MegaModz Modded PS5 Controller Review

Not all PS5 controllers are made equal. In fact, many PS5 controllers are modified to be better in some way, whether that’s visually, functionally, or both. I had the chance to review the MegaModz Modded PS5 Controller, and evaluate where this controller modding company stands among the greats.

Configuring and Ordering the MegaModz Modded PS5 Controller

It’s pretty easy to configure and order a MegaModz Modded PS5 Controller. Just head to their Build Your Own PS5 Controller page, and you can pretty much go from there. However, not all of the options that are currently available were available at the time of configuring this controller.

Two new configuration options have been added since then:

• Back Button Add-On
• Mechanical Face Buttons Add-On

These are both additions I would have added onto my controller and included in my review had it been an option at the time. While I can’t personally confirm their functionality, my experience with the controller leans me toward handily recommending both of the new add-ons for most users.

However, the configuration I actually have for my review is as follows:

• Mechanical Shoulder Buttons and Hair Triggers
• Chrome Gold D-Pad
• Great Wave Hanegawa Skin

Initial Unboxing and Setup

A concern I had prior to the arrival of the MegaModz PS5 Controller was the possibility it would be a modified third-party PS5 Controller rather than a modified official PS5 Controller from Sony.

When it arrived in its original packaging from Sony, this worry was alleviated.

It’s always nice to have reassurance that a modded controller is working off of the best possible foundation. The original packaging serves as a quick way of communicating this to the consumer, and across testing with my PC and PS5 consoles, the MegaModz Modded PS5 Controller is recognized as a regular PS5 Controller. And that’s a good thing.

The Controller Mods

When I ordered the controller, I didn’t want to use any mods that involved software changes of any kind, since I often play games competitively and don’t want to risk using anything that may be tournament-illegal.

I was solely interested in the custom skins and the potential of modding the hardware. That left me with my current configuration, which is largely unmodified except for the addition of hair-trigger sensitivity on the triggers and shoulder buttons. Had it been available at the time, I also would have added the back buttons, as that is my favorite feature from the Xbox Elite Series controllers.

The trigger/shoulder button mods function as intended, offered extremely quick actuation on press. Aside from a brief learning curve, I didn’t experience any outright issues with these modifications. They function as advertised, from what I can tell.

However, if I had been able to get JUST the hair-trigger shoulder buttons and left the actual triggers alone, I most likely would have done so. There are a few different reasons for this, and one of them is more major than you may anticipate.

First and foremost: games that rely on analog triggers. Some racing games, for instance, will tie the exact amount of pressure put on an analog trigger to the level that the gas pedal is being pressed. With hair triggers like these, you lose that finer control you otherwise would have in those extremely specific scenarios, since any trigger pull counts as a full pull.

Secondly, the adaptive trigger feature so prominently advertised by Sony. Using DualSenseX, I was able to ensure that most adaptive trigger functionality is still present, albeit rendered somewhat pointless by the modified hair triggers.

The Switch and its Pro Controller also don’t have analog trigger functionality, for reference. The majority of games on the market won’t rely on full trigger function, so this is unlikely to be an issue , especially if you’re playing on PC, but with certain PS5 games built around fully analog adaptive triggers, this hair-trigger mod may not be ideal.

Having said all that, the mod did work as intended and improved my experience in most of the games that I play.

How and Where I Used The Controller

I primarily used the MegaModz Modded PS5 Controller to play a variety of fighting games at local events in my area, as well as practicing those games at home. Fighting games are a great way to get mileage out of nearly every part of your controller (except perhaps the right analog stick, since you won’t be doing camera control) and served as a good testing ground for this controller.

Through playing at various events, I found much utility in setting the hair-triggers to various quick-reaction commands in the games I was playing. For instance, playing Guilty Gear: Strive with the Dust and attack bound to a fast trigger allowed me to fire off the attack with a quick tap, maximizing the openings of my enemies.

For competitive games, rapid response times are a must-have. MegaModz’s Mechanical Button/Trigger modifications seem to be designed with a good understanding of that, and my own modified shoulder buttons and triggers have served me extremely well for the competitively-oriented games that I play.

Existing Mods and Future Possibilities

I feel as if I would be remiss not to discuss the existing hardware mods on the controller.

The Mechanical Shoulder Buttons and Triggers as I’ve been using them have been fairly great, but I am concerned about the intended experience of PS5-native games optimized for the PS5’s advanced trigger haptics or full-analog with this mod.

I think there should be an option for it to be set for only the shoulder buttons, or if possible, make sure the quick actuation is only set to a partial rather than full pull so as not to interfere with games where analog triggers are needed.

While I haven’t used the Mechanical Back or Face Buttons yet, I very much believe the advertising after using the Mechanical Triggers and Shoulder Buttons and think they would make an awesome addition to anyone’s gaming experience. Coming from a PC gamer with a high refresh rate monitor, trust me: having a few extra buttons and rapid response times can make a big difference.

One feature of the Xbox Elite Series 2 controller that I did find myself slightly missing on this controller was the ability to adjust the tension of the joysticks. Real-time adjustments are probably unfeasible for a controller mod, but I think a cool extra mod worth considering would be a joystick with extra resistance/tension. Not only can this add more precision to movement on the left stick or aiming on the right stick, it can also alleviate the controller drift concerns being experienced by many gamers on PS5.

The Verdict

The MegaModz Modded PS5 Controller has become my new daily driver. The only other controllers I still have a reason to use are my GameCube controller (for playing GameCube games and Platform Fighters) and my Xbox Elite Series 2 controller for the rare game that actually needs analog triggers.

After 2 months of regular use, the controller has held up near-perfectly. The paint job was immaculate, and it’s nice to show off to friends at local events.

The only visual scuff present on the controller after this time is fairly minor and inflicted by my own thumbnail.

This is no fault of MegaModz or any paint job – plastic will be damaged if you have a hard thumbnail repeatedly pressing down against it at a steep angle. So, if you’re going to button mash, make sure to do it with a flatter part of your thumb. This is purely a result of a bad habit on my end.

To demonstrate, observe the other half of my controller, which I never stab with my thumbnail:

All in all, this is an extremely good modified controller from MegaModz. The thorough testing I did of the controller’s mods has shown how the paint job has held up and helped it earn its high score.

The paint job is immaculate, and the mods ordered work as advertised. Overall, I highly recommend the MegaModz Modded PS5 Controller as the provider of your next modded gamepad.