Still find parrying in games like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 hard to time? Let me tell you about how a new controller’s fantastic speed and micro-switch triggers transformed my timing

A split image, on the left featuring the Asus ROG Raikiri II Xbox Wireless controller and on the right featuring a combat scene from Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 showing Gustave doing a counter-attack.

If you’ve read many of my recent gaming reviews, you’ll notice that there’s often one reference that’s peppered throughout them. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. In fact, if you’ve ever had the misfortune of getting caught in a conversation with me, you’ll find I reference it approximately every 6.5 seconds. It was my frontrunner for Game of the Year 2025 by a clear furlong.

And yet despite my enduring love for it, a recent acquisition has totally changed the way I play the game. When toying around with the Asus ROG Raikiri II Xbox controller for review, I found it totally changed the way I play the game and, honestly, helped me enjoy it a whole lot more. I’d been missing something since the very beginning of the game, and the high-end, premium controller helped me realise why.