A better controller

Of course, you won't be spending your time with the PlayStation 4 staring at a box. You'll be interacting with the new DualShock 4 wireless controller, which is easily the best gamepad Sony has ever built.

Sony's basic controller layout hasn't changed in 16 years. Like all three DualShock models before it, there's a pair of symmetrical analog sticks in the center, four face buttons on the right, a directional pad on the left, and four triggers around back. There are a number of fancy new features here, like the colorful light bar up front, and a clickable touchpad up top. The most incredible thing Sony has done with the DualShock 4, however, is that the company has made perhaps the most comfortable gamepad I’ve ever laid hands on.

Maybe the most comfortable gamepad ever made

Where previous Sony controllers were designed to be held with fingertips, the DualShock 4's elongated, enlarged grips fit the entire length of my palms. Covered with a matte texture that manages to be grippy without feeling sticky or rough, the controller just melts into my hands without a second thought. Not only are the dual analog sticks, D-pad and face buttons perfectly spaced for your thumbs, they also feel significantly higher-quality than before. Perhaps most importantly, the DualShock 4 is finally a competent controller for first-person games thanks to raised edges on the analog sticks and incredibly comfy triggers that no longer feel like an afterthought. The controller's motion sensor has also been much improved. It's way easier to control the way my flower petals fly in Flower, such that it no longer feels like I’m wrestling with the controls.

Since the DualShock 4 now uses a Micro USB port, you can juice the controller’s rechargeable battery with a smartphone or tablet charger, or even hook it up to a PC. What's really impressive, though, is the standard 3.5mm headset jack. Not only can you use the included mono headset for voice chat, but you can also plug in any old pair of headphones and route the entire system's audio through the controller. You can play late into the night without waking anyone up, just like with the Roku 3. Not all cellphone headsets seem to work — a pair of Apple EarPods failed me — but you can also hook up a USB headset by plugging it into the console itself.

The controller's light bar, touchpad, and integrated speaker aren't used all that much in the system's launch titles, but they've definitely got potential for later down the road. The light bar lets the optional $60 PlayStation Camera track the controller in 3D space, just like a PlayStation Move. In Assassin’s Creed, you can travel in and around on the map, and in Killzone, the light bar's color gives you a visual indication of your health, starting out green and then turning yellow, orange, and finally flashing red when you're in danger of bleeding out. The best use for the speaker I’ve seen so far is in Resogun, where it blares warnings when an urgent situation requires your attention. It’s cool, but like the light bar has much greater potential.

The light bar and integrated audio will only become more fun and more useful

Held up against the Xbox 360 controller, long the gold standard for gamepads, or even what we've seen of the new Xbox One, the DualShock 4 feels as good or better on practically every front. If there's a fly in the ointment, it's that you'll need to keep it charged; I only measured 10 hours of gameplay before our brand-new gamepad bit the dust. The DualShock was immediately back in the action once I connected a Micro USB cable, but the included cable didn't reach all the way to my couch. Even with cell phone chargers, it's still harder to keep the DualShock 4 ready for action than to swap a couple of AA batteries into an Xbox controller when you inevitably run out of juice.