KontrolFreek Blog

Our limited edition, pink FPS Freek Bombshell is going away this Friday night (3/22). She’s proven how deadly she can be so we’re boxing her up until we know what to do with her. She probably won’t be back for a while.

So, if you always wanted a Bombshell but procrastinated (or took up gloving and forgot), now is the time to buy. Don’t wait. We have top men working on it right now… TOP MEN.

Overnight we launched our latest FPS Freek, FPS Freek INFINITY. Inspired by Halo 4, this blue beauty really stands out from the crowd and we’re pretty darn proud of the original design and functionality of it.

For INFINITY we decided to go with a concave thumb surface with an intricate, laser-etched design that provides a high level of grip and control. The extended stick height (0.5 inches) added by INFINITY will put you in total command of your Spartan and makes aiming and strafing much easier during intense multiplayer battles. Infinity is perfect for your right or left thumbstick and is optimized for medium to long-range weapons like the Battle Rifle, DMR and Sniper Rifle.

Want to win FPS Freek INFINTY? We are giving away one pair to one lucky Halo fan right now.

ENTER HERE!

Get ready to “Frag for Free” and play Black Ops 2 on release day without having to part with your hard earned cash. We are giving Facebook fans a chance to win a Black Ops 2 Care Package or one of five Black Ops 2 preorders on your console of choice, all courtesy of KontrolFreek (duh) and I Play COD!

I told you a couple weeks ago that we’d be announcing something big on Facebook. Boom!

To enter, all you need to do is go here and fill out your name and email. Then, just “Like” us on Facebook. It’s that easy!

Contest ends on September 23^rd so hurry up and ENTER NOW!

Next Wednesday night starting at 9PM EST, we’re giving you the exclusive opportunity to spend some quality time with everyone’s favorite gamer, GoldGlove.

If you’re familiar with KontrolFreek LIVE, we’ve got a special treat lined up for you this time. And if you’ve never tuned-in to a KontrolFreek LIVE event before (shame on you), this is the one you won’t want to miss!

For one night only, Brennon “GoldGlove” O’Neill will be letting you in on his Gears of War 3 gameplay tips and entertaining your face off. Plus, we will be giving away five Black Ops 2 pre-orders during the event! You must be registered to win!

To tune-in all you need to do is click here on Wednesday August 22^nd at 9PM EST. If you’d like to join the conversation and get entered to win a copy of Black Ops 2 you’ll need to ask GoldGlove a question using the chat box. We’ll be filtering your questions and only asking him the best ones live on the air. If your question is used you’ll be entered to win a prize—so make it good!

See you there!

Atlanta, GA – October 11, 2011 - KontrolFreek, the leader in creating performance gaming gear for the active gamer lifestyle, today announced it has been awarded a new patent, US Patent # 7993203, by the US Patent and Trademark Office for its gaming control stick adaptors. In addition, KontrolFreek anticipates the future approval of additional patents related to its performance gaming gear.

KontrolFreek’s ergonomically designed controller add-ons were created to provide improved comfort, grip and maneuverability to gamers playing on Xbox and Playstation consoles. In 2007 KontrolFreek introduced its first product, the Speed Freek® controller add-on for racing games, followed soon after with FPS Freek®, designed to serve the needs of the large and rapidly growing First Person Shooter audience. KontrolFreek now produces and sells more than 10 controller add-ons individually designed for shooter, sports and arcade game franchises.

“This patent highlights important key differences in our products and validates the unique contributions KontrolFreek is bringing to the console gaming market,” said Ashish Mistry, President & CEO KontrolFreek. “KontrolFreek’s commitment to innovation is demonstrated through our continued efforts at improving the gaming experience for hundreds-of-thousands of enthusiast, competitive and professional gamers worldwide.”

In addition to the patent award, KontrolFreek has continued to achieve top-line business growth, surpassing 400 percent year-over-year sales growth, and expanded distribution into key retailers via partnership with Microsoft Stores. 

