Some people say they play exactly the same. I have a hard time believing that, especially with the difference in weight in each respective model. By my personal experience, the Messiah counterfeit plays heavier (makes sense, since it is heavier) and the response is quite a bit slippier, even with brand new irpads installed (pictured). The fake also has a pretty nasty pulse vibe that couldn’t be tuned out – not something you’d expect to see given the damage on it was pretty minimal. I can also say that for me, the real Messiah plays with quite a bit more “substance” than the fake, almost as if the fake feels cheaper or something. I purposefully chose to omit play characteristics from the guide because play characteristics are very subjective in nature, and I wanted to focus on objective concrete evidence.