XBOX Launch Controller Code name: The Duke
In 1999, Bill Gates decided that Microsoft would begin to develop a game console that he envisioned would not only challenge Sony Playstation, the industry's indisputable leader, but that would revolutionize the home gaming industry. The Duke, code name for the launch controller during development, was designed to ship as part of Microsoft's introduction to the gaming space, XBOX.
ROLE: Industrial Design, Ergonomic Design Development, Modeling and Usability Testing
As the lead industrial designer, I was responsible for developing the conceptual creative direction into a physical first article. Additionally, I designed all hardware peripherals, including the launch XBOX Live communicator headset, memory units and the plastic plug overmolds.
Design iterations were explored through hand sketches and physical models for the controller, the console, plug overmolds and peripherals. The design iteration process for the controller focused heavily on reducing the external case size millimeter by millimeter.
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Design & Development
Although we had set out to create a compact, beautifully ergonomic controller we discovered early on that the size of our circuit board, which would need to be nearly twice the size of Sony’s PlayStation board, would drive the design development. From that moment, the design story changed. The hardware dictated the volume, forcing proportions that compromised our initial goals despite countless refinements and creative workarounds.
Usability Testing
The Duke tested extremely favorably with American gamers who, on average, had larger hands then Japanese gamers. However, the opposite held true in Japan where testing proved disastrous.
Within 18 months of its launch, Microsoft responded by completely replacing Duke with a smaller, more manageable redesign called the Controller-S–for "small".
The Duke vs. Controller S
SIDE-BY-SIDE
The size of the controller was not an intentional decision and it was not overlooked. In fact, the internal team spoke openly about the issues with the controller's size. The existence of the V2 Controller S depended entirely on a new stacked circuit board design.
Fun Fact: The controller was code named The Duke after the newborn son of a Microsoft hardware project manager, but it also had another internal code name, Akebono.
Akebono, a legendary American-born sumo wrestler, was a Japanese cultural icon for being the first foreigner to reach the highest sumo rank of yokozuna (grand champion).
