased Competitor controller is finally making its way to market this fall, offering Xbox players a DualSense-inspired design at a budget-friendly price. After first being teased back in 2019 and later shown in prototype form, the finished version of the Competitor will launch in October for $49.99.
At first glance, the controller looks like a deliberate nod to Sony’s PlayStation 5 gamepad, with a symmetrical joystick layout instead of the offset sticks that have been a hallmark of Xbox controllers for decades. Hyperkin isn’t shying away from the resemblance this time—after a more generic design shown in 2023, the company is leaning fully into the comparisons.
The Competitor will be available in five colors: black and white for North America at launch, while red, blue, and gold will arrive first in Europe and Australia before eventually expanding to other regions.
Feature-wise, the controller lands somewhere between affordable and practical. It includes anti-drift Hall effect joysticks, impulse triggers, a D-pad with separated directional buttons, two programmable back buttons with lock options, and a dedicated mic mute button. Those additions put it above most bargain controllers, though it lacks the more advanced features that set the PlayStation DualSense apart, such as adaptive triggers and nuanced haptic feedback.
One area where the Competitor keeps things simple is power. The controller is wired-only, meaning players won’t have to worry about battery life but also won’t get the wireless convenience found in Xbox’s official gamepads.
After years of teasing and delays, Hyperkin’s Competitor looks to be arriving as a straightforward option for players who want PlayStation-style ergonomics in an Xbox-friendly package—without the higher price tag of premium third-party controllers. At $49.99, it could find its audience among those who prefer a symmetrical stick layout and don’t mind staying tethered.
