Nacon Revolution X Unlimited review: “As OP as pro controllers get these days”

The Nacon Revolution X Unlimited was one of the controllers I was most excited to get my hands on this year. It’s not often that when a controller bridges the gap between Xbox and PlayStation, things are improved while on the journey. If a popular controller does make the leap, it’s likely that it’ll see some subtle redesigns to fit it into the mould of whatever platform it’s immigrating to, but it’ll essentially be the exact same gamepad when it arrives.

That isn’t the case with the Revolution X Unlimited, following on from Nacon’s impressive PS5 controller, the Revolution 5 Pro. This new iteration for Xbox and PC players would use the same mould as the PS5 version, but it was going to harness an interactive screen, two extra bumper buttons, and a few more refinements, all the while. It also didn’t make the jump from PlayStation to Xbox overnight. Nacon let this sit in the oven for longer than I expected, and I think that’s because its engineers knew they’d have a serious battle on their hands when trying to make one of the very best Xbox Series X controllers.

And for all the refinements, Xbox players can get their hands on the Revolution X Unlimited for the same $199 / £179 price that PlayStation players can grab their platform’s version. Is this still on the more expensive side of the controller market? Yes, but this might be one of the few gamepads I think feels premium enough to warrant that sort of cost.

Design

If you’re even loosely aware of Nacon’s previous pro controllers, you’ll know what to expect from the Revolution X Unlimited. It has a broad feel in the hands, rubberized grippy textures that cool your hands, thoccy triggers and big, bold facial features that set it apart from much of the competition, which loves to make AXBY buttons smaller instead of larger.

It does feel very similar to the Nacon Revolution 5 Pro, although there are some amazing changes I’m happy to see after my time with that controller. Firstly, the facial buttons are some of the best I’ve ever used. They have the actuation of membrane buttons, but they click and respond ultra quickly to your presses. I’m not exaggerating when I say these are some of the best face buttons on any controller I’ve ever tested. They’re a perfect hybrid between feel and speed, and I know I’m going to miss them dearly when I move on to testing the next controller in my queue. The same goes for the D-Pad. It has a circular shape to it, but clear indents and markings to signal each compass point. That improves on the slightly bizarre logo work of the R5P’s D-pad, but it clicks into each direction speedily and with precision.

One of my biggest issues with the R5P was its back buttons. They were placed pretty well, but when combined with the actuation they had, the lower ones became difficult to use because they sat at an off-angle to where your fingers naturally grip. The Revolution X Unlimited uses easily pressable microswitches in its lower back button that make it an absolute joy to use. Nacon’s engineers have done an incredible job improving these, and I’m so thankful because it makes a world of difference to players like me who use these very frequently.

Replacing PlayStation’s signature touchpad here is a new screen and interface. I was really hoping that, like the Manba One, Nacon would have the sense to take this current trend in the PC controller market and actually make it useful. On board displays from Turtle Beach’s controllers, for example, have left me a little jaded on whether or not these actually provide much use. I’ll get onto my thoughts on Nacon’s soon, but I’ll say right now that I think Manba still has the best one on the market.

Some things, however, haven’t really changed, even though I wish they would. The thumbsticks still have some of the loosest tension of any officially licensed Pro Controller for Xbox or PS5. With the other stellar adjustments you can make to this pad, I wish tightening the stick tension were an option. On a similar note, the swappable thumbstick tops could still be better. I usually opt for the tallest one available for the right thumbstick, but for the RXU (Revolution X Unlimited), that means an oddly shaped topper that exacerbates the loose stick tension and doesn’t do much for me in terms of added accuracy in shooters. Some additional indented toppers would go a long way to making the RXU a match for the Victrix Pro BFG for Xbox in terms of physical modifications.

Features

Sporting an extra two bumpers alongside four back buttons makes this one of the only Xbox Series X controllers to feature six extra mappable buttons - alongside the excellent Razer Wolverine V3 Pro. It features a mix of microswitch buttons, Hall Sensor thumbsticks, and Hall triggers, and a set of trigger stop switches turns them into snappy microswitches as well.

For your money, you get the same swappable parts and carrying case that R5P owners get. This includes a little box of tiny dumbbells you can use to increase the weight of the controller. There are a few extra thumbstick tops, a D-pad, and a braided charging cable.

As already mentioned, the RXU features a small screen that helps provide a window into this controller’s in-depth software features. On the display itself, you can fiddle with audio settings if you’re using a wired headset. You can also toggle the gyro aiming on or off, and configure Bluetooth pairing and energy saving mode. While you can change button mapping, frustratingly, you can’t set back button assignments just from this menu? That’s a deeply annoying drawback, especially because it’s the first thing most players will want to do with the RXU, and without it, it makes the onboard menu feel a little gimmicky.

Sadly, then, the majority of the customization you can do to this controller from a software standpoint is only accessible through the Windows app. This gives you all the button mapping, RGB tuning, and deadzone settings you might want. If a smaller brand like Manba can do it with their screen, though, I don’t see why Nacon isn’t capable of more. Online, a few sources told me that by holding down the multi-function button along with the back button I wanted to map, I may be able to without hooking up to a PC application. I was working on the latest firmware, and I couldn’t get the multifunction button to do anything other than change the controller’s connectable platform. Maybe this is a bug with my early-release review unit? Either way, not the best.

Somewhat confusingly, there’s an Advanced and a Classic mode to the RXU. These allow you to fine-tune the controller’s functionality. In classic mode, you can still access up to 12 saved profiles. In Advanced mode, however, you can have an additional 8 profiles that are all customized through the app. I must say, for a new controller from a big brand in 2025, I do find the small necessities of this controller to feel a bit outdated. To customize the controller through a PC, you need to put it in Advanced mode, then Wired mode, and into its PC profile too. The fact all of these switches exist can be useful if you use the RXU as a multiplatform controller, but most pads today manage to suss out all of these things with a simple connection with no extra hops, skips, or jumps necessary.

