Hulk-Pad

The Hulk-Pad gives fans of The Hulk a nifty controller to use, but everyone else should probably just stick to the standard.

It's comfy.  It's stylish.  And best of all, it's green.  Really green.  It's the Hulk-Pad, by Naki, and it's their latest Xbox controller.  It launched around the same time as the movie and the game - perfect timing for the Hulk enthusiast.

Everything is in the same place as on the standard Xbox controller - and when I say standard, I mean the initial controller, not the Controller S model.  That means that the black and white buttons are placed above the four main face buttons, so people who use the Controller S might be slightly frustrated with that.  For everyone else, there's no problems to be found with the layout.  Everything is spaced nicely, allowing for easy access without being too cramped.

The buttons feel nice, with a flat-yet-slightly-rounded feel to them.  Each one is analog and sports the appropriate color - the four face buttons even have their respective letters (X, Y, A, B) emblazoned "inside" the button, just as on the first-party controllers, and I think that's a neat, stylish touch.  The black and white buttons are a little smaller than the four main ones, but still are easy to press.  My only real complaint with the buttons is that response time seems a hair longer than on a normal controller.  It's not a big deal most of the time - you just have to be sure to press the button in completely and you should be fine.

There are also two extra buttons to utilize a Turbo feature.  The turbo button, when pressed, allows you to simply hold in one of the other buttons, and the action performed by that button will be repeated over and over quite quickly.  For example, if you're playing The Hulk, where X punches, and you hold in X while turbos on; you'll see The Hulk release a flurry of punches.  The other button is used to clear the action, turning off Turbo.

The analog sticks feel nice and move smoothly, which is especially good for racing games and others where analog movement is vital.  I do have a major annoyance with them, though: their "clicking" ability requires quite a lot of pressure.  This is when you press a stick inward (as in, perpendicular to the face of the controller), and it clicks.  These sticks require a fair bit of pressure to be clicked, and can really tire out your thumbs.  While many games don't utilize this feature, some, such as GunValkyrie and Mech Assault, practically require it.  Make sure you use a controller that's more suited for those games rather than this one, should you decide to play them.

Everything else about the controller is top-notch.  For one, it's super comfy.  The "handles" of the controller feature nice rubber grips, so you always have a good hold on the controller.  They're also nicely rounded to fit your palms.  And the triggers are very tight, easily allowing you to apply a little pressure or a lot, depending upon what you need to do.

The controller also looks pretty nice.  The whole front has a nice picture of The Hulk looking you straight in the eye.  If you like the color green, you will like how this controller looks.  Each of the four rubber pads also has a different picture of The Hulk in action.

All in all, this controller isn't bad.  It has a few little problems, but nothing to prevent you from hating it.  Still, if you aren't a big Hulk fan, you might as well stick to the standard controllers, as they're a little more responsive and their clicking mechanism works a bit better.  If you are a Hulk fan, though, you should be very happy with this controller.  Don't be afraid to give it a go if you think you might like it - you probably will.
 

Pros:

Excellent design, extremely comfortable, good button layout, and analog sticks that move smoothly.

Cons:

The analog sticks don't "click" as well as one might hope, and the response times for the buttons are a hair slower than others.

Verdict: 8.2

This controller is comfy and stylish, and everything molds into your hand perfectly.  The only thing holding it back from perfection are the shoddy clicking mechanics of analog sticks, and a slightly slower response time with the buttons compared to other controllers.  If you are a Hulk fan, do not hesitate to try it out.  You will be pleased.