Hori Fighting Commander OCTA vs Victrix Pro BFG The $60 EVO Winner vs the $170 Modular Champion
The Hori Fighting Commander OCTA ($59.99) is the fightpad Chikurin won EVO Japan 2024 Tekken 8 with. The Victrix Pro BFG Reloaded ($169-179) is the modular Hall-effect champion with a Kailh microswitch Fightpad module. Victrix wins on hardware. Hori wins on price and tournament pedigree.
The Victrix Pro BFG Reloaded is the better fightpad overall — Hall-effect sticks, swappable mechanical D-pad, Kailh microswitch Fightpad module, wireless connectivity, and multi-genre versatility. But at 3x the Hori's price and with no equivalent tournament win. Buy the Hori if $60 is the budget or if tournament-proven-hardware DNA specifically matters to you. Buy the Victrix if you play fighting games seriously long-term or need multi-genre versatility.
The contenders
Hori Fighting Commander OCTA
A $60 wired fightpad with tournament DNA (Chikurin, EVO Japan 2024 Tekken 8) undermined by a membrane D-pad that misses diagonals and budget-feeling plastic construction.
- Chikurin won EVO Japan 2024 Tekken 8 with this exact pad
- 6-button arcade face layout with microswitch buttons
- Short-throw octagonal-gate analog stick — tactile compass-direction feedback
- Tournament-lock software disables stick and shoulders for competitive play
- $60 — 1/3 the price of the Victrix
- Membrane D-pad reliably misses diagonals in strict-input games (Tekken)
- Wired only — 9.8ft/3m cable is generous but limits desk flexibility
- Cheap plastic construction — button symbols wear off, shoulder button reliability issues
Victrix Pro BFG Reloaded
The modularity champion of the pro controller segment — 11+ swappable components including a Kailh microswitch Fightpad conversion module. Hall-effect sticks in the Reloaded variant. The best-built fightpad you can buy above $150.
- Kailh microswitch Fightpad module converts to 6-button fighting layout
- Hall-effect sticks in Reloaded variant (Hall modules sold separately for original BFG owners)
- Swappable D-pad modules — mechanical microswitch instead of membrane
- Wireless via 2.4GHz dongle + Bluetooth + Wired USB-C
- 20-hour battery life (2x DualSense Edge)
- $170-209 depending on edition — nearly 3x the Hori's price
- No rumble or adaptive triggers on native PS5 games (Sony API restriction)
- Heavier and more complex than a purpose-built fightpad — some players find it over-featured
- Fightpad module is a separate accessory purchase on some SKUs
Where each one wins
Every category names a clear winner (or a tie when the answer is genuinely platform- or preference-dependent). No cop-outs.
- Category
Price and value
Hori Fighting Commander OCTAThe Hori Fighting Commander OCTA is $59.99. The Victrix Pro BFG Reloaded is $169-209 depending on edition. That is a 3x price gap and the Hori's out-of-the-box tournament DNA is a real feature. If your budget is $60 or under, the Hori is the only serious answer. If your budget can stretch to $170-200, the Victrix delivers a fundamentally better hardware package.
- Category
D-pad quality
Victrix Pro BFG ReloadedThe Hori's membrane D-pad is its documented weakness. Steam Community threads, Amazon reviewers, and even GameRant's Hori Wireless OCTA Pro announcement piece specifically call out the base OCTA's D-pad for missing diagonal inputs in Tekken 8. The Victrix Pro BFG ships with swappable mechanical D-pad modules including diamond, plus, and arcade layouts. For a fightpad, D-pad quality is the primary differentiator, and the Victrix wins decisively.
- Category
Face buttons and Fightpad layout
Victrix Pro BFG ReloadedBoth pads deliver the 6-button arcade layout that fighting games benefit from. The Hori ships with it as its default configuration. The Victrix reaches it via the Fightpad module — a Kailh microswitch swap-in that replaces the right stick module with two additional face buttons. Both use mechanical microswitch face buttons with satisfying tactile clicks. The Kailh switches on the Victrix Fightpad module are rated higher for actuations than Hori's proprietary microswitches. Close call in feel; Victrix edges on switch quality.
- Category
Tournament pedigree
Hori Fighting Commander OCTAChikurin won EVO Japan 2024 Tekken 8 playing Lili on the exact Hori Fighting Commander OCTA reviewed here — the wired PS4/PS5/PC variant. That is not marketing; it is documented by Dexerto, GameRant, and PhiDX's post-tournament character-optimization analysis. The Victrix Pro BFG has strong FGC adoption but no equivalent major-tournament win at this level. If tournament-proven hardware matters to you as a citation, the Hori wins here even at 1/3 the price.