As an added bonus, the Revolution X Unlimited has a charging stand as well, which helps to deliver on its full 20-hour quoted capacity (if using the battery-saving mode). I found its 10-hour lifespan claim when using it outwith those energy-saving settings fairly accurate.

Performance

In the last month or so, I’ve been using Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 to test out the controllers I’m reviewing. It’s honestly been a trickier job than I expected to find the right pad for that game. It’s a singleplayer experience, which, to me, signals that a controller that has great game feel and comfort is probably the way to go. But with the engaging quick-time events and turn-based combat, you need a controller that can be speedy as well as comforting. In other words, you need a bit of everything. The Nacon Revolution X Unlimited absolutely shone in this game, and my mastery of its combat feels like it’s gone hand-in-hand with my use of this controller. Maybe it’s the French roots of both the game and the pad complementing one another, but the premium materials used make me feel like I’m wielding one of the Expeditioner’s magical weapons with grace and poise.

The broad build and rubberized grooves on this controller add a lot of comfort, and pressing down any face button makes it feel like the most premium controller I’ve ever used. Every single button, switch, trigger, and action you can press on the RXU feels so distinct. It’s an extremely special controller for that reason, because although other officially licensed Xbox controllers lately have had close to $200 price tags, this is one of the few that actually feels like it should cost that much money. Sure, the build quality of the Razer Wolverine V3 Pro is solid, but even its speedy mouse switches don’t convey the same degree of luxury as this does.

It should be no surprise that with a satisfying clicky D-pad, platforming with this controller feels great. Annoyingly, I did find my thumb slipping off the D-pad when playing Celeste, although using the left thumbstick also felt like a good substitute when moving around my pixelated mountain climber.

On the whole, speedy, frantic fighting action in Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero felt as responsive as the Wolverine V3 Pro. The slightly deeper actuations of the RXU were maybe a little slower overall, but they feel just as reliable in those gameplay scenarios, with rapid button mashes and back button squeezing keeping up with even Goku’s Super Saiyan God pace.

Shooters are a bit of a mixed bag, and for the same reason that the Revolution 5 Pro didn’t feel as naturally at home in this genre. The right stick’s tension makes it great for quick flicks, but it also adds difficulty with controlled, precise adjustments. Even with the deadzones set to zero, I feel like I have to over-adjust to get the precise aiming corrections I need when sniping in Hunt: Showdown. The same carries over to Clair Obscur when aiming for an enemy’s weak points. The sticks just don’t lend themselves to aiming, and that’s a bit of a letdown. Thankfully, the refined back buttons make me nostalgic for my early days of pro controller usage. They’re shaped like the Nacon Revolution Unlimited, a pad I adored using on PS4. But they’re so clicky and easy to press now that I feel I have every action at my fingertips instead of moving my thumbs off the movement and aiming sticks. Having extra bumpers in the mix as well? It’s as OP as pro controllers get these days, and Nacon has placed all of these extra functions beautifully.

Gyro aiming being so accessible is excellent too. You can map one of the additional shoulder buttons to activate gyro aiming super quickly if you like. Alternatively, you can turn it on in the controller’s screen menu. This is an added bonus if you’re playing competitive shooters with a controller on PC, and it’s great to see it integrated so readily into a product like this.

Should you buy the Nacon Revolution X Unlimited?

If you’re looking for a fantastic all-rounder, it doesn’t get much better than the Nacon Revolution X Unlimited. This is a controller that feels so premium in the hands, and all of its extra functionality does a lot to make it a competitor for the best PC controller on the shelves right now. I’d still argue the modular build of the Victrix Pro BFG keeps it out of reach for Nacon. I’d like to see some ability to adjust stick tension, swap to thumbstick toppers that make sense for me as a player, and more software adjustments in its menu. Right now, the BFG caters to all of those things a little easier, and because you can truly cater that to you, it still feels like the competitive top dog.

Where Nacon does have it beat is in its premium feel and build quality. The face buttons, the materials, and the ability to add weight to its grips are all second to none, and I so wish more controllers would try to emulate that. I’ve really enjoyed using this controller, and there are few that cost $200 that manage to make me ignore their price tags like I did while testing the RXU.

I think FPS fans are the trickiest market to recommend this to. On one hand, the RXU has all the ingredients to succeed in this genre. It has six extra buttons, solid gyro aiming, and those four back buttons feel improved from the R5P. But loose stick tension isn’t everyone’s bag, and if you’re against it, you might struggle to make this controller work for you. If all the ingredients in a dish are correct, but one isn’t cooked in the way you like, does it still add up to a great meal? The taste is certainly there, but you’ll need to decide if you’ll be wolfing it down or calling the waiter over to send it back to the kitchen.

How I tested the Nacon Revolution X Unlimited

I’ve tested the Nacon Revolution X Unlimited for around a month now, in that time, using it with other pro controllers from 2025 to see how it compares. I’ve used it for plenty of Hunt: Showdown gameplay sessions in that time, as well as loads of Clair Obscur playtime as well. For more niche gameplay tests, I’ve also used Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero and Celeste, as I do with all the controllers I review.

To get to my verdict, I’ve compared the RXU to the previous Nacon Revolution 5 Pro, as well as other $200 Xbox controllers that target a competitive player base. For more on how we test, check out the full GamesRadar+ Hardware Policy.

Not an Xbox or PC player? You can also check out the best PS5 controllers, the best PS4 controllers, and the best Nintendo Switch controllers.