Overview: Razer Kishi V2 refines the “gamepad that clamps to cellphone” idea

Within the years for the reason that phrase “do not you individuals have telephones” turned a Blizzard-mocking meme, I’ve discovered myself actually taking part in extra video video games on my smartphone. (However not Diablo Immortal, which spawned the meme.) Specifically, Xbox Cloud Gaming, Google Stadia, and different cloud-gaming providers have shined as choices on my cellphone when Wi-Fi or 5G reception is first rate.

Whereas choose video games on these providers have on-screen buttons as choices, I will not play with something lower than a bodily gamepad. Till this month, I relied on a typical, slim 8Bitdo gamepad, particularly when touring, however this required a phone-to-gamepad plastic harness—and, gosh, these issues crumble when tossed into my baggage. There’s gotta be one thing higher, proper?

Enter the Razer Kishi V2. On the considerably steep worth of $100, this clamp-to-your-phone gamepad isn’t a slam-dunk suggestion for anybody who would not often play console-styled video games on their cellphone. Nevertheless it will get nearer to incomes that worth than Kishi’s 2020 model.

A short primer on the last-gen Kishi

Technically, the primary Kishi is even older than that. Razer’s debut Kishi mannequin was a rebrand of the Gamevice gamepad, which launched in 2017 for the iPhone 6 era. When Razer and Gamevice collaborated on a controller, it got here in two variations: Android, with a USB Sort-C port, and iOS, with a Lightning port.

In both case, customers are anticipated to show their smartphone sideways, then join half to the gamepad’s port. Pull the gamepad’s different half, and a tension-based mechanism will let it stretch to suit over the opposite facet of your cellphone. As soon as totally clasped, you’ve gotten a makeshift Change-like choice on your smartphone: joysticks, triggers, and “bumpers” on either side, a D-pad on the left, and an ABXY button array on the fitting.

Like different Gamevice controllers, the 2020 Kishi V1’s finest perks included stable joysticks and an easy-to-fold break up design in order that you can clasp its halves collectively when disconnected from a cellphone to suit it extra simply in a crowded a bag. However the remainder of its buttons left me fairly unmoved; the stress on the analog triggers felt low-cost, and its D-pad and ABXY button array had been mushy.

Worse, the primary Kishi’s extendable strap system provides a certain quantity of plastic bulk that is not appropriate with some cellphone fashions (notably the “digicam bump” discovered on newer Pixel telephones) or would not prolong far sufficient to assist bigger smartphones.

A special sort of moveable gaming “swap”

This month’s Kishi V2, which was made with out Gamevice’s involvement, solves each single criticism on the above record (except solely having an Android mannequin accessible as of press time). My favourite half about Razer’s new mannequin is an improve to clicky microswitches, which actually aren’t frequent sufficient in fashionable gamepads. In case you’ve ever used a Neo Geo Pocket, precisely what I am speaking about: They’re responsive and noticeably loud.

This results in a dramatic enchancment in responsiveness and luxury for the D-pad, ABXY array, and bumpers. As somebody who likes to pack a number of favourite 8- and 16-bit video games on an Android emulator, I’m joyful to report that the feeling of difficult 2D platforming challenges within the likes of Mega Man advantages from these new buttons’ stability of measurement, spacing, and button-press journey. Kishi V2’s analog triggers have additionally been revised, and whereas they get nowhere close to the satisfying default stress of an Xbox or PlayStation gamepad, their considerably hole urgent sensation is a marked enchancment over the primary Kishi’s tense-yet-flimsy triggers.

Regardless of liking the button enhancements, I’ve a nitpick. Kishi V2’s ABXY array is 1.5 mm nearer to the right-side joystick than the identical association on a typical Nintendo Change Pleasure-Con. Because of this, an adult-sized thumb can count on to by accident contact Kishi V2’s right-side joystick whereas specializing in old-school ABXY button faucets—except you rotate your thumb placement to compensate. Adjusting for this felt a bit unnatural for me, and I may see this being a deal-breaker for sure arms, however I nonetheless want Kishi V2’s ABXY use case greater than the unique Kishi by a longshot.

Additionally, I want the Kishi V1’s joysticks, that are the tiniest bit smaller than what you may discover on an Xbox gamepad however in any other case copy these stable joysticks’ thumb really feel and stress. Kishi V2’s joysticks feel and appear equivalent to these discovered on a Change Pleasure-Con, proper right down to the tiny notches in every cardinal course. Up to now, they have been solely serviceable in first-person shooters that require cautious goal and frequent joystick-pressing clicks. However my testing has not been in depth sufficient to find out whether or not Kishi V2 homeowners ought to count on mechanical failures that resemble the dreaded Pleasure-Con drift difficulty.