Oscillating between high-end products and more affordable ones, Nacon is a very productive manufacturer whose reputation is well established. We recently tested the Revolution Pro controller or the EVOL-X, here we are now with the latest, the GC-100. In the same price segment as the EVOL-X, the French company is expanding its entry-level catalog with a controller priced at around €30. To see if this novelty will not cannibalize its other brothers and sisters.
Kinder Surprise
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To nip any questions about Xbox compatibility in the bud, the product is only compatible on PC. It works under Windows 7/8/10 and 11. To place it in the supplier's ecosystem, it seems the logical evolution of the GC-XF100 released a few years earlier and still available for a price of €25. This new model therefore comes to the Nacon range and it does not arrive alone since a wireless version is also included, the GC-200WL, with some modifications such as the directional cross and an increase in its price to €42.90.
Here, the packaging is very minimalist, with a few wedges and the product is packaged without frills. Forget the thousand and one boxes of certain products with more or less spectacular leaf removal, that is not the heart of the matter. After express unboxing, the controller comes with its USB-C cable. With a length of 2.80 m, that means you'll be able to play far from your PC! When we know how close some players can be to their machine, a strap to adjust the length would have been a nice touch, but let's move on…
After a quick glance, it's hard not to compare Nacon's proposal with that of Microsoft. When you look closer, the differences become more pronounced. The general shape is more curved, in M, and its front facade, although classic, presents some particularities such as joysticks as well as the larger ABXY buttons and slightly redesigned by the brand. An LED in its center displays the position occupied by the player depending on the number of controllers connected. If it comes from a good intention, we could question this feature, the practice of playing in local multiplayer being more a matter of consoles than of PC. But it deserves to be there, so why not? And with a cable of sufficient length, it's up to us to play together.
Finally, more prominent triggers are looming. As for the rear, two relatively discreet buttons are present, the operation of which will be explained to you later. Additional detail which may be important, there is no jack port.
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In this version, the pad reveals its internal organs: printed circuits, LEDs or even haptic motors. The work carried out is highlighted by the transparent shell. This is changing and it’s welcome! In use, the plastic has the good taste of not marking too much, nor of leaving big fingerprints, so that's a good point. For those who don't like modern art, color variations are offered by the manufacturer, ranging from military fatigues to urban camouflage. But that would deprive you of the “Christmas garland” effect that this version benefits from!
Contact with the controller is rather pleasant, a “soft touch” coating apparently covers its plastic. A priori because, unlike controllers where the texture of this coating is a little “gummy”, we have the impression here of being dealing with a varnish, perhaps it is even in the typology of the material used. In the end, the result is there and it's sweet. In terms of ergonomics, the handles are curved before going outwards, which imposes a very particular hand posture.
Two options are available to you. The first: the index and middle fingers are positioned by default on the triggers, which tends to bend the hand. This certainly offers a gain in responsiveness, but in our case it also causes the emergence of some pain during long sessions. The second: position the middle finger on the handles and only raise it when used. Unlike an Xbox Series controller which is generally flat on its back, we did not have the same feeling of “rest” of the hand. The first steps were difficult, even unpleasant. Then, perhaps out of habit, we opted for solution 2 which was much more comfortable.
Despite the keys being larger and therefore a little closer together, we find our marks without thinking about it. Likewise, access to the triggers remains easy despite their more beveled and less marked shape than on other models. The directional cross is perhaps a little more sensitive than that of the official Xbox pad, but it remains of acceptable quality considering the price displayed. Finally, the vibrations are good, similar to the reference controllers. Nothing to report on this side.
What do I see ? Red, blue, green?
It was only after a few hours that we wondered about the buttons on the back. Very discreet, the first allows you to alternate between different lighting, red, blue, green…. Special mention to the white lighting! You can even decide not to use the LEDs present, so it is possible to opt for an accessory that is much more sober than what the product might suggest.
Activating the second button initially perplexed us. When the button is pressed, the LED indicating the player's position leaves its position to illuminate all the LEDS. Without any other visible change, we therefore thought about a possible sleep mode, but this is not the case. A visit to the manufacturer's website provides the explanation, it allows you to switch between DirectInput and XInput, two protocols used by games. Sometimes a game only supports one of these two protocols. In addition, it is not possible to run them simultaneously, hence the presence of said button. This is good to know but, in our selection of games tested, we never encountered the problem.