I was impressed when I first saw the original Razer Kishi, a small plastic accessory that turns your smartphone into a Nintendo Switch-like device. Mobile and cloud gaming have seen a surge in popularity in the last few years, and the Kishi was one of the better peripherals to emerge in response to the growing demand.
Unfortunately, the original Kishi’s design was clumsy in several ways: buttons felt mushy, and it lacked future-proofing to accommodate newer phones with weird or thick camera bumps. Roughly two years later, Razer’s new Kishi V2 addresses some of the major flaws found in its predecessor – while creating some new ones in the process.
Razer Kishi V2 – Design and Features
At first glance, the Razer Kishi V2’s design looks very similar to the Backbone One, the leading phone-controller attachment that is currently only available for iPhone devices. Where its predecessor used a Joy-Con style controller that splits apart, the Kishi V2 opts for a Backbone-style extendable bridge design. This makes it much easier to fit a larger phone into the controller but is less portable than the collapsible design of the original Kishi. Nevertheless, sacrificing portability in favor of more compatibility is a good trade-off for most people – you’ll just likely want to invest in a travel case.
At just 123 grams, the Kishi V2 is lighter than both the original Kishi and the Backbone One. Hand fatigue is a common problem with portable gaming, so having a lighter device is a plus as it extends your gameplay session without worrying about hand cramping. Together with my Google Pixel 6 (with no case), it weighs 330 grams, though total weight will vary depending on which device you are using.
The Kishi V2 ships with multiple adapters to help it fit a wide variety of phones. Despite this, you’ll still likely have to remove your phone’s case. I tried it with a case I thought would be thin enough to work, but I still ended up having to remove it. It’s frustrating, especially considering that the Backbone One controller allowed me to keep my thin case for my iPhone XR and iPhone 13 Pro while in use.
Like its predecessor, the Kishi V2 has a matte black finish, offering a clean and simple design. The grips do not leave fingerprints, but I noticed some smudge marks on the base where the phone is mounted. This is a minor nitpick though, given a phone is blocking that portion while in use.
The Kishi V2 has two analog sticks, one on each end of the controller. They have a nice feel to them – not too stiff but not too loose – and are roughly the same size as those found on the Backbone One. Sizing feels like a sweet spot, given it's a controller designed for mobile and cloud gaming. A microswitch D-Pad is included on the left side of the controller, which is responsive and satisfying to press. Compared to the D-Pad of the Backbone One, the Kishi V2 has a bit more range in directional movement than the stiffness and limited directional movements of the Backbone One.
The Kishi V2 features a standard A, B, X, and Y button layout on the top right. The buttons feel clicky and are enjoyable to press. However, I wish Razer kept the Xbox-style color-coding, as the white coloring on these letters feels pretty dull compared to the Kishi V1 predecessor.
The buttons use microswitches – a nice upgrade compared to the mushy membranes found on the original Kishi. The microswitches make a pleasant clicky sound that is not at all obnoxious, and pressing each button offers a nice little tactile bump that feels rewarding to press.
Four additional buttons are on the front of the controller: a Share button (for screenshots and gameplay recording), a Menu button, an Options Button, and a Razer Nexus button, which allows you to launch the free Razer Nexus app.
The Kishi V2’s four rear triggers are easy to access and comfortable to press, but I did notice they offer slightly more travel to press fully compared to the Backbone One. There’s also two programmable macro buttons, M1 and M2 – one on each side, adjacent to the L2 and R2 trigger buttons.
Much like its predecessor, the Kishi V2 includes a USB-C passthrough on the bottom right side of the controller, allowing you to keep your phone charged while the device is in use.
Razer Kishi V2 – Software
The Kishi V2 has a free software app called Nexus – a dashboard that lets you launch games installed on your phone, spotlight other Kishi-compatible games, and is necessary to remap those two extra programmable buttons. The Nexus app also includes a feature that lets you seamlessly start a live stream on YouTube or Facebook, and Razer says Twitch support is coming later this year.
Nexus is one of the worst parts of the Kishi V2, and I often avoided it. Although the app allowed me to launch my installed games easily, its inconsistent and sluggish performance made the software feel like it’s in early access. The images for installed games on Nexus are low-resolution and blurry, and the Nexus button on the controller did not work no matter how many times I pressed it.
This is in stark contrast to the Backbone app, which offers a reliable gaming hub and useful features like an in-app friend system that lets you add other Backbone users and set up voice chat rooms. The paid subscription service Backbone+ adds even more features, such as the option to connect an Android device using a Lightning-to-USB-C cable or capture gameplay at 1080p at 60FPS. While Razer’s software is free, it still pales in comparison even to Backbone’s free version.
Razer Kishi V2 – Gaming
The Kishi V2 feels nice and ergonomic, whether you’re playing mobile games locally or streamed via a cloud gaming service. It’s a solid upgrade over the first-generation Kishi, which I didn’t always feel like I had a firm grip on, leading to a constant worry that I would drop the device.
I tested several games, including Apex Legends: Mobile, Diablo Immortal, and streamed Halo Infinite via Xbox Cloud Gaming – all of which were compatible with the controller and enjoyable to play. The only game I encountered an issue with was Call of Duty: Mobile, which was also incompatible with the original Kishi (both Android and iOS models). A Razer spokesperson told me that “it’s up to the developers what they choose to whitelist,” further noting that the company works “very closely” with publisher partners to support full integration with its products. I also reached out to Activision, which confirmed the game is not currently supported, but might possibly in the future. Either way, it’s disheartening considering Backbone works flawlessly with Call of Duty: Mobile on iOS.
The Kishi V2, like its predecessor, does not include a 3.5mm headphone jack. While this might not sound like a big deal, especially considering most smartphones today don’t include a headphone jack, audio lag is a known issue on Android. Although it is getting better, it’s still an ongoing problem that varies depending on your Android device. While Razer is not to blame for Android’s issue, a headphone jack would have alleviated the problem altogether.
from IGN Reviews https://ift.tt/9LuA3zg
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