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PlayStation has given us more details about Project Defiant, the brand's first-ever arcade fight stick. It's going to be called FlexStrike, and it'll arrive in 2026. While there's no confirmed release date yet, the new features trailer showed a lot of snippets for Marvel Tokon Fighting Souls, which may suggest it'll launch alongside that game next year.
There are lots of features to talk about when it comes to the latest PS5 controller, but there was one detail glaringly absent from the PlayStation Blog post, and that's a price. In fairness, this isn't surprising, since the price of PlayStation's hardware usually comes once the dust has settled on the announcement. This is a brand that loves to get people excited about new gadgets, then tear down their hopes and dreams with a high price tag a month or two later.
I have to admit, I'm a little concerned about how expensive this new FlexStrike controller is going to be, so as someone who has covered a fair few bits of Sony peripheral reveals, I want to try and adjust expectations. Sony is one to charge a premium for its products. You only need to look as far as the DualSense Edge, which offers less functionality than a lot of the other third-party pro controllers for PS5 and yet costs just as much. Based on the price of other arcade fight sticks on the shelves right now, I think PlayStation fans who are excited to give it a try might be in for a bit of a shock.
PDP's fully customizable Victrix Pro FS costs $399 / £339, for instance. Hori's Fighting Stick Alpha costs $199 / £175, and the Qanba Q7 Obsidian2 costs over $200 as well. Although Sony's upcoming FlexStrike controller isn't going to be fully customizable like the rest of these competitors, I can absolutely see PlayStation charging just as much for it. We know from the price of the PlayStation Portal that less functionality doesn't mean a lower cost for this brand.
Although we can only speculate right now, I wouldn't be surprised if this new controller isn't in the realms of $249 / £249 at least. Arguably, PlayStation should price the FlexStrike lower to really gauge interest among existing PS5 owners, but I think the opposite will happen. Since it's a niche bit of hardware, it's something they'll charge more for. If it sells well, we may well see a fully customizable version in the future.
The good news is that without the price, we've still learned plenty of fun details about FlexStrike. There's wireless support for PC and PS5, or wired USB-C support for those players who want to minimise every millisecond of latency. It has a digital stick and mechanical switch buttons. PlayStation has also thought about the general user experience, allowing people to use regular DualSense button inputs for, or keep their stock PS5 controller connected at the same time, for navigating menus. As an added bonus, once a FlexStrike is synced to a PS5 console, you can actually wake it with a push of the PS button.
While it's not fully customizable, there is some adjustability. You can swap out the stick gates on FlexStrike, with options for square, circular, or octagonal restictor rings for moving the stick around. These are included in your purchase, as is a sling carry case to help you take your pro-level fighting game sessions on the go with you.
We'll surely hear more about FlexStrike in the coming months, but as Evo goes ahead in Las Vegas over the next week (August 1-3), the fightstick will be on display at the event.
Looking for more of the best PC controllers? Check out the best Xbox Series X controllers and the best Nintendo Switch controllers to find the right one for your hands.
