When it comes to the ever-growing world of mobile gaming controllers, the Gamevice Flex is a strong contender for the best mobile gaming peripheral around. The controller is stable, adaptable, and has native software designed to help players access compatible games quickly. However, the very same traits that make this controller stand out can also be frustrating and confusing at times, leading to an experience that is currently a bit of a mixed bag.
The design of the Flex is clean and familiar as it was officially designed for Xbox. The Flex starts off super compact, about the same size as the Nintendo Switch's JoyStick controllers when using the included attachment. To fit the customer's device, the backplate unclasps and allows the two sides to stretch apart via an elastic band, thus the name "Flex." Similar to competitors like the Nacon MG-X Pro, the Flex is a really comfortable controller to use thanks to the rounded, ergonomic grips and the small notches on each side, which connect to the backplate, that add a little extra grip .
That extra goes a long way in not only making it comfortable to use for long periods of time, but also in counteracting the feeling of instability that comes from the elastic band. The Flex uses tension to hold the device rather than a hard plastic backing which allows the device to bend and move more than one might expect, but those initial feelings will . It quickly becomes clear that the tension of the elastic band is quite strong and unlike many of its competitors, the Flex comes with multiple adapters that provide a secure fit regardless of phone model or case size.
With its adherence to Xbox's controller design and goal of having a feel, the buttons and analog sticks feel weighty and responsive. The responsiveness is due to connecting directly to the device via its charging port rather than through Bluetooth. Thanks to this, the only noticeable input lag comes from the player's connection to their respective cloud service rather than the Flex itself. For this review, Apple Arcade and Xbox Game Ultimate's cloud service were used to play a variety of games like Dragon Ball Fighter Z, Fortnite, The Pathless, Halo Infinite, and Metal: Hellsinger. While the Flex hardware handled these perfectly, the software did not.
Gamevice Flex has a companion app called Gamevice Live, which acts as a service hub for players. The ed services include GeForce Now, Apple Arcade, Stadia, and Xbox cloud gaming which is available through a Game Ultimate subscription. To help get players started, Gamevice includes a free month of Game Ultimate which is redeemed through Gamevice Live, but the activation process did not work during the review period. Instead, the Xbox Cloud Gaming setup had to be done through more complicated means that were thankfully provided by Xbox itself: here's how to do so with iOS and Android respectively. During this review, Gamevice Live was mostly used as a reference for what mobile games had controller rather than the hub it's meant to be.
That said, this app is still being developed and many of these issues will likely be resolved by the time the Flex launches. Even with software issues, the Gamevice Flex itself is a fantastic mobile peripheral that is sturdy, battery efficient, headphone friendly, and portable; but these features come with a price tag may only be worth it to those who primarily play on mobile. For those gamers, the Flex is one of the best options available.
The Gamevice Flex will be available on October 24th with pre-orders now open through the Gamevice website. Screen Rant was provided with an iPhone flex model for the purpose of this review.