Razer’s new gaming sleeves look bizarre, but I need them

By Andrew Zucosky September 14, 2021

Razer has announced today that it is launching a new gaming accessory, the Razer Gaming Finger Sleeve. Woven with high-sensitivity silver fiber, the thumb sleeves aim to give players better control on touch screens and additional comfort thanks to breathable fabric.

Razer Gaming Sleeves are not for your arms, where you usually associate the word sleeve. These new fashion-forward accessories are actually for your thumbs, looking like the baby Digimon stage for gloves and glittens. The sleeves themselves aren’t the stuff of fashion nightmares, as they look form-fitting even in a universal size, and the black, green, and silver color scheme is what we can expect from Razer products. Despite the uncanniness of putting fabric on just your thumbs, they look completely fine.

Gamer playing Fortnite on mobile with the Razer Gaming Finger Sleeves — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Of course, you are not wearing these sleeves to the next Met Gala or to your cousin’s bat mitzvah. These are here to help players with mobile games. This is something that I personally desperately need. To be blunt, my thumbs are a little crooked. Twisted might be the more apt word. Not really noticeable, but definitely obvious when I am trying to text or play a game on my phone. Instead of carefully aiming a headshot in PUBG Mobile or texting my partner about a funny meme I saw, I will just drag my nails on the screen. You can see the scratch marks on my screen that look like a chicken claiming territory on a quadrant of my phone.

With these gaming sleeves, I can finally have the accuracy that many mobile games require. I no longer have to avoid fast-paced games out of fear I will hinder my team because my thumbs decide to grind on my screen like a 2000s teenager with Soaps on their shoes. Look I get it, they do kind of look weird. However, if they do what it says on the box with improving accuracy and control on touch screens, then I am all on board.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Andrew has been playing video games since he was a small boy, and he finally got good at them like a week ago. He has been in…

Gaming

Hello Kitty: Island Adventure should be your next mobile game obsession

Sanrio characters hang out on a beach in Hello Kitty: Island Adventure.

I challenge you to find a video game with a better elevator pitch than Hello Kitty: Island Adventure. Get this: It’s Animal Crossing but with Sanrio characters. You don’t need to see a single screenshot or watch a trailer to know if you’re in or out on that idea.

Apple Arcade’s latest exclusive is the gaming platform’s best hope for a subscription mover yet. It’s an undeniably adorable adventure built to deliver on Apple’s promise of high-quality mobile gaming with no pesky ads or microtransactions -- and for the most part, it delivers. Though it lacks key hooks that make the Animal Crossing formula work, Hello Kitty: Island Adventure makes up for some of its shortcomings with an infectiously positive attitude and a downright pleasant visual style that I can’t help but soak in. It’s a summer getaway in your pocket.
Island time
It’s immediately clear what developer Sunblink is aiming to do upon firing up the adventure. After a cute introduction where Hello Kitty almost gets an entire airplane of cute animals killed (yes, really), players parachute onto an island alongside Sanrio staples like My Melody and Keroppi. Within moments of exploring that first hub area -- complete with a furniture shop, clothing store, and a town hall where you can check your “island vibe” score -- it’s pretty clear that Animal Crossing was a direct inspiration here. Even its crafting animation looks identical to the one in New Horizons.

Gaming

The best free-to-play mobile games

Marvel Snap running on the OnePlus Nord N30 5G.

The realm of mobile gaming has come a long way since the days when you were lucky if you could play a game of Snake on your brick of a phone. Today, we all have essentially a modern console in our pockets with games that look and play just as good as what is offered on current consoles. Unlike the console or PC space, mobile games have mostly stuck to either being extremely cheap or simply free-to-play. While that sounds great on the surface, it also means that the storefronts are filled with thousands of games looking for your attention, with only a select few worthy of your time. If you're looking for your next mobile go-to with no upfront cost, here are the best free-to-play mobile games you may never delete from your home screen.

Honkai: Star Rail

Gaming

One of my favorite 2022 games just came to Xbox Game Pass, and you need to try it

Arcade cabinets stand in a room in Arcade Paradise.

When I think back to 2022, there are a ton of critically acclaimed games that stick with me. Naturally, I spent countless hours adventuring through the Lands Between in Elden Ring. Splatoon 3 and Vampire Survivors ate up my entire summer, while I still think about Pentiment and Immortality months later. There's one lesser-known game, though, that was a go-to I kept coming back to throughout the year despite the fact that it wasn't talked about nearly as much as any of those games.

That would be Arcade Paradise, a quiet 2022 standout that's now available on Xbox Game Pass today. Developed by Nosebleed Interactive, it's a unique simulation game that balances 90s nostalgia with a thoughtful look at the line between hobby and work. If you spent any time during your youth hanging around arcades, you'll want to give it a try while it's on Game Pass.