Last month, PlayStation announced a new Midnight Black collection of peripherals, which included re-colored versions of the PlayStation Portal, the DualSense Edge, the Pulse Elite headset, the Pulse Explore earbuds, a matching console cover, as well as a nighttime-esque (vanilla) DualSense. I’m sure this generic colorway has its dedicated audience, but I’ve never been a fan of anything, shall we say, predictable. I’ve always felt that technology needs to pop. It needs to be fun. Enter my latest controller acquisition.
I pre-ordered the Chroma Teal DualSense on Amazon way back in October, when the whole line of Chroma PS5 gamepads—alongside matching console covers—went on sale. It immediately caught my eye because it reminded me of my favorite gaming controller I’ve ever owned, which was the see-through Emerald Green PS1 Dual Shock. I actually got it for Easter in 1999, bundled with a shiny new copy of Gex 3: Deep Cover Gecko, which is a green kind of game, coincidentally. Me in 1999: Jesus has risen, and look, he has provided gaming gifts… for the resurrection, or whatever.
In terms of personal controller GOATs, a close second for me is—believe it or not— InterAct’s janky third-party Barracuda, which I got for Christmas in 1997. Jesus came through yet again, it seems, and as a baby, no less. The son of God hooking me up with what’s good. Halleluiah.
The Barracuda, if you’re curious, was able to move digital controls to its slippery analog sticks, and that’s how I played most of Final Fantasy VII that particular holiday. It felt like magic. Third place for controller GOAT probably goes to my prized translucent yellow Dreamcast controller, an accessory that is worth way too much money now, especially if you additionally own the matching yellow VMU. What can I say, I have eclectic tastes. But back to Chroma.
During Black Friday 2024, a bunch of DualSenses were on sale via Amazon, and so I ended up ordering both the Chroma Pearl and Chroma Indigo gamepads, too. Both arrived last month, but unfortunately, the Chroma Teal release date was still set for January 23. Amazon didn’t end up delivering my controller until a few days ago, January 27, but it was absolutely worth the wait. This is, in my opinion, the coolest and best-looking DualSense of the entire bunch, even beyond the other Chroma line entries. Honorable mention goes to Chroma Pearl, though.
The stunning colorway is such a throwback to that awesome Emerald Green Dual Shock I unwrapped almost 30 years ago, although admittedly, we’ve traded green translucence for green iridescence here. I know, it’s technically teal, but it looks deliciously green to me. Or at the very least, my nostalgia demands it, and whatever my nostalgia wants, it gets. Maybe I can use this new Chroma Teal DualSense to schedule some therapy.
I admittedly have two gripes with this new controller. The first complaint is that there’s a very obvious dent in one of the analog sticks (the rubber on top, specifically), signaling an annoying lack of quality control in Sony’s manufacturing process. Second, I wish the whole controller was iridescent green instead of conspicuously two-toned. Basically, the decorative panels are where the glitter action happens, while the rest of the controller—face buttons, analog sticks, d-pad, triggers—are more of what you’d call a basic ‘teal’. It’s dull, muted and matte in nature, and it takes away from the aesthetics. Plus, in the wrong light, it makes the controller look cheap, and at $80, this is rather bothersome. All the Chroma gamepads adhere to this two-toned color scheme, by the way.
Despite those drawbacks, I still adore this controller, and I’ll be using it as my daily driver moving forward, come Hell or high water. This article has become strangely biblical. I dig it.
If only Sony would hurry up and release Chroma Teal PS5 Pro console covers. Right now, you can only buy Chroma panels for the PS5 Slim, not even the base PS5 console, so to quote Lemongrab, this is unacceptable. Interestingly, PS5 Slim is the only kind of PS5 I don’t currently own, so I guess I’m out of luck. Come to think of it, there aren’t any official console plates to buy for PS5 Pro yet, although Sony has stated that “they [will] become available in the future.”
Have you picked up any of the new Chroma DualSenses? Let me know on X and we can argue ferociously about which one is best.
