Some of the newest Xbox wireless controllers on the market are experiencing technical issues with some of the buttons failing to register when pressed. Fortunately, Microsoft claims that it is aware of the situation and is presently working on a solution. The latest consoles in the Xbox line, the series X and series S, have been available for purchase since November of 2020.
Microsoft is not alone in dealing with controller issues for its flagship console. Nintendo and Sony are dealing with similar problems, particularly in the case of the latter company's PlayStation 5, which is experiencing major drift issues with its DualSense controllers. As a result, Sony is currently facing a class-action lawsuit for violating consumer fraud statutes and breaching warranty agreements with its DualSense units. While the current Xbox controller problems have not resulted in anything like that yet, Microsoft had to deal with a similar lawsuit back in 2020 and now it looks like the company is trying to avoid repeating its mistakes.
According to a report from The Loadout, some of the latest Xbox wireless controllers for the series X and series S are plagued with unresponsive buttons, and the problem only seems to be growing as more gamers purchase the consoles. One YouTuber by the name of Jake posted a video demonstrating the controller malfunction by consistently pushing the Y button over and over again in test mode and getting no response. Unfortunately, this is nothing new for some Xbox players as the previous generation's Xbox One console had similar malfunctions with its controllers. A statement by a Microsoft spokesperson let the world know that the company is aware of the issue and is currently working on a solution; however, no time frame for when the problem might be resolved was set.
"At Microsoft, we put all of our products through rigorous quality assurance testing and are committed to providing customers with an unparalleled gaming experience. We are aware some players may be experiencing unresponsiveness with their new Xbox Wireless Controllers and our teams are actively working on a solution. For the best experience, we encourage customers to visit Xbox Support for assistance."
The Y button is not the only problem with the new Xbox controllers. Reports of unresponsive X and A buttons have surfaced as well, making the issue seem more widespread through the product. One likely cause for these malfunctions could be the usage of low durability components in the controllers' construction, which was discovered to be a major contributing factor to the PS5 drift issues. At present, however, it is unclear what is causing the problems with the Xbox controllers.
While not all of the new controller units are experiencing these issues, it is frustrating that this problem has persisted over multiple console generations. With that history, Xbox fans may be skeptical on Microsoft's promise to fix the issue. If it was something the company truly recognized as a problem and wanted to remedy, then it should have been dealt with for the Xbox One. Hopefully Microsoft is true to its word and will fix the malfunctions before the situation gets out of hand like it did with Sony.
Source: The Loadout, Jake