You can buy a variety of third party controllers with some pretty gnarly designs, but honestly, who wants to use third party controllers? While there may be some decent ones out there, it’s hard to beat controllers made by the mothership.
I’ve worked with KontrolFreek in the past to promote and review their FPS Freek gaming grips, and if it’s one thing KontrolFreek has done, it’s show me that there are certain things that I didn’t think I needed that are now part of my daily gaming use. The same thing has happened with the Shields.
The Shields aren’t really anything mindblowing; they are, for all intents and purposes, a decal that you slap onto the face of your controller to give it a cool design. I was provided with an Admiral design for my Xbox 360 controller, and a Stealth for my PS3 controller.
The great about each of these Shields is the fact that they are pretty easy to put on. Unlike a lot of other “skins” that I have used for a variety of devices, Shields give you a margin for error. Using an adhesive technology from 3M which allows for bubble-free application, the Shields come off and on with ease; no residue and no tearing. It took me about three attempts to get the Shield lined up correctly since you have to apply it over the sticks and buttons…kind of like a game of reverse-Operation.
Once I got the Shield past the buttons/sticks, it was a breeze to line everything up. Just press down, start smoothing, and any errors that you made, simply peel off and repeat. I love it. Once all the bubbles are smoothed out, a brand new looking controller awaits. The only disappointment I ran into was that the pictures of the Shields on the website looked like they were textured, but it turned out to be a faux-texture. It’s just a print design, and the Shield itself is smooth.
You can check out the different Shields for sale at the KontrolFreek website. Each Shield will run you $12.99 and come with two per pack.
