The Qanba Obsidian 2 is a premium arcade stick for serious fighting game fans.
The all-plastic, all-black chassis looks and feels premium.
Given the Obsidian 2s size, your hands have plenty of room to move along the top panel.
Unfortunately, said panel smudges easily, so youll want to frequently wipe it to maintain its sheen.
While a fantastic peripheral, the Obsidian 2 lacks some features I expect from premium arcade sticks.
Instead of an easy-to-open hatch to pull up the inside, youll need to unscrew the bottom plate.
I also wish it came with a detachable and braided cable.
Those features would have better justified the current $249 asking price.
Ill detail why in my full review.
Stellar design
The Obsidian 2s all-black rectangular plastic chassis instantly denotes it as a premium product.
This didnt impact my performance, so its not an issue.
The buttons along the top control panel arent too big, but theyre large enough to easily press.
The buttons in question include Home, L3 and R3, Turbo, Share and Select.
Theres a 3.5mm headphone jack along the controllers top side.
Though its frame is made entirely of plastic, the Obsidian 2 feels sturdy.
The peripherals edges have a matte texture that makes it easier to grip when picking it up.
Though the edges are squared, theyre rounded enough so you wont accidentally hurt yourself when playing.
You dont need a screwdriver since the panels cover can serve as that tool.
Responsive Sanwa parts
The Sanwa JLF joystick and OBSF buttons are awesome to play on.
The buttons also dont feel as hollow as on other controllers due to the metal plate.
Im also a fan of the flexible joystick that allows me to pull off complex motions.
This controllers joystick has a square restrictor gate that locks in at the four top and bottom corners.
Theres a slight caveat to that, which Ill get to in a moment.
Smooth gaming performance
The Obsidian 2s gaming performance doesnt disappoint.
I effortlessly pulled off basic fireball motions inStreet Fighter 6and complicated combos inTekken 8.
The controller also works marvelously in faster-paced anime fighters like Guilty Gear Xrd Rev 2 andDragon Ball FighterZ.
And since this is an arcade stick, it also works well with side-scrolling games.
I mainly used the controller on PS5 but it worked equally well on my gaming rig.
Qanba Obsidian 2 review: The downs
The Qanba Q7 Obsidian is a marvelous fight stick.
Unfortunately, some of its flaws make its premium price hard to justify.
Instead, youll have to unscrew the eight screws keeping the bottom in place.
The protruding joystick makes it difficult to place the controller on a flat surface, which compounds matters.
Thankfully, swapping out parts once youve removed the bottom panel isnt a headache.
The buttons cables are color-coded, which means youll have less to worry about when swapping new buttons.
No detachable cable
Few arcade sticks offer wireless options since players want the precision of wired connectivity.
Im grateful for the small opening on the compartment door that lets you keep the cable outside the controller.
A braided cable would have alleviated some of my worries since theyre more flexible and durable than plastic cables.
A steep price
Right now, the Obsidian 2 costs $249.
For the asking price, it should’ve featured an easy-to-open hatch and detachable cable.
The Sanwa parts are top-notch, and the all-black chassis looks badass.
