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Microsoft saves gamers $150, brings Xbox One button remapping to all controllers

Joins Sony in offering the much requested feature, for free.

Microsoft saves gamers $150, brings Xbox One button remapping to all controllers

Remappable controls—a feature previously thought to be exclusive to Microsoft's upcoming £129 ($150) Elite controller—are coming to all Xbox One gamepads, Microsoft has said. The feature will allow Xbox users to reassign the buttons on their controller to their liking, including swapping around the placement of buttons like A and B. Button remapping came to the PlayStation 4 earlier this year via the 2.50 firmware update.

Microsoft confirmed the news in a tweet, saying that remapping is "coming for all controllers soon." On the PS4, the feature has proved useful not just for muscle memory reasons and for players to get a potential leg-up on the competition, but also for those with physical disabilities who might not be able to comfortably push certain buttons.

Button remapping was previously confirmed for the Xbox One Elite controller. At a price of £129, it wasn't exactly a cheap way to get access to the feature. The controller does, however, sport a number of other niceties to justify its price tag, including the ability to swap out the d-pad and analogue sticks, as well as paddles that can be programmed to take the place of any input on the controller.

While Microsoft did not confirm when remapping would deploy to all controllers, the new Xbox One experience is due to launch this November. It brings with it the highly anticipated Xbox 360 backwards compatibility feature, as well as an overhaul of the frustrating Xbox One user interface.

Channel Ars Technica