Your controller is the bridge between yourself and your game, and if it's not dependable, it's useless. If wear-and-tear causes your controller's analogue sticks to suddenly drift without input when you're trying to pull off a combo or hold your weapon steady, the bridge collapses from under you and your shot–and your mood–is ruined.
That's why the $39.99 BINBOK Gemini Controller for the Nintendo Switch (available in black and white) is engineered to prevent stick drift with its resilient Hall Effect joysticks. That's on top of its customizable rumble effects, its eight-way D-pad, its 6-axis gyro motion control, its rear back macro-programming buttons, and its eye-catching rotating RGB lighting displays.
While it may not be the most complicated input, reprogramming the rear macro buttons as D-pad directional inputs allowed for easy swaps between weapons, bows, items, and more during my time with The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. This small quality-of-life improvement highlights how the BINBOK Gemini Controller elevated my gaming experience. Plus – I liked matching the RGB lighting display with whatever I had going on in-game. Navigating waterways compelled me to toggle on the Blue RGB display scheme. Green for forests – and of course, red for whenever I ventured near the fiery Eldin region. Life’s about the little things, right?
Hall Effect joysticks like the ones used in the Gemini Controller are built to last. (Other controllers with Hall Effect joysticks are GuliKit Kingkong 2 Pro Controller and 8Bitdo Ultimate Bluetooth Controller.) The sensitive components in controllers like the Nintendo Switch Pro Controller make frequent contact with each other to read player input, causing them to wear down. By comparison, these components don't touch in a Hall Effect joystick. Instead, magnets in the controller induce a voltage change that's converted to data on the joystick's position. That means the Gemini Controller won't let you down when the heat is on. It also means no more putting controllers in cardboard coffins and waiting for weeks while repairs are slowly conducted.
Like the Nintendo Switch Pro Controller, the Gemini Controller is equipped with linear and rotor motors for superior rumble effects. And, unlike the Switch Pro Controller, you can customize the kind of force feedback you want to experience by flipping between the motors at any time with a switch on the back of the controller. A rotor motor offers strong, consistent vibrations, while the multi-directional rumble from a linear motor is more precise. Linear motors are to thank for satisfying tactile feedback, such as the revving of a race car engine or the gentle vibration of casting and reeling your rod in a fishing game. When you snag that fish you've got your eye on, the linear motor in the Gemini Controller gives you that satisfying jolt of the bait being snatched, and the struggle between person and fish that follows. If you love feeling every bit of feedback a game offers, the Gemini Controller's linear motor has your back. (And hands.) If you're nostalgic for a more intense, more uniform rumble experience, the Gemini Controller has you covered with its rotor motor.
For games that interact with you on a more traditional level, the Gemini Controller sports an eight-way directional pad. This is a welcome feature in games that require players to press two directions simultaneously, for example, up and to the right. The directional input of the Gemini Controller is much more responsive (and easy on the thumbs) than the four-way d-pads that so many controllers are content with. This makes the Gemini Controller the best choice for games that require a quick touch on the 2D plane, like platformers in the vein of the Super Mario Bros. series or fighting games like Street Fighter 6 or Mortal Kombat 1.
If gaming aesthetics are your thing, don’t forget that the Gemini Controller comes in two colors. Whether you want a smooth white controller or a sleek black controller, you’re certain to find something that matches your beloved couch.
With its Hall effect joysticks, customizable HD rumble, and smooth RGB display, the Gemini’s attractive price doesn’t come at the expense of its craftmanship. It’s an ideal second controller or replacement for a Nintendo Switch Pro Controller, which has none of these features and rings in at $69.99. The BINBOK Gemini Controller lacks Amiibo support, but that's a good tradeoff for a controller that gives you intense HD rumble without jostling around sensitive parts. Let your worries drift away, not your joystick.
