One of many surprising surprises from PlayStation’s newest State of Play presentation was a tease of Sony’s first official struggle stick controller, codenamed “Challenge Defiant.” Whereas particulars are at the moment restricted, we at the least bought a glimpse of the struggle stick’s design, options, and affirmation that it’ll assist each PS5 and PC when it launches in 2026.
The Challenge Defiant struggle stick makes use of an eight-button structure and a joystick with a black and white coloration scheme that matches the look of the PS5 and different official peripherals. In response to Sony, Challenge Defiant will function a “sturdy, ergonomic design for a cushty really feel throughout intense struggle periods,” and assist ultra-low latency wi-fi connections through PlayStation Hyperlink or wired connections on PC and PS5.
It is unclear how moddable the Challenge Defiant might be, however thus far, Sony has confirmed it can have three totally different motion gates for the joystick–square, circle, or octagon–that may be swapped out while not having instruments. There might be a built-in compartment for storing the additional restrictor gates and the included PS Hyperlink USB adapter when not in use.
As for the remainder of the inputs, the eight fundamental face buttons (which map to Cross, Circle, Sq., Triangle, R1, R2, L1, and L2) use mechanical switches. The remainder of the usual inputs from the PS5’s DualSense controller are additionally current on the struggle stick, together with:
- PS Button
- Share Button
- PlayStation Hyperlink Button
- L3 Button
- R3 Button
- Contact Pad
- Choices Button
There may be additionally a Lever Mode Swap for altering how the stick operates and a Lock Button. You can get up the PS5 from sleep mode utilizing the Challenge Defiant’s PS Button. Challenge Defiant will even embody a sling carry case.
Sony says extra particulars might be revealed over the approaching months, so we anticipate to know the value and finalized launch date quickly. For now, it is deliberate to launch someday in 2026. This reveal is notable for a number of reasons–the most evident being that is PlayStation’s first official struggle stick peripheral. Whereas the PS5 has loads of wonderful struggle sticks to choose from–including PDP’s Victrix Pro FS and its leverless sibling, the Pro FS-12–we’re curious to see how a PS5-dedicated mannequin made particularly by Sony will stack as much as the third-party choices.
The June 4, 2025 PlayStation State of Play had a number of different thrilling combating recreation bulletins, together with the reveal of Marvel Tokodon: Combating Souls, a 4v4 group combating recreation developed by Arc System Works and that includes a roster of Marvel characters, releasing on PS5 and PC in 2026. Digital Eclipse additionally introduced the Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection, which compiles quite a few traditional Mortal Kombat titles–including arcade, residence console, and handheld editions–plus unique behind-the-scenes content material. The Mortal Kombat Legacy Kollection launches on PS5 and PS4 later in 2025.