In addition to new products that will be announced before the end of the year, KontrolFreek’s continually expanding portfolio of gaming controller accessories currently includes:

First-Person Shooter

• FPS Freek – KontrolFreek’s flagship controller accessory was created with the sole purpose of better precision and accuracy in first-person shooters via greater leverage, better control and less force.

• FPS Freek EPIC - Created as a tribute to the Gears of War franchise, with a crimson emblem and concave thumb surface designed for optimum comfort and grip.

• FPS Freek LEGENDARY - Extended controller thumbsticks let Halo players make smaller adjustments to track and hit targets faster and more accurately.

• FPS Freek PRESTIGE - Aim is dramatically improved and thumb-fatigue alleviated while playing games like Call of Duty: Black Ops.

Sports

• Football Freek™ – The convex, Euro-style football design is intended for maximum grip and superior ball control in football games including FIFA 12 and Pro Evolution Soccer.

• Speed Freek - This “U” shaped attachment allows for tighter turns and faster lap times in racing games.

• Speed Freek APEX - The racing controller has been updated with improved design features and ergonomic comfort to ensure maximum control across tracks or terrains and at high velocity. 

• Tee Freek™ – Golf ball-like thumb grip and added analog stick height increases range of motion for straighter drives and more accurate short games.

• TD Freek™ - The convex, laced thumbstick grip virtually eliminates thumb slippage. A must-have for fans of Madden and NCAA Football.

• Hoops Freek™ - Basketball-textured thumb pad increases accuracy through a 40% increased range of motion.

Arcade

• Rcade Freek™ – Retro-inspired analog stick enhancements are perfect for side-scroller, platformer, shoot 'em up or classic 2D arcade games.

Life is funny. Sometimes you don’t know something’s broken until one day you get a contraption in the mail that looks like a gadget off of Batman’s utility belt and you snap it on to your controller. Even then, as you proceed to relearn everything you know, you wonder if what you knew was the right way to do things anyway. You savvy? Probably not.

Below is my review of The Avenger controller adaptor by N-Control. The opinions herein belong to me alone and do not reflect those of KontrolFreek.

The Avenger snaps easily to your standard Xbox 360 controller. All you have to do is open it like a clamshell, insert your controller and close until it snaps. The Avenger also comes with a couple foam stickers that you place on both bumpers and the “A” button. I wasn’t sure at first why these were even included (they made the whole package seem hokey) but after playing with them for a while I quickly understood that N-Control has their reasons. They add a subtle yet effective tactile-ness to the remaining “naked” buttons. Nice touch. You’ll then need to make a few small adjustments by experimenting with how you would like to position the levers/rockers. Once you’ve got everything where you want it, you’re mostly good to go. The “trigger skis” feel a tad awkward at first—especially because I normally let my index fingers do the shooting—and the intimidation aspect is certainly something to consider. I’d recommend staying offline until you get a feel for it.

After playing a few levels of Halo: Reach’s campaign, I started to adjust. I was able to reload and switch weapons without ever taking my thumb off the right stick—definitely a plus when tracking those pesky Elites. Actions felt intuitive and fast, however, sometimes during intense firefights my fingers would accidentally do something I didn’t want them to do, like switch weapons instead of melee. Obviously, with more practice and further adjustment of the lever-thingys this can probably be remedied. Even while using the Avenger not as intended (by ignoring the levers and just using it like you’d normally use a controller), the mechanism that engages the face buttons brings the buttons much closer to your Freek-raised right thumbstick and lets you make some ultra-fast actions. Goodnight Covees!

The many positives do come at a cost, though. Every headset will not be compatible. The SteelSeries 7XB that I’m currently using is not compatible; nor will most that use a “puck” style jack for voice chat. Bummer.

Overall, I really like the Avenger. It’s a cool looking attachment that functions well alongside some FPS Freeks. With some more practice, I think I could probably go online and be competitive—I won’t yet—but I think I could. The learning (or relearning) curve is a commitment. It will take some time and patience to get comfortable with it. I have no doubt, though, that in the right hands the Avenger could be a dangerous weapon.

Retail price: $49.99

http://www.avengercontroller.com/