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The PDP Riffmaster wireless guitar controller has easily become the best tool in my PS5 accessory shed. Just last weekend, I was playing Fortnite Festival with it in hand, strumming along to the iconic Cantina Music from Star Wars as my favorite anime character, Spike Spiegel, from Cowboy Bebop. That peak gaming experience was the only thing able to drag me away from Clair Obscur Expedition 33.
Modern guitar controllers, however, are a lot more niche now than they were in the early 00s. That means they can be pretty pricey. Fortunately, the PDP Riffmaster for PlayStation is down to just $99.99 at Amazon right now, saving you 33% off its hefty MSRP of $149.99. I was so eager to grab the guitar controller that I got mine at full price, but I wish I had held out a little longer so I could save that extra $50 on what could be one of the best PS5 accessories of the year.
Discounts on the PS5 version of this controller aren't a rarity. It was only a few months ago that I raving about it at $109.99. That was still worth it in my eyes, but it wasn't long before it shot back up to full price, which is what makes this current discount so impressive.
Right now we're only 50-cents away from its lowest ever price and who knows just how quickly it'll go back to its MSRP, especially during a time when game hardware is becoming less affordable by the second.
Should you buy the PDP Riffmaster wireless guitar controller?
First and foremost, if you don't play a lot of Fortnite Festival, then the PDP Riffmaster won't be for you.
Plenty of the best PS5 controllers, or even the DualSense that came with your Sony pixel-pusher, will be enough if you just dabble in the Guitar-Hero-like game mode every now and then. But, if you want to rock out like it's 2005 (yes I actually typed that sentence), then the PDP's wireless guitar controller is the best way to recapture the days when music rhythm games were on top, and it even has some modern features that improve over the original.
So long as you pop the accompanying dongle into one of the USB ports of your Sony console, Fortnite Festival will automatically register the fact you're using the guitar controller, and the button icons will change. As it's a wireless controller, the Riffmaster is a stress-free setup, but its extra features are what make using it truly a dream to use, especially for anyone like me who grew up five-star-ing songs on expert.
The PlayStation version of this controller has a hidden analogue stick on the back of the neck, a d-pad, and everything from the screenshot, home, and settings buttons from the official PS5 gamepad. This means you don't have to use the strum bar to awkwardly navigate through Fortnite's menus, like you did on the original Guitar Hero game.
The Riffmaster is also a major improvement from older guitar controllers, as it has not one, but two sets of buttons on the fret board, all color-coordinated to match the older Harmonix models. These buttons are also really quiet to press, and won't have your partner, roommate, or mom going crazy due to the incessant clicking.
One of my favorite upgrades compared to my first Guitar Hero controller is that the Riffmaster is collapsible. At the neck, you can disengage a button that lets you fold the controller for easy storage. One of the reasons I just ended up binning my Guitar Hero World Tour instruments for the Wii was due to how much space they took up when I was playing something else. But that's not a major issue, thanks to PDP's clever thinking.
It's not the most perfect rendition of a modern controller. For some reason, activating overdrive in Fortnite Festival requires reaching for the d-pad, which is pretty far away from the strum bar. On multiple occasions, I've messed up a perfect combo while trying to activate overdrive, so it's a shame this wasn't mapped to the whammy bar instead. Sure, you can just not use it in-game, but nearly every set of daily tasks in Fortnite, which includes unlocking content on the Music Pass, requires activating overdrive mode, so you'll miss out on a fair bit if you don't.
Alternatively, well-known controller brand CRKD is also releasing its own modern guitar controller, with the Gibson Les Paul set to ship next month. If you'd prefer a setup based on an official and iconic electric guitar, it's always an option. However, CRKD hasn't yet announced a PS5-compatible model, so if you play Fortnite on the Sony console only, the current $50 off saving is still worth it. Just expect your friends to get a little bit jealous once the Riffmaster joins your PS5 gaming setup.
If you prefer to play Fortnite Festival without a plastic guitar in your hands, our best PC controllers guide is full of the best Xbox Series X controllers, and we've also gathered some of the best Nintendo Switch controllers too, so you can find the perfect peripheral to pair with your beloved console of choice.
