Ever since I can remember I’ve always opted for playing with a mouse and keyboard when in front of my PC. But to be honest, it is nice every now and then to sit back in your chair with a game pad. Furthermore, there are games such as Need for Speed Payback which are geared more towards game pad usage, especially if you’ve not got the room, or the extra cash for an expensive full steering wheel and pedal setup. But game pads can be pretty expensive too thanks to the likes of the Steam Controller at £79 or the Razer Wolverine at around £130. But thanks to companies like EasySMX, it now doesn’t have to be an expensive venture.

The EasySMX Wireless Game Controller is a good option for those budget conscious out there, who also want to get the best bang for their buck. It’s covered in an all black plastic with either red or blue accents depending on your fancy. It resembles an Xbox One controller which I absolutely love. It’s extremely comfortable to hold in my hands while playing for long periods of time. Button presses do feel nice and solid and probably wouldn’t break very easily through overuse.

The left and right triggers are both pressure sensitive making it a lot easier to handle things like throttle and break control inside of racing titles. I’ve been playing a lot of Need for Speed Payback, and I must say coming from a keyboard to a controller was worlds apart. I’m having so much more fun now I can actually race accurately, and I’ve even had to increase the difficulty level of the AI cars.

The controller itself takes two AA batteries, and should last for several hours. I’m not sure on the exact time, as mine hasn’t died yet from the initial batteries going in, but it’ll hopefully be as long as a wireless mouse, maybe a little less. I think EasySMX have missed a trick here though. They should have provided gamers with a rechargeable lithium battery and a charging system similar to that of the Xbox One. I think it would have been the best move, especially for gamers on a budget and not having to keep buying new AA batteries.

The USB dongle it comes with is very small and extremely unobtrusive, especially if you’re plugging this into a laptop. The controller isn’t too bad a size either to also carry it around with you so you can have some gaming on the go. An added feature is that this controller can even hook up to your mobile phone for some Android fun. Sorry Apple guys, no iOS support for you. The controller when plugged into my PC was absolute plug and play. I didn’t need to manually install drivers, and it worked on all games that I tried including Assassin’s Creed: Origins and Destiny 2.

For £16.99 plus delivery from Amazon, you can’t really go wrong. Okay the build quality isn’t that of Razer or the Steam Controller, and using AA batteries means you’re going to be buying batteries in bulk. But if you’re in the same position as me, and want a controller to literally play one racing game that’s in your collection or a couple of other third person adventure titles, the EasySMX Wireless Game Controller should be your number one choice. For more information you can visit the EasySMX website.