One of our favourite gaming accessories of last year, the CRKD Nitro Deck, was able to legitimately turn the Nintendo Switch into a more comfortable handheld console by aping the form factor of the Steam Deck and Wii U Gamepad. It’s fair to say that technology can move at an alarming rate in gaming, and so is the case here, with the arrival of an updated Nitro Deck+ which builds on the original’s excellent form, while adding in the features that fans were crying out for. The result? An excellent device, but one which swaps improvements in some places for downgrades in others.
The Nitro Deck+ feels like a more serious device than the original, even if it’s fundamentally answering the same design brief. This is an all encompassing grip, which your Nintendo Switch device slides happily into, swapping out the thin and often flimsy feeling Switch and Joy-Con combo for something far more robust and comfortable.
Our Nitro Deck+ was mainly built from smoked black plastic – a clear white version is also available – with black buttons and hardware, and a flash of metallic purple beneath each analogue stick. Compared to the purple Nitro Deck we originally tested, it’s more grown-up and less obvious, though I do miss the GameCube colour scheme.
Just as with the original, the Nitro Deck+ feels rock solid, and though it’s quite light when taken on its own, once you’ve added the Nintendo Switch itself, it comes in at 598g, which feels relatively close to the Steam Deck’s 640g. I’ve never had a problem with the additional heft, but it might be something worth considering for younger gamers.
The most obvious change in this new iteration is the positioning of the right analogue stick, with CRKD shifting it from its original offset position to a symmetrical design. While I never found the Nitro Deck’s stick positioning to be a problem, apparently everyone else did, and with the shift there are definitely some improvements to be found, particularly if you play FPS games. I spend a lot of time on Overwatch 2 – a lot – and it felt much more at home on the Nitro Deck+, but the changes to the stick have had some annoying consequences.
Moving the right stick meant that the face buttons had to go somewhere, and their positioning directly beneath the stick feels unnatural. You have to move the palm of your hand out to comfortably access the B button, and given that you’re probably using that one the most (depending on the game) it can be a problem. Now, if you’ve got small hands it feels as though there’s going to be less of an issue, but if you’re an adult human being, these are potentially major changes.
The annoying thing is, CRKD have listened to all the feedback for the original, and really piled the improvements in. The most exciting one is that the Nitro+ now functions as a dock, meaning you can immediately hook your Switch up to the TV while travelling. The caveat is that you will still have to carry a USB-C to HDMI adaptor around with you, and a pretty lengthy HDMI cable unless you bring another controller, but it answers one of the loudest requests from the community. It’s a welcome change, especially if you travel a lot, but it won’t replace the ease of using Nintendo’s dock at home.
While the face buttons have moved in a way that isn’t an improvement, there are now two additional face buttons to the left and right of the device, nestling next to each stick. As with the back buttons, you can program these on the fly, and move whatever main input to them you choose. If you’re willing to put in the time, they’re a quick and appreciably easy extra pair of buttons to manage. They make a lovely tactile click too.
The chunky back buttons make the face buttons’ woes easier to deal with, assuming that you’re the kind of person who likes a back button. All four of them here are chunky, responsive and easy to reach, and if you’re playing competitively they mean you can basically forget about the face buttons.
I loved the CRKD Nitro Deck, and the changes to the Deck+ have answered some of the community’s most requested feedback. However, while the right stick is arguably in a far more comfortable place, and one which promotes its ease of use and accuracy, the face buttons, particularly the B button at the bottom of the device, are not as comfortable to use.
Once you’ve added in the ability to use the Deck+ as a dock, and the additional buttons, I’d say that it’s a fractionally improved device. Having spent a number of weeks with it, it hasn’t left my Switch, and for the games I’m playing the face buttons haven’t caused an issue. You need to consider though if that’s going to be the case for you. If you can live without the dock functionality, you might still be better off seeking out one of the originals.
