CRKD Neo S review

Controllers are better than mice and keyboard for gaming [Editor's note: nope]. A keebmouse set-up is definitely going to get you the better kill death score yet controllers are more comfortable, accessible, intuitive, flexible, and fun. As you can see, I have my funeral plot all picked out atop this contrary PC gaming take hill, that puts the joy of experience above my score, and am more than willing to die there. The Neo S controller from CRKD really seems to get this mentality, offering a great gaming companion far beyond what its looks and dollar tag suggest.

Quality and comfort are paramount to controller choice. These aren’t things I expected of the Neo S based on initial impressions garnered from its awkwardly boxy looking form.

This large rectangle looks about as comfortable as a dad delivering ‘the talk’ far too late while sitting on a pineapple, wearing wet socks. In reality, this deceptive daddy is surprisingly cool with everything. What I mean is, CRKD's Neo S is super, and surprisingly, comfortable. I’ve gamed for hours on this thing and haven’t had so much as a hand twinge.

It’ll also pair with basically anything willing, and quickly change between them as necessary. Once set up, I can easily swap the Bluetooth connection from Switch to iPad to Android phone by holding different buttons on the D-pad when connecting. What's really surprising is how responsive the connection is.

In this house we've been hammering some Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate—aka TMNT flavoured Hades with couch coop—so out of curiosity we did some controller swapping. None of us noticed much difference between the CRKD's connection and that of the Xbox controllers on their specialised dongle. We did the same test with some Serious Sam silliness and were all just as happy to play on the Neo S for both connection and comfort. This led me to getting in some Doom eternal—changing between the Neo S and Xbox and not really feeling like either performed better.

At only 192 grams, according to two of my kitchen scales, it’s quite nifty to have while travelling and the Bluetooth connection holds really well as long as the device is within a few metres, with no latency issues so far. The internal battery lasts an age and it sports a USB Type-C port for charging as well as a wired connection (you better believe it can even do both at once) so I don’t have to bring any extra lengths of wire for my journey.

With enjoyment being key in gaming, customisation to personal satisfaction is a huge boon. This CRKD brick once again surprises in being one of the more flexible controllers in this regard. Software isn't required as everything can be altered via button combinations on the controller itself, if you can remember them. It's possible to adjust the rumble motor side and strength, trigger sensitivity, stick dead zones, configuring turbo mode, and full button remapping, including turning off the back triggers.

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Thankfully, the mobile app is available and gives a straightforward alternative method to change most of these, complete with visuals. I just wish it gave options to save different configs to profiles or even connections. Having it automatically load up my Zelda config when paired to the Switch and Hades when on PC, for example, would be next level. Still this is a lot of functionality and quality for a controller that’s only $90 AUD.

The app can also pair, register and even check the rarity of the controller which is assigned by an arbitrary number, if you’re into that sort of thing. There’s a manual section that links to the downloadable PDF. It’s refreshingly full of useful, clear instructions for pairing, plus all those button combinations for app free customisation. Unfortunately for me flying from Australia to Europe, a download link rather than in app file (even after downloading it) is somewhat less helpful when you’re on a plane with no net trying to figure this stuff out.

All these wonderful modern implementations almost feel concealed by the retro styling of the CRKD Neo S. It’s a controller I’d easily assume was going for form over function with not only its shape but its livery. It comes in an array of pretty cool looking shell designs that range from painted cherry blossoms to retro styled casings. I’m rocking the clear transparent for the joy of seeing the tech under the hood. While undeniably styling, it gives off a Cheeto dust covered sticky button 2 player energy. I’m almost surprised whenever I pick it up and the face buttons and D-pad feel fast and responsive, the Hall effect sticks smooth, and while not DualSense level, the triggers are quite robust.

It’s not at the level of your $300+ pro controllers but for a third of that price it punches far above its meagre 192 grams. WASD may reign superior for effective head clicking, and I certainly indulge in its superior accuracy for competitive PC shooters, but it comes at a cost to my natural enjoyment. The CRKD Neo S is a surprisingly well built, comfortable, and versatile controller, and more to the point, I had a lot of fun playing games with the CRKD Neo S.