I don’t need anything special or pricey, just a basic controller that does basic controller things.
I’ve tried a few generic controllers, but they have issues with bluetooth, battery life, and automatically shutting off too early from idling.
Does anyone know of any generic controllers that don’t have these issues? I don’t mind if the battery life isn’t the same or better than official controllers, but they shouldn’t straight up lie about the capacity. It should be illegal.
If you want to go as cheap as possible while retaining usable status, I’d recommend generic Xbox 360 controllers. You can get deals on two of them in a set for sub-$20 and they’re usually fine functionally. They will have cheap sticks and poor build quality, but they take AA or the Play N Charge packs and their 2.4ghz dongles they come with work on Linux perfectly for every “brand” I’ve tried.
If you want a nice non-Xbox/PlayStation controller, as others have said: get an 8BitDo.
Don’t bother with anything else. I’ve bought plenty of generic Switch controllers, off brand Xbox or PlayStation controllers, etc. They all lead to pain, connection issues, and frustration. ESPECIALLY if they’re Bluetooth. You might be OK if they come with a dongle for 2.4ghz, but even those are spotty sometimes and often have range issues.