Crkd NitroDeck Review
The Crkd (pronounced Cracked) NitroDeck has finally hit Australian shores, promising a much smoother, and more importantly, the drift-free gaming experience with its Hall effect joysticks, USB C Lag-free experience, and comfortable design. I was counting down the days until I could get my hands on one. But now I have, does it live up to its promises? Or is it a glorified controller? What’s it like? Let’s go hands-on with the NitroDeck and find out!
Right from the start, the NitroDeck aims to impress with its slick packaging. I unboxed the outer cover to reveal a holographic logo underneath, followed by a well-packaged and documented product inside. The Special Editions come with a slick, molded carry case, a long USB C connection cable, and 2 replacement concaved joysticks that can be swapped out depending on your preference. The presentation feels like your money is well spent on a quality product, and the handy instructions stuck to the deck itself show the user how to enable a specific setting on the Switch Hardware to be compatible with the NitroDeck.
Following unboxing and setting up, I was encouraged to “Tap in” my Nitrodeck to the True Collection App on my phone. Each Nitrodeck is issued a collector serial number that somehow indicates rarity which is revealed when tapped. Once added to the collection, you can lock your NitroDeck to stop others from tapping it in should it be stolen, but it will still work on other Switches when locked (something I tested) so it seems like this is for someone who plans on collecting a few models and cataloging their collection. I don’t really get it to be honest, but the Gatcha-addicted nerd in me thought it was a cool, if useless feature, and it gave me a sense of ownership which was nice.
The deck itself has comfortable molded grips that are comfortable to hold and feel great in my hands, despite adding a small amount of weight to the setup. Buttons are larger and have an almost mechanical click which is satisfying, and the triggers are larger making for a more comfortable resting position while gaming. The triggers feel really great to press when playing shooters or racing games, and while they press down much further than the original joycons, once you get used to the distance between triggers, I found it to be much more enjoyable for gaming. My one issue with the Nitrodeck is that the Right Stick is positioned lower than that of the Joycons, which takes a bit of getting used to. The Hall Effect joysticks use magnetic technology instead of Friction-based tech (hence the guarantee to never have drift as they won’t wear) which makes using the sticks smooth and almost gives them a futuristic feel. All of this is powered by the USB C port offering a low lag, and high responsiveness control. The D-pad is also another standout feature, offering a crisp feel when pressing directions, sure to please fans of fighting games for precision inputs.
The NitroDeck also supports full rumble and gyro features which work great. Rumble feels great and not wildly overdone like I’ve experienced with other 3rd party controls. You can also plug the NitroDeck into the dock and use it as a wired controller when playing on TV which is a nice feature, especially if you are running short on JoyCons for some Co-op Play. The Nitrodeck doesn’t include Amiibo support. I don’t use Amiibo so for me I was unaffected by the lack of Ammibo Support.
There are programmable buttons on the back of the Nitrodeck which can be programmed for multiple buttons and it works in a similar way to the Xbox Elite controller, another personal favourite of mine. When programming, it doesn’t take into account the order of buttons pressed, so will only act as multiple buttons pressed (say L+R Combined) which actually came in handy in some games. I used this feature in grouping in Company of Heroes when adding units to groups and found it to work well.
Another great feature of the NitroDeck is that it has a front-facing speaker area so the sound is directed forward from your Switch console. It may seem like a very small design choice, but it makes a world of difference while playing in handheld mode, allowing for a clearer and louder experience. The kickstand on the back is sturdy, and the entire deck seems solid and well-built.
For us Aussies, the price point of $150 for the collector’s editions, or $100 for the standard editions, may seem steep at first, but after finally getting some solid game time in on the NitroDeck, I think it will be hard to go back to JoyCons, or even the official pro controller for that matter. The entire package from literally the packaging, the NFT style registration, and the Deck itself impresses. It’s a well-built, precise, and comfortable controller that makes lengthy handheld sessions a breeze, and despite having to get used to the lower right joystick positioning, it offers a next-level controller & gaming experience that I can highly recommend.
