E3 2012: Hands on with the MOGA Mobile Gaming System for Android

One of two peripherals companies launching wireless controllers for Android gaming at E3, PowerA's MOGA Mobile Gaming System looks a more radical approach than Nyko's PlayPad controllers.

It's not totally novel, though.

Like PlayPad, MOGA is a small controller that's designed to be portable.

Unlike PlayPad, however, it has a mechanical clip so you can attach it to your Android phone - anything up to a 5-inch Galaxy Note will fit.

Obviously, as a wireless controller, you can also choose to position your phone or tablet anyhow you want to in order to play, but for the smaller phones, the close proximity between controller and screen is the best approach.

Other differences between the two rivals are that the MOGA is powered by two AAA batteries rather than a rechargeable battery; presumably to lower costs and to minimise size.

The result is a thin controller, although one that's also nice to hold - at least in my medium sized hands.

Design-wise, the MOGA has a flat face, which helps in terms of locating the short dual analog sticks, D-pad and four action buttons. This face is broken by the curved shiny plastic back of the phone grip, which neatly clips into place to create the overall shape when it's not in use.

Unlike the PlayPad, there are only two shoulder buttons (compared to four) while the controller provides more of ergonomic option with small 'wings' that sit in your palms.

Perhaps the most impressive thing about the MOGA, however, is the overall build quality. It is solid and constructed with both matte and shiny finished plastics, it looks and feels more sophisticated than standard controllers.

Whether this will result in a higher retail price than the competition we're yet to discover.

PowerA expects to launch the MOGA around October and there will also be a full-sized version - the MOGA Pro controller - but there are no details about this at present.

In terms of software, PowerA has already signed up Gameloft, Namco Bandai, Atari, Sega and Machineworks with games such as N.O.V.A. 3, Dungeon Hunter 3, Duke Nukem 3D, Pac-Man, Sonic The Hedgehog 4 Episode II and Atari's Greatest Hits supporting the controller.

Unlike Nyko's controller (which has been developed in conjunction with Nvidia), there won't be the option for gamers to remap the controls for unsupported games themselves - this will have to carried out directly by the developers. PowerA says this should only take hours to complete per game.

MOGA controller will also be supported an app called MOGA Pivot, which will work as a discovery and promotion tools for games that support the controller.