The GameSir G8 Galileo controller for iOS and Android – lots of potential for bringing your games on the road
The GameSir G8 Galileo controller is a USB-C attachable joystick/control pad combo that works with PlayStation Remote, XBOX Remote Play, Android, and several others (Steam is listed.) I have only tested this with the first three and let me tell you zipping along as Spider-Man on my Google Pixel 8 Pro using PS Remote was fun, Mortal Kombat 11 on XBOX’s remote play was a bit more impressive but that entirely has to do with where my consoles are physically located at the moment and less about the game or platform.
TL;DR – really cool idea/product, but attempting to mobile gaming on a phone is still annoying in 2023.
It features analog hall-effect triggers and sticks, so that should last for a pretty long time without any drift, the controller can be switched into multiple modes (PS/XB/Android), and keys remapped through the GameSir app, and generally is a pretty solid little controller.
So to preface the rest of the review – I review things as they happen and what I find annoying. This is a pretty good controller with a wide array of features and configuration options, I encountered some issues, they are not particularly game-killers for me. I list them out in case they’re game killing issues for you.
At this point my complaints are few and mostly are that this is emulating an XBOX and a PS5 controller and as such it’d be nice if they’d make the L1/L2 R1/R2 feel more like a premium console controller because they don’t. There’s no tactile separation… if you’re a gamer you’re going to get it, but it doesn’t feel exactly like either of the name brand controllers and that sort of throws me. Maybe I’m just set in my ways but it feels like a little more oomph on the front triggers and this is a serious contender. Some tactile feedback maybe?
Also the color reminds me of a Nintendo 64, and every time I look at it I just think it’s time for Mario, where’s the cartridge? But maybe that’s just me. Color options would be nice as opposed to graygggee.
There are two buttons on the bottom under the d-pad, one of them takes a screenshot. You’ll manage to hit that multiple times in your training on this thing. It’ll lock you out of the game for a few seconds while you’re waiting for the screenshot confirmation (edit, more/scroll, discard,) to go away.
The GameSir app, which is required to do button mappings and configuration on some games tends to force close quite often on the Pixel 8 Pro. It’s so far not killed anything, but it needs some work as well as a permissions check. Too many permissions, too many crashes, and unfortunately I found you need that later.
Absolutely despise having to remove my case to put into a wraparound controller. If I’m going to drop my phone I put odds that it’s while I’m playing with it as a handheld.
An overall enjoyable controller once you’ve got it set right and are in your game.
The unrelated to the GameSir G8 Galileo controller story of my frustration with remote and Android gaming
This review was severely hindered by chemotherapy, and the state of gaming on Android in general. I spent two days with the XBOX remote play telling me I needed to set up a new console and then never letting me set it up. Then day 3, after trying this that and the other it suddenly was just working on two phones I had tried it and failed previously. Yeah, zero idea on that.
I decided to play Fortnight as this would get me off of remote dependency, and here’s the picture of what I saw for the next two days:
Discovered that this would work on PS5 remote play and was like “hell yeah” and my PS5 was dead… that luckily was a cable issue.
I’ve installed a few Android games now, and the fact that they all have to be configured to work with whatever controller I’m using is kind of a pain. That’s not GameSir’s issue, more of a long standing failure on Play Games part. Or I can’t find universal joystick settings.
So be aware that while this controller is pretty good, the frustration level can be high because everything else.
Some actual issues (encountered after the first two weeks)
I mentioned the GameSir app is a force-close mess. I’d generally say uninstall and play on because that app is not really needed. I’d been chugging along and relatively enjoying this controller but I was asked to include a gameplay video, which has been the plan but sure didn’t get done at publication time.
Then the controller stopped working for me. I’ll skip the troubleshooting involved, but 5 or 6 buttons had suddenly become fast repeat. This is an option you’ve got by holding the M down and whatever controller item you want for two seconds, kicks it into turbo/fast repeat mode.
I hadn’t done it, there was no option to reset everything, so I installed the GameSir app, went to controller testing, and figured out which buttons had been reconfigured to turbo/twitch mode and disabled that one by one.
No idea. Easy fix but no clue why 5 of the buttons became customized for uselessness. Game play video is incoming, but I’ve spent a lot of time dealing with the controller and software and the fun is starting to bleed out.
Wrap-up
I’m surprised that we’re at Android 14 / iOS 17 and there’s not a cross-platform joystick normalizing interface for all of this, but here we are. The Galileo G8 isn’t at fault for the shortcomings of an OS never built for gaming, but unfortunately it becomes a victim.
It’s a fine little phone-holder and maybe my experiences vary, but I’d personally consider one of their more PS/XBOX-looking controllers that hold the phone above the controller (and let you keep the phone case on.) This also doesn’t include a carrying case, which others of their similar products do. The case was actually useful.
You can find the GameSir Galileo G8 on GameSir and Amazon. We get a commission on Amazon sales, so if you hate my review just go and search for the thing.
GameSir G8 Galileo mobile controller
The GameSir G8 Galileo surrounds your phone with controller parts similar to how the Nintendo Switch does it. It's a fairly standard, if wide, solution that puts the game in the center and moves your hands to the side.
Product Brand: GameSir
Product Currency: USD
Product Price: 79.99
Product In-Stock: InStock
3.5
Pros
- Portable
- USB-C latency
- Pass through charging
Cons
- Victim of the operating system
- No carrying case
- Have to remove phone from case to use
- Weighting a bit off
