Beanzilla

After going down a bit of a Google rabbit hole looking for alternatives to the Steam controller (of which there are none, btw), I somehow found my way to this wacky thing. It goes by a couple names: DarkWalker ShotPad and IFYOO GTP01. You can find them both on Amazon and eBay for $50. I purchased the IFYOO version, simply because it could get to me sooner. But they’re identical products.

So, what the heck is this thing?

In short, it’s a keyboard and trackpad shaped like a game controller. It takes all the typical buttons that you would use while gaming (WASD, E, Q, space, shift, etc.) and puts them on a thing shaped like a game controller. But to be clear, it’s not a game controller. At least not in the eyes of your computer. This device is recognized by Windows (and macOS) as a traditional USB keyboard and mouse.

Yes, the large trackpad is seen as a mouse and not a trackpad. So all of the mousing that you’d do in-game with a traditional mouse, is done with your right thumb on this trackpad.

So conceptually, with this hybrid(?) controller, you get gamepad-like ergonomics with improved aim precision. Best of both worlds! Though, it’s far from perfect. In fact, it’s got some pretty obvious flaws. (But, spoiler: I really do like this thing. A lot.)

Why even consider something like this?

Because it solves two big problems (for me):

1. Uncomfortable (and sometimes painful) ergonomics of a keyboard/mouse setup
2. Poor precision of a game controller’s right stick

I like the accuracy of a keyboard/mouse setup, but I generally use a game controller for PC gaming due to wrist issues and discomfort. I’m willing to put up with the poor aiming precision of a game controller as a trade off for the greater comfort and ergonomics that it provides.

Let’s start with what’s great

The concept. Yeah, that’s about it. In fact, the controller feels a bit more like a proof-of-concept than a fully baked product. But the concept is still quite good. So good that I’m willing to overlook some of the wonkiness.

Here’s what’s good

It’s pretty comfortable. Your fingers fall naturally on the buttons you’d typically interact with. Some other buttons are weirdly placed, but WASD, Q, E, tab, shift, ctrl, and space are all well positioned.

The trackpad is surprisingly responsive and accurate. Tactilely, it doesn’t feel great… no glass MacBook Pro trackpad on this thing… but it works quite well. The trackpad itself is a big button too, mapped to the mouse’s back button.

The buttons are ok. They feel more like mouse clicks than controller buttons. The different button shapes and sizes all have a different feel… some are harder to press than others. But it’s all perfectly usable.

There’s nothing to install. It works immediately. Windows just sees it as a standard USB keyboard and mouse. If you want to change what the buttons do, you can use a remapping program (like reWASD) with no problems.

No bluetooth, no dongles, just a hella long USB-A cable (10’, I think). This is both good and bad. I appreciate the simplicity of just plugging it in and it instantly working. But, yes, wires are annoying.

The learning curve is surprisingly minimal. I fired up a few games and once I dialed in the trackpad sensitivity, I was capable in minutes and proficient within an hour. Games that make use of lots of keyboard keys will take longer to get used to.

The bad

It’s not a game controller. It’s a keyboard/mouse in the shape of a game controller. So you don’t get any controller niceties. No rumble, no analog trigger sensitivity or stick sensitivity. Everything is a click/press. So just on or off.

Even the left stick isn’t the same as a game controller’s left stick. It feels like a traditional game controller, but it’s just WASD, no gradual sensitivity at all. Push the stick forward and it registers a W. Back and you get an S.

It’s lightweight… in a way that makes it feel cheap (though, so far it’s holding up fine). As it’s a wired controller, there’s no battery, so that surely has something to do with it.

Yeah, it’s got a USB cable. As mentioned, that’s good and bad. I’d love a wireless option via Bluetooth or a dongle. (UPDATE: I emailed the manufacturer and they said that a wireless dongle version is in the works.)

Z, X, and Fn are in a really weird spot. They’re positioned right where your palm would go. I haven’t had any accidental presses (surprisingly), but getting to those keys feels unnatural.

My least favorite thing is that it’s unnecessarily asymmetrical. And for the life of me, I can’t figure out why. The left side has a nice chonky grip to hang onto. Yet, nothing on the right, just a flat back (maybe to improve trackpad reach?). Also, the left side has controller-typical stacked shoulder/trigger buttons for left-click and Q. On the right, the shoulder buttons for right-click and E are positioned side by side. WTF? Why not have the same stacked shoulder/trigger buttons on both sides? I’m baffled by this design decision.

Gaming

Gaming on this, for the games I play, is honestly quite enjoyable. The first game I played seriously was a couple of hours of Portal 2. I came away with no wrist soreness (a first for me). I didn’t feel like this controller was slowing me down in any meaningful way either. In fact, after using this exclusively for a few days, going back to a keyboard/mouse felt awkward and clunky.

I rarely play anything that requires twitch-like reflexes or pixel-perfect precision, so I can’t really talk about that. I did fire up Destiny, just to see what a shooter would be like. I was just about as good using this controller as I am with a keyboard and mouse… which isn’t saying much. But I wasn’t any worse!

Bottom line

This hybrid controller feels more like a proof-of-concept than a fully-baked product. That said, it’s perfectly usable, and dare I say, enjoyable. In just a short amount of time, I already prefer it to a keyboard and mouse. I’m using it 100% of the time for keyboard/mouse gaming.

The asymmetry is still baffling though. If a version 2 of this controller could add typical stacked shoulder buttons and a grip on the right, it would go a long way to making it a more palatable option for a gamer accustomed to a traditionally shaped controller. Oh, and let’s drop the wires, ok?

I’d love to see more controller options like this on the market (was the Steam controller such a flop that no other manufacturer is going to touch it?). But for the time being, this is what we’ve got.

And until something better comes along, I’m all in on this wacky thing!