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There are controllers you can get for $60—your stock, no-frills Xbox and PS5 devices—or there are the “performance” controllers that cost $200. SCUF is known as a company that does the latter. They make high-end devices for players who want to imagine themselves going pro. But what about a $100 controller, like SCUF’s new Valor Pro? Is there a market for people who just want a little bit more from their controller, even if it’s wired only?
The Valor Pro feels premium and not premium. The Hall-effect sticks with their swappable covers are grippy in just the right way. It’s the first time SCUF has tried Hall effect, and while it may not have the same feel as traditional sticks, they should avoid stick drift over time. The triggers with their instant switch have a definitive depth, and the back paddles feel form-fitted to slot your middle finger between (the inner paddles are also removable).
© Photo: Kyle Barr / Gizmodo It’s all very SCUF, and if you’ve used one of the company’s controllers before, you’ll feel at home here. The one issue is that this controller is wired only. There are only so many ways to make a high-end controller cheaper, and removing the battery and Bluetooth connectivity is one way to do it.
Most people who want to replace their controller will look for the cheapest option. I still use the SCUF Envision for my PC gaming adventures, despite how annoying ICUE software is for remapping controls. I prefer PlayStation-style controls, so naturally, I’ll gravitate to the DualSense design. Still, there’s something to say about that classic Xbox feel that has become so classic since the days of the Xbox 360. I played through several matches in Marvel Rivals with the Valor Pro, and without adjusting any profiles, remapping buttons, or adjusting stick sensitivity, I was already hitting some precise shots (there is some aim assist, yes, but it’s not nearly as intense as the console version of Marvel Rivals).
I do have one big issue with the controller: the D-pad. It feels small, and unlike the traditional $60 Xbox wireless controller, the direction ridges don’t go all the way to the edge. It’s nice and clicky, just like the rest of the controller, but it also felt rough on the thumb. I can’t imagine many fighting game aficionados enjoying the calluses developing on their thumb over an extended session.
So, with a few extras like the audio control dials for your headset connected to the 3.5 mm jack, there’s not much else to say. SCUF promises that a future update will allow for a 1KHz polling rate for the joysticks on PC, but only the most avid gamer can tell the difference. And if you’re a pro gamer or somebody who thinks they’re a “pro” level able to shout loudest at teammates in Call of Duty: Warzone, you would inevitably think of getting a more expensive, higher-end controller anyway, right?
Price is really what the discussion relies on. The Valor Pro costs as much as the Razer Wolverine V3, a fellow wired Xbox controller (though there’s a wireless version, the Wolverine V3 Pro, for a whopping $200) with a similarly plastic feel and a squatter body. It was one of our favorite controllers from last year. The SCUF Valor Pro, by comparison, feels exactly like a typical Xbox controller, and that’s a benefit for Xbox mainstays. It may not have all the bells and whistles like the dual swappable backpedals of the Xbox Elite Series 2 controller, either.
The extra benefit of the Valor design is that you can replace the front faceplate with several unique colorways. You can’t create your color swatch like you can Xbox’s customizer, but I’ll first note that the cherry blossom version looks very nice, even better than the translucent “smoke” plastic on my review unit.
Controllers from left: SCUF Envision Pro; SCUF Valor Pro; SCUF Instinct Pro (Special Edition Squid Games). © Photo: Kyle Barr / Gizmodo It was only when SCUF sent me the Valor Pro for review I realized just how close these controllers resemble the $220 Instinct Pro. I have experience with those controllers through a special edition tie-in with Xbox and Netflix for Squid Game season 2. The Instinct Pro controllers also included swappable sticks and clicky adaptive triggers, but there’s a distinct difference in how each controller feels. The RB and LB buttons on the Instinct have a more clicky sound than the Valor Pro. The Instinct’s non-Hall effect sticks have more gentle movement to the Valor, and the d-pad is especially better designed and allows you to hit diagonals easily.
The other difference is the outside back paddles require more effort on the Valor than the Instinct. It comes down to personal preference, but. In essence, the Valor Pro is a pared-down Instinct Pro. That’s not a bad thing in itself. I wouldn’t bat an eye if SCUF told me the controller was merely a wired-only Instinct with Hall effect sticks.
And still, for the average gamer, the difference isn’t so stark that you could pick up the Valor Pro and not pick up on the difference between it and your baseline $70 default Xbox device. There may very well be a gamer out there who simply wants a little bit more oomph from a controller than what you get out of the box. SCUF seems to think so, but I’m still not sure. Because you can tell the difference between the Valor Pro, Instinct Pro, or Envision Pro. To SCUF’s credit, the difference between its less- and more-expensive controller is minute. For a gamer who wants to go “pro,” the Valor Pro is like the training wheels for many controllers costing $150 or more.
Everybody else can feel safe sticking with the default controllers for less.
