GameSir keeps building out their lineup of game controllers and accessories, and these days you’d be hard pressed to find very many other brands that win out on quality.
This time we’re taking the GameSir X3 gamepad for a spin, which builds on the Nintendo Switch-style design of its predecessor. There are a few key improvements, but is the upgrade worth the cost? Let’s find out.
Bigger design
The GameSir X3 generally keeps the same design as the older X2, including the red and blue asymmetric joystick designs. We’re using the white controller this time around, though, which (probably coincidentally) looks more like Nintendo’s OLED model.
Color scheme aside, it’s still the same controller. It is, however, bulkier.
While the older model felt pretty similar to the Razer Kishi, in my opinion, the X3 has a little more chunk. It’s also more round which I think makes it slightly easier to hold for longer periods of time. The buttons are also significantly more clicky and tactile, which does feel better during gameplay at the cost of a much louder controller. Whether or not that’s a good thing is going to come down to preference, and whether or not you’re trying to play games at night with other people trying to sleep.
The biggest change, though, is the built-in fan on the back of the controller. This works just like Snowgon controller, where you plug the fan in with a USB-C cable and it cools your phone down while you’re gaming. This has the trade-off of keeping you from really being very portable with your phone, but it does prevent overheating and can potentially increase performance over a long session.
The performance increase here is cool, but it does make the controller much heavier than the X2. If you’re not planning on using the fan (or simply wouldn’t benefit from it) you’re just getting a bulkier controller with no benefit. Brave design decision on GameSir’s part.
Customization and accessories
When you open up the GameSir X3, you’ll notice a few different accessories that’ll change up how you use the controller. You still get a very nice carrying case for the gamepad and all of its extra sticks and grips, which is a huge plus at this price point, but there are also interchangeable sticks, a second D-pad, and joystick grips to make the controller easier to hold.
The second D-pad didn’t get much use from me, personally. It ditches the directional buttons for a disc-like shape that seems designed for using the D-pad more like a joystick. The extra joysticks come in different heights, which makes them a little more sensitive and better for things like twitchy shooters. I swapped out the right stick for a taller joystick, which helps out in things like CoD Mobile where you need that extra sensitivity while aiming.
You can also put some of the joystick grips on top of these sticks to make them easier to grip and less likely for your thumb to slide off when things get intense. All in all it’s pretty big suite of extras to include with the controller and should make it more comfortable for almost anyone to use.
Gameplay
But it’s a controller, right? Accessories and built quality don’t mean everything if it sucks to use.
Fortunately, like most other GameSir products we’ve reviewed, the X3 is generally a very good experience. It’s slightly more comfortable than an actual Nintendo Switch (and weighs about the same) thanks to its bigger grips and adjustable joysticks. It’s not hard to beat Nintendo’s JoyCons, but GameSir didn’t fumble, don’t worry.
Android typically handles those inputs without a headache as well, mapping buttons on the fly. We did notice an issue with the X3 and streaming Xbox games, though; for whatever reason, the X3 flips the A/B and X/Y buttons into a Nintendo Switch layout while playing Xbox games. GameSir did confirm that they’re planning an update in the future to allow you to remap and fix this, but in the meantime it’s pretty tricky trying to tell my brain to play Halo with a Nintendo-style layout.
Otherwise, it’s an excellent experience. The GameSir app is a little clunky but will point you towards more controller-enabled games, and I played some Minecraft, Call of Duty, and streamed some Steam games to put it through its paces. Bigger shooters outside of things from the Play Store can be just a little iffy with the shallow triggers, but the flexible joysticks, responsive face buttons, and dynamic D-pad handle everything from MMOs to action games to retro emulators.
I personally wasn’t wildly impressed with the fan on the backside of the phone, but most things I tested it with were higher end devices with decent cooling systems. This might be more useful for a phone that struggles with performance and heat compared to, say, a OnePlus 10 Pro, but I would’ve preferred a lighter controller without the fan.
Worth it?
GameSir has officially jumped into premium territory with the X3. It’s no longer the scrappy, cheap controller you get on a budget, but at $99 it’s tackling the Backbone and even regular Xbox One controllers.
It still has the advantage of being an all-in-one solution as opposed to buying an Xbox controller and a clip, but there’s no denying how ergonomic a regular controller feels, either.
GameSir counters this with value additions here, like the fan on the back, the swappable accessories, and a premium carrying case.
I still like GameSir’s options over the Razer Kishi and would definitely recommend these even at a price premium, but with Backbone gearing up to launch a USB-C version compatible with Android and some excellent software integrations, there’s some stiff competition at this price point. It’s a very good time to start gaming on your phone.
