Controller: Raiju Tournament Edition
Year: 2018
Developer: Razer
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Razer is similar to Nacon in which it is a company that deals with making different kinds of ESport Pro Elite Gaming Controllers to give the players a competitive edge over others. The company has released a couple of different controllers that were designed for competitive gaming for an overly expensive price tag of £200 and one of these is the Raiju Tournament Edition released in 2018. The Raiju Tournament Edition Controller is Pro Elite Gaming Controller with some interesting ideas with the Trigger Buttons & Back Buttons called Multi-Function Buttons but suffers from some bad design decisions that hold the controller from being the next go to competitive controller.
Like all of the Third-Party Pro PlayStation 4 Controllers it is supposed to work with the PlayStation 4 console with also compatibility on PC. It also works on the PS3 in case you ask but the Home Button doesn't operate for it for some reason. Opening the box inside you'll get the controller itself included with a Micro-USB Cable that plugs into the controller which has a nice slot to plug it in with the other end being a standard USB that plugs into the console, alongside the user guide instructions on how to set it up.
Setting up the device is simple enough for when you want to play in wired mode, you first need to plug in the controller from the Micro-USB to end of the standard USB into either the PS4 or the PC, make sure that the controller device is in USB Mode by the switch located on the back of the console. When the console is turned on make sure everything is plugged in and lastly press the Home Button to turn on the controller.
As for setting the device in wireless mode for either PS4 or PC is a bit more complex, you first need to go to the Bluetooth Devices (Bluetooth Accessories on the PS5) in the Accessories Options Menu in Settings then while in the Bluetooth Devices Menu press and hold the Home and Share Buttons for a few seconds to put the controller into Pairing Mode. While it is in Pairing Mode the Raiju Tournament Edition Controller should appear on the Bluetooth Devices Menu, select the controller in the menu and select yes to register it onto your console. You can then disconnect the cable from the controller, place the switch on the back of the controller on to PS4 Mode and finally press the Home Button to activate the controller in wireless mode.
Setting up the controller for wireless play on the PC is a similar deal, you set the controller to PC Mode then press and hold the Options & Home Buttons for a few seconds to activate pairing mode. On your PC go to Devices and Bluetooth & other devices in the settings menu, while in the Bluetooth & other devices menu click add Bluetooth & other devices which will bring up the setup window, afterwards select Bluetooth and then click the Raiju Tournament Controller to add it and then click done. After that you can remove the cables and press the Home Button again to connect the controller wirelessly through Bluetooth and play wirelessly. So, setting up the controller to play wirelessly takes some time because you need to install the drivers on both your PC and PS4 console in order to use the controller wirelessly and once they are installed you just need to toggle the switches if you want to play wirelessly or wired on either your PS4 or PC. In Wireless Mode the controller lasts for about 19 hours on a single charge which is impressive for a Pro Competitive gamepad.
The Raiju Tournament Edition Controller is designed to be a competitive type controller for competitive games and it has the main functions necessary for competitive gaming. It has the control button layout of an Xbox/Nintendo Switch type controller that has the Main Face, Triggers, Bumpers, Touch Pad Buttons, Analog Sticks, D-Pad, Options, Home & Share Buttons which all function very much like a standard PS4 controller. It even has a 3.5 Headphone Jack where you can use your compatible headphone microphone with the controller to communicate with others online and the controller works with any headset that you might have laid around and picks up voices without issue.
The controller does have some unique things that make it different from other Third-Party Controllers on the PS4. Firstly it has two Trigger Stop Switches located on the back of the controller that lock the Triggers in place by sliding the switches which means that you can use the Triggers like standard buttons which for shooters this is a very welcome feature and the Trigger Buttons function very well with the Stop Switches and you can use the Stop Switches if you want to reduce the response time which you will want for certain games.
Much like all of the competitive pro controllers there are the Back Buttons called Multi-Function Buttons which you can use to make quick reaction presses without having to move your fingers to buttons that have a distance from each other. This controller has two Multi-Function Triggers located on the back of the controller and also two Multi-Function Bumpers located near the Main Triggers & Bumper Buttons that can be customized to give you the fast responses that you need in a serious competitive game where you want the edge over other players.
Customizing the Multi-Function Buttons, however, with this controller is a horrendous pain due to a bad design decision. Normally with every Third Party PS4 Controller that has Customizable Back Buttons or Multi-Function Buttons you just hold down the Set Button for a few seconds to put the controller into customize mode where you can then chose one of the Back Buttons you want to setup and then pick whichever button on the controller from the D-Pad, Triggers, Bumpers, or any of the Four Main Face Buttons on the controller that you want to set the Back Button to and then repeat the process with the remaining other Buttons on the controller.
