KontrolFreek – FPS Freek CQC Signature Edition Review

KontrolFreek is a company that develops controller accessories intended to enhance your gaming experience. The designs of their products is aimed to marry up the concepts of ergonomics and control to give you the comfort you need for long gaming sessions and the precision you need to dominate the competition. What KontrolFreek has done is redefine the way a standard console control should feel and given gamers a low-cost way to enhance what they already have instead of having to fork over a ton of money to get a new, custom-made controller. For those of you wonder, KontrolFreek claims that their gaming accessories are 100% tournament legal and link up to an MLG webpage stating as much.

A few weeks ago we were sent a sample of the FPS Freek CQC Signature Edition accessory. This is designed for First Person Shooter gamers and features a concave thumb surface design for comfort and control. The high is slightly extended and sports a rubberized surface to give you a much stronger grip on both the left and right sticks – especially if you’re playing with a worn down controller. This accessory comes in a set of two (one for the left, one for the right) and can be installed on both the PS3 controller or an XBox 360 controller.

To install the FPS Freek CQC (CQC stands for ‘close quarters combat’) you simply take one of the units and at a slight angle, pop it on the stick. It’s very easy to install and once they are one, they are on and don’t slip off. At the same time they are pretty easy to pop off so if you decide to use them and then want to take them off in the future, it’s no big deal. It should be noted that this new edition is 25% the height of the original and this features a new rubberized surface.

Now, I’ll admit when the company approached us to review these accessories, I was probably the most skeptical of the bunch. Really – these things will increase your grip and control, at around $10 *and* fit on both the PS3 and 360 controller? Having seen some people have done to their controllers and wasted good money on accessories that didn’t delivery I had just cause to be a little cynical. That is, until I actually tried it for myself.

Remarkably, the FPS Freek CQC does in fact make a difference right out of the gate. Now, for me, I have slightly larger than normal hands so adding on does in fact help my grip and hand placement with either controller. In terms of general comfort, it did make the controller a little bit more comfortable, again for a slightly larger than normal set of hands. For children, unless they are an abnormally sized freak, it may not be quite as good a fit but for adult gamers, it should be. Comfort? Check.

In terms of control, it was actually quite surprising that the FPS Freek CQC delivered on the goods. They really do make a difference and make the controller easier and more accurate to control. I noticed right away playing a variety of games such as Madden, FIFA and CoD. Personally, I don’t think that the focus on FPS games is all that big a deal, these seem to work fine no matter what I’m playing. I came away impressed with KontrolFreek, having shown me some serious ingenuity for a low price and redefining what works in a space we all pretty much thought was defined.

If you’re looking for more control, want more comfort and are looking for a pretty affordable way to do it for your PS3 or Xbox 360 controller you should definitely check KontrolFreek out – we have nothing but great things to say about the FPS Freek CQC.