Thrustmaster eSwap X2 Pro Controller Review
thesixthaxis.comAs gaming grows ever bigger, in some ways the most interesting battles aren’t the obvious ones between Sony and Microsoft or Quest 3 and PSVR 2, it’s the steadily building war between peripheral manufacturers. Just when you think someone has perfected a controller’s form or a headset’s audio, another company comes along and makes an even better one. The original eSwap X Pro was one of the best Pro-styled controllers out there, and now Thrustmaster are back with the second iteration, looking to firmly cement their professional-level device in your hands. They’ve done an excellent job.
The eSwap X2 is a customisable wired controller compatible with the Xbox family of consoles, PC and Mac. What makes it stand out is its modular design, with three removable and replaceable control units that you can move or change out in favour of something more suitable to what you want to play. There’s a range of different options available from Thrustmaster, from replacement sticks through to extra buttons to give you a six-button layout. There’s even a tiny steering wheel option for something truly unique.
In the box you’re getting a soft cloth carry case, the central X2 controller body, two next-generation analogue sticks, and a D-ippon mechanical D-pad unit, with the most obvious choice out of the box for your setup being either a standard Xbox asymmetrical stick layout or a symmetrical DualSense-styled one.
What’s fantastic is that there’s nothing to stop you switching between the two depending on the game you’re playing, so while I might prefer to play racing games asymmetrically, something just feels a little natural with the sticks opposite each other for FPS titles. You can even put two analogue sticks on the left, and your D-pad on the right, but… I haven’t found the benefit of that. If you do, well, more power to you, I suppose.
The other benefit is that if you have hammered the sticks on your controller to the point of no return, then you can replace them for a very reasonable
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