It's been a while since we've seen a new Xbox or PS5 controller from Scuf, the Corsair-owned brand that prides itself on making high-performance, customizable gamepads. Beyond the Nomad, a mobile controller that rivals the Backbone One, and the Envision Pro, an Esports-coded pad for PC players, Scuf has been pretty quiet for the last few years. Yesterday, however, the company launched the new Scuf Valor Pro.
It's a new, officially licensed Xbox Series X controller that joins the previous Scuf Instinct Pro which launched in 2022. Except, it's missing some of the things I personally expected from a new Scuf pad in 2025. For starters, it's a wired-only controller, which makes no sense in the current climate of Xbox-licensed peripherals from Turtle Beach, PowerA, PDP, and Razer that are finally going wireless.
On the bright side, the new Valor Pro has a lower price than a lot of the pro-controller competition from other big-name brands. At only $99.99/£99.99, it's a full $50-$60 cheaper than the likes of the Victrix Pro BFG for Xbox, the PowerA Fusion Pro, and the Turtle Beach Stealth Ultra. That pits it directly against the Razer Wolverine V3 Tournament Edition, which is a wired, more affordable version of Razer's latest performance controller.
The Valor Pro sports four back buttons and space for three on-board profiles. It also has Hall Sensor thumbsticks to prevent stick drift, and Scuf's representatives on a press briefing call told me the reason they've taken so long to adopt this thumbstick tech is that they've been relentlessly calibrating it to feel as close to traditional potentiometer sticks as possible.
The Scuf team members on the call also noted that the reason they chose to go with a wired-only option is that after polling the Esports athletes they work with and asking their customers, apparently, they found that wired connections are "most people's preferred method of play". I found this pretty surprising as someone who reviews the best PC controllers for a living because the number of wireless options has only been going up in recent years. Surely, wireless accessories are asserting themselves as the best of both worlds because they allow for either option and increase value for the consumer. Then again, wired options like the Valor Pro can be more affordable.
One plus side is that the Scuf Valor Pro will receive a firmware update soon that will unlock a 1,000Hz polling rate when connected to a PC. Unfortunately, the Xbox Series X and S aren't capable of supporting this feature, however.
If you're careful about your audio levels when gaming, the Valor Pro has dedicated audio controls you can use to adjust game and party chat volumes, as well as mute your mic. It should be noted however that like all gamepads with integrated audio controls, you'll need to be using a wired headset in order to benefit. The only exception to this off the top of my head is the Nacon Revolution 5 Pro, which uses a secondary Bluetooth connection to help you master your sound.
From some early hands-on impressions with the new Scuf Valor Pro, it definitely feels like it's missing both wireless connectivity and the personality I'd want from a Scuf controller. These things would do a lot to make it stand out versus the other recent pro controllers for Xbox and PC. For $99.99, it's a decent package, but it has its work cut out for it in a really competitive controller market right now. In the PC space, especially, there are more affordable options that pack more features. However, its longer grips than most Xbox controllers and its anti-slip rubberized coating make it feel very comfortable in the hands.
I'll be testing the latest Scuf controller over the next little while, so for a final verdict, stay tuned.
Where to buy the Scuf Valor Pro
To help you shop for the perfect gamepad, we've put together a list of the best PS5 controllers, the best PS4 controllers, and the best Xbox One controllers.
