Game Gripper review
By Tim Stevens 
posted April 23rd 2010 12:11PM
posted April 23rd 2010 12:11PM
The Gripper is a simple rubber thing that just slides on over the keypad. It's been more or less hand made, that much is easy to tell, but it feels durable and its size plus flexibility means it'd be comfortable enough to stick in a pocket or can be tossed into a bag without breaking. Our initial fears that the buttons would have horrible feel turned out to be unwarranted, as they actually have a decent tactility to them. It's nothing like the feel of a standard gamepad, but it's not necessarily bad.
We played a number of games for a number of hours and about the only complaint we have is that the Gripper has a tendency to slide left-to-right a bit when you're frantically tapping in games like Street Fighter 2. But, that could be seen as a good thing, as the unit comes with a rather scary warning that pushing too hard could potentially damage your phone's keyboard. Perhaps we're being a bit optimistic, but that sliding does let you know when you're getting a bit too forceful. Regardless, it rarely slid so much as to cause us to hit the wrong buttons.
After those hours of play we never noticed any change in feel on the keys being pressed, nor any marks on them or any other sign of damage, so we're reasonably sure you can load up those emulators to your heart's desire and get your game on without fear of permanent damage -- if you can rein in that super-human finger strength you've been developing all these years.
Wrap-up
For $15 the Game Gripper turns a Droid (or Milestone) into a far more capable gaming machine and, while we do wish there were some way to add shoulder buttons to the thing, we were actually able to map the camera and volume up buttons to be R and L, respectively, giving a reasonable facsimile for an SNES controller. The feel isn't perfect, but we're satisfied, and after a few days with one we certainly don't want to game without it.
Oh, and if you happen to be playing on some other device, you'll be happy to know that there's a Gripper coming for the Devour, Backflip, and the N900 too.
Physical Keyboards Win - SUPER COMBO FINIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIISH!
@LiveFromThe215
http://instantsfun.es/combobreaker
@LiveFromThe215
Yup, we need one for the iPhone and iPod touch.. on screen controls cover most of the screen, and I have slim piano playing fingers... (because I play piano, real piano not Rockband crap)
cmon one for the Dock so I can get my MAME fix.
@AppleDrank
i didn't think there was a piano for rockband
@LiveFromThe215
That photoshoot you guys did is FTW.
Brings back fond memories :-)
I like the idea, although carrying that thing around seems a little cumbersome. I guess it's good for road trips/flights.
Does anyone know any added peripheral like a controller for a Hero/Eris? Reply to me!
@shloopa Hero/Eris... You're kidding right? Why would they make anything like this for a touch screen phone? Or were you looking for something that makes it 'easier' to press the TWO buttons (minus the trackball) on the Hero/Eris?
@SoFRESH You know the droid is touchscreen right....???
My thoughts exactly,... its not the cinco phone from cinco products,....great job! But adding a mini usb controller and mapping it wouldn't be rocket science...
Long live Blaster Master!
@BlueSpud45 Perhaps the best game of all time.
Basically I wish i could replace my droid keys with buttons like this. Make it in a similar vein as a pspgo
@gltovar This! I'm waiting for a HTC EVO spec'd device with what you just described. Oh, and also some dedicated media playback keys (maybe above the dpad) and and a physical camera button! I'd also like a REAL tactile navigation buttons (menu, home, back, and search), none of that capacitive touch key crap for me! Oh and swype pre-installed, please make it happen HTC!
Sorry, but I love buttons...
@mikeriosisawhoredotcom No kidding. I can understand the capacitive buttons, it allows more real estate for for the screen.
But man, and EVO with a psp controll input would be redic. With the hdmi out you have a pretty complete solution for light pc use and extremely engaging entertainment.
@gltovar Tell you what, let's both cross our fingers, pray, and hope that the HTC design gods hear our prayers... pleasepleaseplease
And you guys have convinced me to order one. Can't wait to play some SNES games on my DROID.
@danielgary I can't wait for the N900 one to come.
