The Thrustmaster T.Flight HOTAS 4 is the best controller for PlayStation VR

If you’re looking for the best PSVR HOTAS controllers available, you’ve come to the right spot. Here at Android Central, we’re experts when it comes to finding all the best ways to improve your virtual reality experience. Here are the best options we’ve found, starting with our best overall, the incredible Hori HOTAS Flight Stick for PS4.

Best Overall: Hori Hotas Flight Stick for PlayStation 4

Firstly, I want to say that this is a costly choice for a HOTAS joystick. It’s great, but it’s almost double the cost of the other HOTAS on the market. That’s not to say it isn’t worth the money if you are an avid flight game player. But be aware that you will be paying through the nose for a joystick that only works on six PlayStation games right now.

That said, the Hori is extremely good. The joystick itself is a sleek black design that feels great in the hand, while the haptic feedback from the controller, while you are playing, elevates it to greatness. When you pull back on the stick, you can feel the resistance as the plane fights you. This kind of immersion is essential in-flight games, but especially in VR flight games where you want to believe you really are flying the plane.

I think the addition of the PS4 touchpad is excellent. When you are in VR, and without a DualShock controller, it can be challenging to navigate around the system interface. The addition of a touchpad means you can control the entire system from your HOTAS without having to leave the VR environment. This saves time and lets you jump from game to game quickly and easily.

Being able to separate the flight stick from the throttle is a big deal as well. Both are well weighted so they feel solid even if they are apart. Having them apart means you can find a more comfortable position for your hands, allowing you to play for more extended periods, while still keeping control in the dog fight.

Pros:

• Haptic feedback in-flight
• PS4 touchpad
• Separate flight stick

Cons:

• It’s costly

Best Overall

Hori Hotas Flight Stick for PlayStation 4

• $200 from Hori

Premium quality

The Hori HOTAS is a premium quality product with a premium price tag. Nothing is more immersive for PSVR, however.

Best Value: T.Flight HOTAS 4 Ace Combat 7 Skies Unknown Edition

The T.Flight HOTAS 4 from Thrustmaster is the controller for PS4 and PSVR. It’s even branded with the PlayStation logo while sporting black with blue accents to match your console.

The throttle can detach and move aside to simulate a more realistic setup, so you can sit back and get into the game. The joystick and throttle have all the buttons you would find on a standard DualShock 4 controller to make it extremely easy for you to map out the controls how you see fit.

The base is weighted to keep it in place, even when you’re frantically evading an enemy, and the joystick has an adjustable resistance to complement a heavy or light hand. To simulate a rudder function and to pivot your craft on a vertical axis, the joystick twists left and right.

If you’re also into PC gaming, a simple switch will set it over to work on your computer. So, are you ready to really feel like you’re in the cockpit of your ship? Grab the T.Flight HOTAS 4 from Thrustmaster now.

Pros:

• Five axes
• 12 action buttons & 1 multi-directional hat
• Built with PlayStation 4 in mind

Cons:

• Resistance in the stick is barely noticeable

Best Value

T.Flight HOTAS 4 Ace Combat 7 Skies Unknown Edition

• $80 at GameSpot

Best simulated flight experience

The T.Flight has 12 action buttons, one rapid-fire trigger, one multi-directional hat switch, and a dual rudder system. All of these features offer you the most immersive gameplay.

Bottom line

When it comes to choices for PSVR compatible HOTAS joysticks, the market is unfortunately not the biggest. Currently, only two choices exist for your virtual flying needs, but thankfully they’re both solid options that offer some seriously great features for you to dive into. If you have the money, then the Hori HOTAS is the joystick to have. The haptic feedback alone makes it worth buying over the competition.

If you are looking for something cheap and cheerful your choice is the t.thrust by Thrustmaster. It’s not a terrible joystick by any means, but it is a little light and doesn’t give the physical response you might want while dogfighting in VR.

Regardless of your choice, it’s good to know that companies are slowly beginning to push out options for those who use PSVR as their main virtual reality option. While the choices may be slim for now, the hope is that in the future, players will have a much wider variety to choose from when it comes to breaking away from a controller or PlayStation Move sticks.

Credits — The team that worked on this guide

Essa Kidwell is an expert in all things VR and mobile devices who can always be found with an Oculus Go around their neck. They’ve been taking things apart just to put them back together for quite some time. If you’ve got a troubleshooting issue with any of your tech, they’re the one you want to go to! Find them on Twitter.

Russell Holly Russell is a Contributing Editor at Android Central. He’s a former server admin who has been using Android since the HTC G1 and quite literally wrote the book on Android tablets. You can usually find him chasing the next tech trend, much to the pain of his wallet. Find him on Google+ or Twitter.

James Bricknell has been playing games since they game as code in a magazine. He loves console gaming and is always looking for the best setup possible, especially for his VR. If you want to listen to him ramble or talk 3D printers, check him out on Twitter @keridel