The Raiju Tournament Edition, however, doesn't follow the same customizable Back Button rulebook compared to so many others. Instead in order to customize the Multi-Function Buttons you need to have an Android/iOS Phone Device with the Razer Raiju Controller App Installed which you can still get from the Apple & Google Store Pages for Free. The Razer Raiju Controller App can do a couple of things, from not only being able to remap the Multi-Function Buttons to the button setup you want them, customize the Analog Stick Deadzone, manage the Chroma Settings as well as setting up different custom profiles that are tied to your online Razer account. The mobile app works with not only the Raiju Tournament Edition but also the Raiju Ultimate and the Razer Wolverine V2 Pro as well and you can customize them to your liking. That is fine, that is if you have an iOS/Android Device with the app to be able to do the customizing but if you don't have an iOS/Android Device let alone the mobile app then you can't do any Multi-Function Button Customizing and even worse there is no version of the app for the PC. I mean come on Razer, that is just ridiculous and stupid, even Nacon with their pro controllers have customizable Back Buttons and have an app that you can download on PC to setup controller profiles and best of all their pro controller's Back Buttons can even be customized without the app. Just not being able to customize any of the Multi-Function Buttons without the requirement of the mobile phone app or not even offer up a PC version of the app is a huge design oversight on Razer's part especially if you bought one that doesn't have any of the Multi-Function Buttons setup.
How does the controller feel in hand? Well, it is a very comfortable controller to hold and all of the buttons do feel nice to put your thumbs and fingers on. All of the buttons on the controller have a very clicky feel when you press them and it is a fantastic feel, the buttons have the right sound feel to them when you press a button which is what makes the buttons on the controller so excellent.
As for the D-Pad I will say that I do like that it looks like a classic PlayStation style D-Pad looking very much like a PSOne D-Pad and if you are familiar with the original D-Pad designs with the Dual Shock Controllers on the PSOne/PS2/PS3 then you'll like what Razer attempted with their controller. However, what stops it from being a great D-Pad is that it is designed at a downward curve much similar to the Thumbsticks today having that same downward curve which to designers looks to be a place to rest your thumb on for comfort but instead it is the total opposite as the downward curve placement of the D-Pad just makes it awkward and uncomfortable to use. There were times I use the D-Pad to try and move in a 2D game or try to do special moves in fighting games but however the D-Pad thanks to the awkward design either outright doesn't register diagonal motion or the D-Pad has me doing something else instead of the input I want my character to do. That has been an issue ever since the Xbox 360 era and it still is a problem with the Razer Raiju Tournament Edition Controller. I may like that the D-Pad has that original PlayStation Style D-Pad but the positioning and curving of the D-Pad combined with how the input responds just makes it a really bad D-Pad.
Speaking of Thumbsticks this controller also uses the Thumbsticks which we have all seen a hundred times on many of those Xbox/Nintendo Switch type controllers of the modern era just that they have a crosshair like look to them and it is very uncomfortable to put my thumbs on. Thankfully placing Third Party Thumbgrips like the GTX Pro Thumbgrips will fit on to the Thumbsticks of the controller very easily and are recommended.
As for everything else on how it plays when you have everything set up, the Razer Raiju Tournament Pad excels for the most part in being a competitive game controller. It is a great working controller for many of the competitive games you would want to use the controller for. It is great for shooters like Fortnite or Call of Duty where you use the Multi-Function Buttons to quickly switch to another weapon, jump or crouch without needing to move your thumbs from the Analog Sticks. It is great for sports games where you can make quick reactions to take back the ball and get one last ultimate goal to win the game.
While it may lack any Light Bar or any Six-Axis Motion Controls it does have a Touch Pad which works for games that make use of the Touch Pad Functionality so if you did want to use the controller for any Touch Pad heavy games then you can do that with this controller.
The Razer Rajiu Tournament Edition nearly succeeds in being a decent choice for those wanting a competitive controller and doing its own thing compared to what Nacon offers. There is good intentions of this controller like the Trigger Stop Switch Mechanism to make the Triggers respond like regular buttons which is good for shooters, I love the clicky feel of the buttons, an attempt at doing a classic PlayStation style D-Pad is decent and I like having two Multi-Function Bumpers near the real Trigger and Bumper Buttons. When all of the controller functionality is set up it works for the competitive games you want to play competitively with. The biggest main drawback is how Razer expects you to setup the controller, if you don't have an iOS/Android Phone Device and the Mobile App to setup the controller for competitive gaming you won't be able to customize the controller's Multi-Function Buttons to use the controller to its full potential. This is one of those £200 pro controllers that you would have to ask yourself before you make the decision to purchase the controller. Are you willing to put with it the hassle in getting the Mobile Device with the app installed to set up an overly expensive pro controller that has uncomfortable Thumbsticks and D-Pad setup with no way of being able to do the customization on the PC? If not then this controller is not for you and you should consider getting the pro controllers from Nacon or cheaper pro controllers online instead that provide much better ways of customizing controllers for competitive play.
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Review Score: 6/10
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The Goods
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Two Multi-Function Buttons placed near the Trigger & Bumper Buttons is a unique setup
Trigger Stop Switch Mechanism is cool to make the Triggers feel & respond like standard Buttons
Very Clicky Buttons and classic PSOne style D-Pad
19 Long Battery Life for playing Wirelessly
The Bads
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Customizing the Multi-Function Buttons requires the Mobile App and there is no PC version of the App
Uncomfortable Thumbsticks
D-Pad downward curve position is uncomfortable for the thumb
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