With the advent of the Nintendo Switch and the Steam Deck, you’d be forgiven for forgetting that your phone is just as competent a gaming device these days. Especially with the move into cloud gaming that Microsoft and Sony are making so boldly, being able to play your games on the go with any device still feels like a novelty. Dedicated devices are often the best option, but other devices have their pros and cons when it comes to being just as convenient. While those options are all still viable today, the Backbone has stood out as one of the better dedicated mobile gaming controllers, and with the Backbone Pro, things are only getting better.
For almost five years now, Backbone Labs has been answering the question of which controller to use with your phone when playing games on the go. Its retractable design makes it perfect for practically any device, barring iPads, even those with less conventional form factors, and its portability makes it feel like the best option for gaming on the go. Other devices, like the Nacon MG-X, do the same, but none of them feel as easy and effortless to attach and detach from your device as the Backbone.
But despite this, there was something that always felt a bit toyish about the original Backbone. If I grabbed my old Backbone and shook it gently, it would rattle to the point where it felt rather cheap. I recognise this isn’t something everyone would typically do, but it speaks to the first thing that I noticed upon unboxing the Backbone Pro – it feels like a much more premium offering than the original Backbone. It’s somehow bigger yet lighter. The buttons themselves feature a more premium, almost gem-like finish, and the whole thing feels nice to hold and press. Everything about the Backbone Pro feels like an improvement over the original Backbone, though given the price, that’s something you’d perhaps be expecting.
The Backbone Pro keeps things simple – offering an Xbox-style layout in terms of both face buttons and analog sticks. This means you’ll have A, B, X, and Y on your face buttons, rather than the PlayStation symbols many would hope for, although perhaps that might come as a different SKU later down the line. The buttons themselves feel nice to press and sit nicely on the controller, though the D-Pad, like most D-Pads, doesn’t quite have the responsiveness to play something like a fighting game. The analogue sticks, on the other hand, are a considerable improvement. The original Backbone almost felt like the same sticks as found on a Wii Nunchuck. The Backbone Pro features a significantly larger set of sticks that are considerably more comfortable than the previous Backbone. However, it’s disappointing that they’re not hall-effect sticks, although the triggers are.
Given that the Backbone Pro needs to be adjustable to fit a phone, this means the controller itself, whether you’re using it with a device inserted or not, feels a bit wider in your hands. This was, admittedly, a jarring sensation at first, but it quickly faded away as I spent more time with the controller.
Beyond the major improvements, the Backbone Pro also features two customisable buttons on either side, bringing it more in line with Nintendo’s latest Pro Controller 2 for the Switch 2 and other more premium controllers available for other consoles. You can manage the functionality of these buttons with game-specific profiles, which is a godsend if you play a lot of experiences across different devices.
The other major new feature is more significant – the Backbone Pro can be used separately from whatever device you’d traditionally use your Backbone for.
Essentially this means that the Backbone Pro is a wireless controller too. Synchronised quickly and simply through a button on the underside of the left side, the Bluetooth-enabled controller will connect with most PCs, tablets and phones, though it won’t work with your console. It’s handy to have in a bind. If you don’t want to connect wirelessly, the traditional USB-C connection, as seen in other Backbones, is here too. You can even connect the Pro to your PC with a wire through USB-C passthrough on the right side. In short, there’s plenty of connection options, and the Backbone Pro switches between them all seamlessly.
While a wired connection is theoretically the fastest, playing twitchy, fast-paced games like Street Fighter 6 and Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound, even via streaming, was a cinch with the Backbone Pro. It feels quick and responsive in all the right ways, which is something that I personally place a high premium on for portable controllers.
The biggest question will be whether the Backbone Pro is worth it for you. It’s retailing for around $ 299 AUD in Australia, and it is pricier than almost every device of this type. Make no mistake, there is no mobile controller that feels better than this, but the lack of haptics or even hall-effect sticks feels like a missed opportunity, given the price. That being said, I have always maintained that you cannot put a price on convenience, and the flexibility of the Backbone Pro, which can be used with multiple devices, cannot be overstated.