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Build quality and durability
Victrix Pro BFG ReloadedThe Hori is a $60 controller and feels like one. Amazon reviewers report button silkscreening wearing off, Steam Community reports shoulder buttons popping out due to a factory design flaw, and the plastic construction is lighter and cheaper than premium alternatives. The Victrix Pro BFG has documented premium build quality — TouchArcade's Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition review specifically praised the material feel. The Victrix is the significantly more durable long-term investment.
- Category
Connectivity and platform support
Victrix Pro BFG ReloadedThe Hori is wired-only via a 9.8ft/3m USB cable, PS4/PS5/PC. The Victrix supports 2.4GHz dongle, Bluetooth, and wired USB-C across PS5, PS4, and PC, with a separate Xbox variant. For couch play, the Victrix is dramatically more flexible. For strict tournament play (where wired is required anyway), the Hori's wired-only design is a non-issue. Broader use case favors the Victrix decisively.
- Category
Multi-genre versatility
Victrix Pro BFG ReloadedThe Hori is a fightpad. It has no right analog stick for gameplay — the right slide-pad is menu-only. You cannot play Genshin Impact, Elden Ring, or any dual-analog game on this controller. The Victrix Pro BFG converts between symmetric/asymmetric stick layouts, Fightpad mode, and standard controller mode via module swaps. If you play fighting games AND anything else, the Victrix is the only viable pick between these two.
Read the individual reviews
Frequently asked questions
The wired Hori Fighting Commander OCTA (PS4/PS5/PC variant). Not the Wireless OCTA Pro (that launched in 2025) and not the Victrix Pro BFG. Chikurin specifically switched from arcade stick to the OCTA because his character Lili performs faster movement techniques on pad geometry than on a Japanese Sanwa lever, per analysis by PhiDX. This is the exact hardware from the tournament floor.
Depends on your budget and commitment. If you play fighting games occasionally or want to try the genre without committing $170+, buy the Hori — it's the best $60 fightpad available and has real tournament DNA. If you play fighting games seriously long-term, the Victrix Pro BFG Reloaded is the better hardware investment: Hall-effect sticks that never drift, mechanical Kailh D-pad, wireless, and 3x the durability. The Hori is a starter pad; the Victrix is a long-term one.
Yes, this is the most consistent criticism across Steam Community threads, Amazon reviews, and even GameRant's own coverage of the Hori Wireless OCTA Pro launch — which cites the base OCTA's D-pad as the specific reason the Pro variant added swappable modules. The membrane D-pad reliably misses diagonal inputs in strict-input games like Tekken 8, where a missed down-forward-punch costs you a combo. Software D-pad sensitivity adjustment via Hori Device Manager helps for less-strict games (Street Fighter 6) but does not fully fix it.
For dedicated fighting-game players, yes — the Kailh microswitch face buttons are rated at 20M+ actuations, dramatically better than Hori's proprietary microswitches, and the modular design means you can swap between fightpad mode for Street Fighter and standard mode for platformers on the same controller. The module is included with the Victrix Pro BFG Reloaded standard edition and sold separately as an accessory for $19.99-29.99 depending on retailer.
The Hori Fighting Commander OCTA covered here is PS5/PS4/PC only. Hori sells separately-licensed Xbox-branded fighting pads under different names but no direct Xbox OCTA equivalent. The Victrix Pro BFG is available in separate PS5-licensed and Xbox-licensed variants — buy the correct SKU for your console. Both variants have the same modular architecture and Fightpad module compatibility.
Legitimate middle-ground option. The Wireless Fighting Commander OCTA Pro launched in early 2025 at approximately $109-129 and addresses most of the base OCTA's weaknesses: wireless connectivity, swappable D-pad modules that fix the diagonal-miss problem, full mechanical face buttons, and a real right analog stick. If your budget can stretch to $110-130, the OCTA Pro is a better long-term buy than the base OCTA. Still cheaper than the Victrix Pro BFG at similar features on the fightpad axis.
The Victrix Pro BFG Reloaded has Hall-effect stick sensors on the main analog sticks — drift-immune by hardware design. The Hori Fighting Commander OCTA has only a left stick (short-throw octagonal gate, potentiometer-adjacent) and no right analog stick for gameplay. For pure fighting-game use, drift is less relevant on either pad because you use the D-pad or stick minimally compared to face buttons. If you plan to use the controller for any dual-analog game, the Victrix's Hall sticks are the clear win.
For committed fighting-game players, yes — the Victrix's Hall-effect sticks, mechanical Kailh D-pad, wireless, multi-genre versatility, and premium build justify the price gap. For casual or budget-conscious buyers, no — the Hori delivers 80% of the fighting-game utility at 33% of the price. The buy decision comes down to whether you need multi-genre use (Victrix) or pure fighting-game specialization on a budget (Hori).