Razer Viper Ultimate
The best wireless gaming controller, hands-down.
The Elite Series 2 is not only a premium controller, but it’s also an expensive one too, coming in at $180. Its design and performance give you all the indication that this is a piece of luxury gaming tech, meant for those who want the very best or just have some serious disposal income to spend on gaming. The highlight here is the incredible level of customisation, which allows you to fine-tune most aspects of the controller to the point of obsession.
So, what are the big improvements over the original Elite controller? For starters, the nice storage case that houses all the neat little customs doodads; 6 thumbsticks, 2 d-pads (cross-shaped and faceted) 4 rear pedals and one tool for adjustable thumbstick tension, now has a portable USB-C powered charging station. That’s right, the Series now has a rechargeable battery that runs for about 30-40 hours.
The Series 1’s surprising lack of Bluetooth is something that drew major criticism, given that normal Xbox One controllers have long been the standard in PC gaming. Thanks to the Series 2 adopting Bluetooth, you now have a market-leading PC controller and something that’ll pair with a phone to play the Apple Arcade offerings or mess around Project xCloud beta. It makes the controller that much more versatile, which is essential given the high price of admission.
The returning hair-trigger locks are still among one of my favorite things about the Elite. For those who haven’t used them, they control how far you need to pull the trigger, so there’s no wasted effort or time in competitive shooters, where milliseconds matter. When playing Crucible matches in Destiny 2, the shorter triggers allow for the quicker firing of scout rifles and hand cannons which works well for twitch-based shooters. The four additional back paddles are a neat feature too and can make for some interesting controller layouts. Never want to take your thumbs off of the thumbsticks? Simply assign the face buttons to the back paddles and you’re good to go. In fact, the extreme flexibility of the Series 2 has the additional benefit of making the controller highly accessible, meaning that more people can use it to play PC games.
While it’s mostly positive, there are a few small issues to consider. Some people might find the more hefty controller a bit jarring at first since it’s heavier than the standard
That’s right, the Series now has a rechargeable battery that runs for about 30-40 hours.
Xbox One controller by a few ounces. And while it’s nice to swap out the standard d-pad, both the cross and faceted alternative d-pads take some getting used to especially in fighting games like Dragonball FighterZ or Mortal Kombat 11. Directional inputs on more complicated combos felt very hit or miss on the d-pads. One fix I found was adjusting the left stick to a higher tension to simulate a fight stick. It won’t replace a proper fight stick for a fighting game but it still works pretty well.
• Lots of customisation options
• Detachable Charging Dock via USB-C
• Bluetooth-enabled (finally)
• Expensive
• Heavy compared to most controllers