« Review: Phreak Mods Crossbone Pad Hack Board For Xbox One Controllers »

Fighting gamers will have to deal with the eventual migration from playing on the previous generation consoles (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3) to the latest systems (Xbox One, PlayStation 4). To those who use arcade sticks, previous gen models won't be able to work on the newest machines. While sticks from various manufacturers are being developed for the XB1 and PS4, some players are unwilling to buy a new stick to play on those platforms at the moment. The most common alternative to this dilemma is padhacking, a technique where you wire all necessary inputs from a stripped controller to your stick's buttons and lever. With Killer Instinct getting popular, XB1 padhacking has been very desirable among the fighting game community.

Clayton Knight, founder of Phreak Mods, introduced a special board to aid people in padhacking their XB1 controller to work on arcade sticks. Called the Crossbone, it streamlines the padhacking process to get you up and running as quickly as possible as well as increasing flexibility for those who want more out of it. Despite containing unusual quirks, the Crossbone does its job very well in getting gamers tournament-ready for Killer Instinct and future fighters on the XB1.

The Crossbone doesn't come with a bare XB1 controller board so you must either open a spare controller or buy the board in third-party stores. Experts will be fine with the Crossbone as is, but for less skilled folks paying more for accessories or near-complete kits is beneficial. Combined with an XB1 controller, you are going to save money in the process compared to buying a new stick altogether.

Credit: Phreak ModsBefore the introduction of the Crossbone, padhacking an XB1 controller involved soldering every input, including the top portion. The Crossbone replaces the top stock board, already taking care of the majority of buttons and directions. The only required inputs that need to be soldered are the B, Left Trigger and Right Trigger buttons. Due to the precision of where you need to solder, there will be some difficulty in properly installing. Based on your skill level, it can take less than five minutes or hours to solder. For someone who started with poor soldering skills going into this, it was very stressful but I pulled through despite ruining one XB1 controller and burning a finger in the process. In case you are fearful of physical injury or controller damage, seek your nearest modding expert in aiding your installation.

Since it's not required to piggyback with other boards such as the AkiShop Customs PS360+, you can directly plug your Crossbone mod into the Xbox One. Just make sure to solder wires from your stick to the Crossbone unit. A terminal block is available as an add-on so you can insert the wires into a screw-in compartment.

If you do want to utilize the PS360+ in conjunction, the Crossbone is also designed to accommodate it. The Crossbone and the PS360+ both have 20 pin holes that can be soldered with wires or with an add-on ribbon cable. The Crossbone also features a switch system so you can wire the unit's SYS.2 ports onto the PS360+'s USB out holes for chained compatibility. Since the Crossbone doesn't have autodetection like the PS360+, you will need a dedicated button to switch between both boards. While the feature works flawlessly, an unusual issue is that long USB cables can only read the XB1 board but cannot read the PS360+ when outputting from the Crossbone. When using a smaller cable, the consoles were able to recognize both boards. The issue is currently being investigated by Phreak Mods.

Credit: Phreak ModsDespite the connectivity concerns, the Crossbone works very well. Since it's using the XB1 controller, you will not encounter additional latency. Outside of user error, you will be able to perform your manual hits in Killer Instinct with no issues.

When inserting the XB1 controller inside your stick, make sure it's placed with little room to move around. The Crossbone cannot disable analog stick support so if they contact with surfaces, they can cause a problem for you during a match. One possible solution is locking them down with super glue.

While the Crossbone requires wired connectivity, it would have been neat to have a wireless feature. Due to the issues of wireless controllers in a tournament environment, it is excusable.

Even if we won't see the current-gen equivalent of the PS360+ for a while, the Phreak Mods Crossbone is a great first step towards that destination. The streamlining process allows folks to focus less on the soldering iron and more on actually playing. The minor issues fortunately don't get in the way too much and can be nullified in a future version. This is the best cost-effective solution to get your favorite stick partially future proof once new fighters arrive.

The Crossbone and bare Xbox One controller boards are available now on Paradise Arcade Shop, Jasen's Customs and Focus Attack! Check out the dedicated thread on Shoryuken for installation instructions and additional help. For information behind the 20-pin install, please read the AkiShop PS360+'s hardware document.