Skip to main content

Razer shows off its first console controller

Image used with permission by copyright holder

The gaming peripheral manufacturer Razer, has a long and impressive history of creating some of the best PC gaming peripherals on the market. Many professional gamers swear by their products, and even those that don’t tend to respect the company. Now that same company that has become synonymous with PC gaming is heading to the console world, with the hopes of becoming the de facto third-party peripheral maker of choice.

This week at CES, Razer showed off the Onza controller, and announced that a release date will be announced in the next few weeks, and pre-orders are now being accepted. The Onza was first unveiled at last year’s CES, but at the time is was still a concept, much as the Razer Switchblade is this year. The release date is welcome news, especially to Xbox 360 first-person shooter fans that have been drooling over the precision controller for a solid year now. The Onza comes in two models, the standard and the tournament edition.

The Onza features raised thumb sticks, an elevated precision D-Pad, two programmable macro keys, hyperesponse buttons, a textured surface, as well as two programmable macro buttons.

Get your weekly teardown of the tech behind PC gaming
Check your inbox!

The Tournament Edition will feature everything the standard edition offers, as well as a rubber surface for better grip, and adjustable resistance on both analog sticks.

The controllers are wired, but besides the fact that Microsoft can be stingy on handing out its wireless licenses, the wired controllers help cut down lag for tournament players.

The Onza Tournament Edition will be released in the coming weeks with a price of $49.99, while the standard version will cost $39.99.


Editors' Recommendations

Ryan Fleming
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Ryan Fleming is the Gaming and Cinema Editor for Digital Trends. He joined the DT staff in 2009 after spending time covering…
How to connect a PS5 controller to a PC without a dongle
A red and blue PS5 stands on a table with matching controllers.

The DualSense controller is one of the coolest console controllers (say that ten times fast) to ever hit the market. After years of fine-tuning, the PlayStation 5 accessory doesn’t disappoint, thanks to advanced haptics feedback, comfortable grips, and a streamlined design. When it comes to AV bravura, Sony just knows how to get things done! But did you know that your PS5 controller can be linked to your home computer?

Whether that’s a laptop or desktop, the DualSense controller can be connected to your PC via USB or Bluetooth, and we’re going to teach you how to set things up using both of these methods.

Read more
If you want to up your Tekken 8 game, try this stickless controller
Kuma hitting Law causing him to fly toward the screen in Tekken 8.

With the release of Tekken 8, I’ve been at a bit of a crossroads. I had no clue what controller I wanted to use to learn and beat the rest of the competition. A standard Xbox controller? PlayStation’s DualSense? A fightstick? Or maybe it's time I looked to the future and tried out a hitbox controller? That last option is the one I'd ultimately go with, thanks to the Razer Kitsune.

Released last year, the Razer Kitsune is a hitbox-style fighting gamepad with no joystick. Its selling point is that it is sleeker than most hitbox controllers on the market and features high-quality buttons. It's a great option for those who love that style of control, but don't love carrying around a big, boxy gamepad. The true question, though, was whether or not I would prefer it over a classic gamepad, my Tekken comfort zone. I decided to take on a fighting game gauntlet with a day of matches with my little brother in just about every fighter I own to find out.
What is a hitbox controller?
A hitbox controller is a stickless arcade pad. It retains all the classic attack buttons but replaces the directional stick with buttons. I would compare it to playing on a keyboard but with more comfortable buttons to press and the up button placed where your thumbs rest. You may have heard of it a few times due to the controversy it causes in the fighting game community over it being the “easy way” to play fighting games.

Read more
Razer Blade 14 gaming laptop with an RTX 3080 Ti is $1,500 off
A game playing on the Razer Blade 14 gaming laptop.

Serious gamers who need to upgrade their gaming laptop should heavily consider taking advantage of this offer for the Razer Blade 14 with the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti graphics card. From $3,500, a $1,500 discount from Razer pulls its price down to $2,000, for amazing value for money considering the power of this machine. You're going to have to make your purchase quick as we're not sure how much time is remaining on this bargain, so proceed with the transaction as soon as possible.

Why you should buy the Razer Blade 14 gaming laptop
The Razer Blade 14 is featured in our list of the best gaming laptops as a powerful, premium, and highly portable gaming laptop. It all starts with the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti, which will let you play the best PC games at the highest settings as the graphics card is paired with the AMD Ryzen 9 6900HX processor and 16GB of RAM. In fact, with these specifications, you'll be all set for the upcoming PC games of the next few years, so you can stop worrying about setting aside a budget for upgrades and focus on playing the video games that you like.

Read more