With more and more people returning to in-person work in 2022, hardware has become less an essential need and back to being all about gaming. While an ergonomic keyboard still has its place, wouldn't it be more fun to have one with a bunch of lights? And sure, a comfortable chair is important, but is it more important than a flight stick? We based the 2022 installment of our holiday hardware gift guide simply around having fun, ensuring the special gamer in your life has everything they need to work from home...so long as that work is one-upping your gaming rivals.

 

Best Controller if You Have Multiple Platforms: KingKong 2 (Buy)

There are a ton of controller options for the Nintendo Switch, but few manage to top the official Pro controller in most major ways. The official pad is ergonomic and comfortable, but its d-pad is iffy while its gyroscope is second-to-none for in-controller gyro support in shooters. 8bitdo has a lot of great controllers on the market, but some Switch games lose connectivity with them and they can’t wake the Switch up. The KingKong 2 controller is easily one of the most versatile pads for Switch users that comes in handy for other devices as well. Its d-pad is on-par with the original Xbox One pad in terms of ease of use and its triggers and bumpers feel top-notch and are easy to press from multiple angles. The biggest selling feature about about the pad compared to others is its use of Hall switches for the analog sticks, which helps ensure that there isn’t any stick drift -- and having had the pad for about six months, it’s been pitch-perfect when it comes to aiming so far.

Best Peripheral to Pretend Your Xbox is an Airplane: Turtle Beach VelocityOne Flight (Review) (Buy)

Flight simulation games are a fun way to experience the thrill of flying through the clouds without having to complete an aviation training program. Doing this with a regular gamepad doesn’t recreate the feel of actually flying a plane, but Turtle Beach’s VelocityOne Flight helps bring the experience closer to what a real pilot does. This flight stick is designed to emulate the controls that are found in a real cockpit, including a yoke and dual level modular throttle. Designed specifically for Microsoft Flight Simulator, this accessory is essential in order to create the most realistic flight simulator experience at home. The drawback is this is a peripheral that's specifically designed for one game in particular, so it uses are limited, but for the hardcore flight simulator fan this completely transforms the game with a much greater level of immersion.

Best Solution to PlayStation 5's Woefully Inadequate Hard Drive Capacity: PNY XLR8 SSD Cover with Integrated Heatsink and 1TB XLR8 CS3140 SSD (Review) (Buy)

These are actually two separate products, but go together like bacon and more bacon. The XLR8 SSD Cover with Integrated Heatsink is designed to keep the PlayStation 5 running about 40 percent cooler than it does without any heatsink, which is great news for people who are concerned about their consoles spontaneously combusting in the middle of a play session. While someone is installing this item it wouldn’t be bad idea to install the PNY 1TB XLR8 CS3140 SSD (also available in 2TB and 4TB models). Consoles bursting into flames is not a major concern for most gamers, but filling up that hard drive is a much more common occurrence. Adding an additional terabyte more than doubles the storage capacity of the console. Both items can be installed into the console in a matter of minutes without much difficulty, making this a great gift combo for the gamer who doesn’t want to be bothered with constantly deleting games to make room for all the new acquisitions.

Best Arcade Stick to PWN Your Friends With: PDP Victrix Pro FS Arcade Stick (Buy)

PDP has always offered peripherals, but has recently gotten into the elite controller game. The device that can best back up this claim is no doubt the Victrix Pro Arcade Stick. It's offered in two versions with the Pro FS and Pro FS 12 as these sticks scream superb quality. The Victrix Pro FS is officially licensed by Sony as it's compatible with both PlayStation 4 and 5 along with PC out of the box. The stick is literally as large as the PlayStation 5 itself and could almost use a drink holder. PDP has included a lot of little things that are appreciated once the Victrix Pro gets broken in. This is a wired arcade stick, but thankfully the USB-C cable is extremely long. To help compensate for this, the stick includes cable management options at the top to help compensate for shorter distances. The actual controller is comprised of aircraft-grade aluminum and includes a 6.28º slope to accommodate wrist comfort. This is a hefty controller, but the weight is spread out and the bottom is lined with rubber to make sure it doesn’t move on you. Did I mention there is RGB on each side with different effects that can be changed via the control bar across the front? While arcade sticks may only pertain to the hardcore tournament fighting champions in the world, I quickly realized there are plenty more genres that benefit from one.

Best Aesthetically-Pleasing Gaming Display: NZXT Canvas (Review) (Buy)

Whether you are hunting for a 1080p or 1440p high-refresh rate gaming display, NZXT broke into the game this year with the Canvas displays. These are available in either black or white and can be purchased without a display stand if you’re looking to save some bucks if going for more than one display. The Canvas FHD offers either a 25" or 27" display with refresh rates maxing out at 240hz. The Canvas QHD comes in at 27" or 32" with the option for going curved with the 32". All models are FreeSync Premium compatible and work with NVIDIA G-Sync while offering HDR10, and ultra-slim bezel, rotation and tilt options, and a 1ms response time. Aspects of the monitor can be controlled via the NZXT CAM software. If you feel that something is missing with your monitor, the color will perfectly compliment your system.

