Crikey, is it 2007 again? Yes, accessory manufacturer CRKD – known primarily for the Nitro Deck – has teamed up with renowned guitar maker Gibson to unleash two new controllers for use on Switch and other devices.
Available for pre-order now and expected to ship in June 2025, the two products are known as the LP Black Tribal Encore Edition and the LP Blueberry Burst Pro Edition, the latter of which comes with mechanical fret buttons and a hall effect whammy bar for an extra tenner. Not bad!
Speaking of price, you’re looking at $109.99 / €129.99 / £109.99 for the Black Tribal Encore Edition and $119.99 / €139.99 / £119.99 for the Blueberry Burst Pro Edition. Both models are available for multi-format, but there’s also an officially licensed Xbox variant of both that costs a little bit more.
Looking closer at the guitars’ features, both include an eight-button navigation hub, a mode dial, a d-pad situated on the headstock, RGB lighting down the neck, tilt sensors, and support for both wired and wireless play. The only difference between the two is the aforementioned mechanical keys and hall effect whammy bar, and of course the design.
Additional necks can be purchased alongside a carrying case, so if you perhaps prefer the design of the Black Tribal Encore Edition but want to benefit from mechanical keys, then that’s an option too.
Now, let’s check out these bad boys:
CRKD recently launched the NEO S Purple Wave Edition controller, a Fortnite Festival-themed pad that we weren’t all that keen on. If you’re someone who’s eager to get rocking with Harmonix’s rhythm title on Switch, then these new guitar controllers might just be what you’re waiting for. Heck, they’re a bit more affordable than Gibson’s actual guitars, at least.