Development of Xbox One’s redesigned controller cost Microsoft ‘hundreds of millions’

You know, you can’t put a price on developing a good, next-gen controller…

Dwight Schrute

Yes, according to Xbox Accessories General Manager Zulfi Alam, development of Xbox One's redesigned controller cost the company "hundreds of millions." 

Speaking to CVG, Alam added that it felt as though his team's jobs were all on the line as they went into development on the next-generation's sleek, new controller that features a revamped D-pad, new thumpstick shape and texture, feedback-based triggers and much more.

"The investments in redesigning a controller go into the hundreds of millions of dollars in tooling and R&D costs," Alam said. "Bearing in mind we started with something that people considered best-in-class, the pressure to do it right again was tremendous."

"Honestly, some of us felt like we were putting our career on the line," he added. "We were afraid we were going to burn through $100 million and come back with an under-developed controller."

On a related note, we recently posted a story from Zulfi Alam and Larry "Major Nelson" Hyrb on the 40 improvements the Xbox One's controller makes over the 360's. You can view that story by clicking here

Source: [CVG]