Best Affordable Sim Racing Wheel: Fanatec Gran Turismo DD Pro (Review) (Buy)

Plenty of racing game fans are looking to get a competitive advantage in the sport all while searching for a new level of immersion. There are many racing wheels available on the market currently and many are convinced the higher the price, the better the experience. While this is true to a degree, there are wheels available that sit nicely between the two extreme degrees of pricing. While beginner wheels are a solid way to improve not only times but the overall immersion of a racing game, once the world of direct drive wheels is entered, there's no going back. Thankfully, Fanatec has an offering with its Gran Turismo DD Pro Racing Wheel that offers that expert experience at a more affordable price. While the scale of the wheel is smaller, so is the housing that drives the wheel itself. With options to add features including a shifter, handbrake and boost pack for greater immersion and the ability to insert different wheels, the GT DD Pro will put the racer into a new class of racers. Offering excellent force feedback and a comfortable button layout with rear paddle shifters, everything out of the box will have racers satisfied with their purchase. The wheel is compatible with PS4/PS5 and PC and offers the ability to change force feedback settings directly on the wheel.

Best Plug-N-Play Capture Card: NZXT Signal (Review) (Buy)

In the modern era, everyone is looking for a quick and easy way to stream or record their gaming experiences. NZXT broke into the capture card market this year with two cards that aim for either 1080p resolution or 4K. The Signal HD60 allows users to capture video at 1080p and 60FPS while being able to play games in 4K. The Signal 4K30 allows capture at 4K and 30FPS, but opens the door to lower resolutions and offering HDR passthrough so no quality loss occurs during gameplay. The lower resolutions allow 1440p to be captured at 144hz and 1080p at 240hz. This can be useful when streaming PC games to a dedicated machine, as consoles won’t go that high in refresh rate. It works directly with both OBS Studio and Streamlabs out of the box with no hassle. NZXT also offers a separate chat cable for users to communicate while streaming. The device can be easily hidden as it's extremely light and offers four rubber tabs on the bottom to eliminate movement.

Best Wireless eSports Gaming Mouse to Take Home the Gold: Razer Viper V2 Pro Wireless (Review) (Buy)

The idea of wireless peripherals creating a competitive disadvantage has long been thrown out the window. We are at the point now that these wireless devices actually offer a competitive advantage. This is most certainly backed up by the Razer Viper V2 Pro gaming mouse. While this mouse is an updated version of a previous mouse, it maintains its design but ups the technology underneath the hood. The mouse only weighs 58 grams and offers 1000hz polling rate via Razer’s HyperSpeed Wireless Technology. This allows for super fast inputs and movement and that doesn’t include the 99.8% accuracy rate from the Focus+ Pro 30K Sensor. The latest sensor includes Motion Sync for a 1-to-1 transfer to the PC and Smart Tracking that adheres to different surfaces. The MVP of the VALORANT Champions Tour set a record with 35 kills with this mouse. If that’s not taking home the gold then I don’t know what it is.

Best Keyboard That Doubles As A Light Source: Corsair K70 RGB Pro Mechanical Keyboard (Review) (Buy)

There are several viable keyboard options on the market, but one we recommend is the Corsair K70 RGB Pro Mechanical Keyboard. The K70 RGB Pro Mechanical Keyboard connects to the PC using a detachable USB Type-C cable. The aluminum frame makes this keyboard durable and the Cherry MX mechanical switches provide a satisfying clackity sound to each keystroke that boasts lightning-fast response time during even the most hectic gaming moments. This is a keyboard that is designed for both personal at home use and tournament play, where it can hold fifty custom user profiles for personal use, but these can be disabled to prevent accidental activation during tournaments. This keyboard also features powerful iCUE software that allows for programming custom macros and key remapping on both Windows and macOS. This also includes a user-friendly user interface so players can sync up the keyboard’s lightshow with the rest of their supported RGB components.

Best Discord Accessory: Elgato Stream Deck Pedal (Review) (Buy)

For someone who uses a controller, you’ll never see yourself ever going back to the days without a Stream Deck Pedal. Even when you’re on keyboard and mouse, this will become a huge game changer allowing you to have even more control over your overlay applications. This was primarily built for streaming, as the brand name suggests, and while it helps considerably in that area (maybe even more so than the standard Stream Deck itself), it’s the functionality of programs such as Discord that really make it shine. If you find most of your days in a call on Discord, be it playing a game or not, you’ll know that push to talk is an incredible valuable tool to ensure the other person or persons on the other end don’t hear the constant mashing of your buttons or background noises. With a simple tap or hold of your foot, this makes turning such commands on and off a breeze. You can only stretch your fingers out so much (and on a controller, it’s a huge pain), so the Stream Deck Pedal offers an incredible value that will help the vast majority of players. It’s simple to set up and assign commands, something that’s generally hidden from view, and requires such little energy to use. It will no doubt take a little time to get used to your hand-eye-foot coordination, but when things begin to click, it becomes one of the most vital accessories you can have in your gaming setup.


Happy Holidays from everyone at Hardcore Gamer!