FFVII, Resident Evil 2, Matt hoffman bmx, Abes odyssey and now no need to have a PS3 control with me is going to be great :D
Seeing this reminded me of a Bluetooth gamepad from MSI I saw a while ago. Being bluetooth, it should work with almost any bluetooth equipped smartphone. Here is a link to it: http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.13760
@gurwu
Funny you should mention that since the maker of almost all (all of?) the emulators in the marketplace added beta support for this and one other bluetooth gamepad in the most recent update.
when is one coming for the n-gage?
Just pre-ordered two of them. Engadget is helping Hyrum Fairbanks a lot with this review. Very nice work Engadget, reviewing hardware that isn't necessarily mainstream, helping out the little guys.
Lol...he said rubber thingy....
As a former N-Gage owner, I still think that thing was way ahead of its time. With some decent developers and marketing it would have been huge. The thing had actual decent 3D gaming which people are still trying to get right now. And Emulators on the thing were bliss. Could play real-time Tony Hawk multiplayer over BlueTooth FFS...
@Brad I had one too, the screen orientation was garbage though.
You guys forgot to leave a link to their site:
http://sites.google.com/site/gamegripper/home
--Bill
If only the Droid had a Touch Pro2 class keyboard! That thing can be used for gaming all on it's own. Too bad the processor on that phone sucks so much!
I'm gonna post the same thing that I posted when this GG was first announced:
You wouldn't need a device like this if the phone makers would realize how important real physical buttons are to these devices.
The phone maker that comes out with a modern-day N-Gage phone will reap huge sales.
Mark my words - the pent-up demand for a PSPhone is huge.
If sony made a gaming phone, not only would it probably be incredible from a hardware standpoint, but from a game development standpoint. Just imagine sonys game studios finally making games for phones? I want patapon on my phone. PON-PON-PATA-PON!
Yay I can get one for my Droid and my N900!!!
What is that Jaguar abomination doing there?
Mine is pre-oredered (black with blue buttons) and I can't wait. I don't see myself always carrying this around but if you know you'll be waiting somewhere for a while (doctor,DMV,train) it's a no brainer. Just throw it in your pocket and pull it out when it's game time.
I have an idea! So think of a little plasticky patch with an adhesive side that can adhere to cell phone screens. And if this was patch contained some conductive threads inside, you can attach it to anywhere you like on a touch screen mimicking buttons!
No? Damn.
"Rein in".
@John Stracke Ugh, thanks.
I ordered one last week and will be getting a black one with orange buttons. It will be nice to have much better tactile feedback and a dpad that isn't horrible.
I wish it was made in a color scheme that matched the Droid... Black and gold, not white and red!
what about bluetooth controllers? I'd like one with dual analog control.
Oops I see you can order any color combo you want... good on ya Game Gripper!
Just ordered one!
Black w/ red buttons -- seemed the logical DROID color scheme!
What an awesome, easy, simple (and relatively cheap!) fix to turn the Droid, and other phones, into better gaming machines! Very clever!
looks like a droid diaper
Love the NES Max in the background. My favorite NES controller by a landslide.
The Ascii Pad with assignable turbo switches for the SNES was my other favorite retro controller, up until Sony's excellent PSX controller.
Taking a creative idea and turning it into a viable product for the masses! Good job Mr. Fairbanks. You will be rewarded with my gladly given $15 for this device.
Contra, Mike Tyson's Punchout, and Super Tecmo Bowl sure beat the pants of finger flicking skee ball!
Droid does (again)!
I don't suppose this works with a case applied to the body of the droid, eh?
@daveofferson
From FAQ:
"Will the game gripper work with a case?
"Truth is, we don't know. There are many cases out there that are all different sizes, and we haven't tested the Game Gripper on any of them."
Cant wait to see this thing for N900 :) With Sega and Nintendo emulators it gonna be awesome !!!!
How long is it gonna take for someone to write a PS3 driver for Android? :/
They should've made a Bluetooth gamepad with the same formfactor and real buttons.
I hope they come out with possibly a usb snap on device for the ERIS that would be nifty.