Razer Wolverine V3 Pro review – like the Xbox Elite Series 2 but better, in almost every way

Razer's Wolverine V3 Pro controller has been designed with 1 goal: to beryllium the champion third-party Xbox and PC controller connected the marketplace astatine each costs.

The marketplace is flooded with premium controllers for superior gamers and esports players astatine the highest level. But if you're looking for 1 with Xbox and PC functionality specifically, 1 enactment ranked supra each others: the Xbox Elite Series 2. But present that Razer has entered the chat with the Wolverine V3 Pro, the Elite Series 2 Controller finally has immoderate genuine competition.

For 1 thing, the Razer Wolverine V3 Pro Controller comes successful astatine a wallet-busting £199.99 / $199.99 / AU$349.95, which is 31% much costly than the Xbox Elite Series 2 Controller, which we called a earnestly high-tier gamepad successful our review. So, is it worthy the other cost?

Razer Wolverine V3 Pro plan and features

Unsurprisingly, the Wolverine V3 Pro shares a batch of similarities with the Elite Series 2, featuring an each achromatic design, with modular Xbox buttons (A, B, X, Y, L1, L2, R1, R2), 2 thumbsticks, a d-pad, 4 detachable backmost paddles, trigger toggles (instant and longer travel), Xbox button, paper button, stock button, USB-C connection, 3.5mm audio jack and a truly grippy, rubbery texture connected the rear of the controller wherever it meets your palms.

On the surface, if you were to enactment them broadside by side, there's not overmuch betwixt them. But if you look a spot closer, the Wolverine V3 Pro attempts to one-up the Elite Series 2 wherever it can.

For starters, the Wolverine V3 Pro is immoderate 40g lighter than the Elite Series 2, and inactive manages to see mecha-tactile Xbox buttons, 2 other bumper buttons connected the apical (M1, M2) and 4 paddles with the aforesaid actuation recovered successful Razer gaming mice. But, the biggest upgrade of each is the hallway effect joysticks, which makes the Elite Series 2 thumbsticks consciousness astir Victorian successful comparison.

Razer claims that the thumbsticks person anti-friction rings and pro-grade materials, which marque them smoother, lighter and much durable, and you tin surely consciousness it. Oh, and it features an RGB lit Razer logo connected the look too, due to the fact that of people it does.

Although it's lighter, it does consciousness somewhat bulkier successful the manus erstwhile compared to the Elite Series 2, which suited my manus and digit size beauteous nicely, but if you're idiosyncratic with smaller hands oregon shorter fingers, it mightiness not consciousness truthful suited to you.

Razer Wolverine V3 Pro Controller cardinal specs

• Platform: Xbox and PC
• Connectivity: HyperSpeed Wireless via included USB-A dongle
• Multi-function buttons: 4 rodent click backmost paddles and 2 claw prip bumpers
• Triggers: 2 hallway effect analog triggers with rodent click trigger stops
• Thumbsticks: hallway effect precision thumbsticks

• Mechanical enactment buttons: Razer mecha tactile Action Buttons and eight-way d-pad

• Battery: astir 20 hours artillery life

Much similar Xbox, Razer has its ain proprietary wireless modular called HyperSpeed Wireless, and that features here, delivering a 2.4Ghz transportation via the included USB dongle, that connects seamlessly to Xbox oregon PC. But, if you plug it successful to a PC with the included USB-C cable, the controller supports a diagnostic called PC Tournament Mode, enabling a 1000Hz polling complaint which, successful theory, should marque it consciousness much responsive, arsenic the higher polling complaint a instrumentality has, the much accusation the instrumentality is sending to your PC. For comparison, the Elite Series 2's polling complaint is locked to 124Hz.

'But what astir customisation?' I perceive you inquire – good there's plentifulness of that, with the Razer Controller App for PC allowing you to alteration thumbstick sensitivity, fastener layout, vibration sensitivity and adjacent the RGB too.

You besides get a swanky carrying lawsuit which, again, feels somewhat amended than the 1 you get with the Elite Series 2 arsenic it's made of a softer material, which besides includes a 10ft USB-C cable, 2 replaceable thumbsticks (one shorter thumb headdress and 1 longer dome cap), and aforementioned wireless dongle.

Razer Wolverine V3 Pro Controller performance

I utilized the Wolverine V3 Pro beauteous overmuch regular implicit the people of astir 2 months, and transverse tested it with a assortment of games, including Black Ops 6, Warzone, F1 24, EA FC 25 and Elden Ring, and I hardly person immoderate notes. If superior show is what you're after, the Wolverine V3 Pro is the controller for you.

The hall-effect thumbsticks are incredibly precise, giving you existent assurance successful tense shootouts and choky corners, wherever you request them to beryllium choky and accurate, portion the mecha-tactile Xbox buttons are satisfyingly instant, and springiness you nice, clicky feedback. Picking up useless items ne'er felt truthful bully with this controller.

Clicky, satisfying feedback is simply a communal taxable with this controller, with astir each of the buttons and paddles giving you a gaming mice-like consciousness erstwhile they're pressed, making everything consciousness tighter and of precocious quality. Razer advertise a alternatively vague artillery beingness of 'around' 20 hours connected a afloat charge, and it comfortably met this fig successful my testing.

But if you're a superior gamer, you'll privation to usage your controller plugged into your PC and usage the PC Tournament Mode, which increases the polling complaint to 1000Hz, which is thing that the champion players volition beryllium capable to instrumentality vantage of. In my testing, I didn't consciousness a important difference, but I americium perfectly not a pro player. If you are, it could springiness you a competitory advantage.

The highest compliment I could perchance wage to the Wolverine V3 Pro is that erstwhile I went backmost to the Elite Series 2 aft a fewer weeks of testing, it made Xbox's premium first-party controller consciousness loose, dense and stodgy by comparison. I bash person to preface this with the information I've owned the Elite Series 2 for a fewer years now, truthful its show could person degraded implicit that time, but regardless, the Wolverine V3 Pro is present my go-to controller, and the Elite Series 2 is sat successful it's carrying lawsuit successful a drawer gathering particulate arsenic we speak.

My lone gripe is simply a tiny 1 – the attached thumbsticks are slightly, precise slightly, excessively gangly for my liking, and though you bash get 1 shorter, domed thumbstick included, there's lone 1 of them. Personally, I would person liked 2 shorter thumbsticks included that I could power to, but that's conscionable due to the fact that that suits my style, peculiarly successful FPS games.

Overall thoughts connected the Razer Wolverine V3 Pro Controller

The Razer Wolverine V3 Pro is simply a earnestly awesome controller, taking everything bully astir the Elite Series 2 and improving connected it successful astir each way, whether it's the hall-effect thumbsticks, the tactile buttons, the value oregon adjacent the carrying case, Razer's premium controller would comfortably bushed the Elite Series 2 successful a crippled of Top Trumps.

That is, successful astir each mode different than the price, with the Wolverine V3 Pro costing 31% much than the Elite Series 2 astatine the clip of writing, which is significant. But, let's get existent for a minute, if you're already prepared to walk that overmuch connected a premium Xbox and PC controller, you privation the best, right? If you do, the Razer Wolverine V3 Pro is precisely that.