How a Slim Plastic Grip Turned Phones Into Consoles: The Backbone Story

Here is a strange fact about modern phones: many of them are more powerful than the consoles of a decade ago, yet most games still ask you to steer with your thumb on a sheet of glass. The missing piece was never the chip. It was the buttons.

That is the problem Backbone set out to solve. Its Backbone One, launched for iPhone in 2020, is a slim controller that stretches around your phone and clips into its charging port, turning the handset into something that feels a lot like a Nintendo Switch. It was not the first phone controller, but it was the one that made the idea look simple, and it has become one of the best-known accessories in mobile gaming.

What it is

The Backbone One is a telescoping controller: two grips joined by a sliding back, which expands to fit your phone and plugs directly into its port, so there is no Bluetooth pairing and very little input lag. It has the usual layout of modern controllers, twin analogue sticks, a directional pad, face buttons, shoulder buttons and triggers, plus a pass-through port so you can charge while you play and, on many models, a headphone jack.

Backbone has released versions with Lightning and USB-C connectors for iPhone, and versions for Android phones.

The PlayStation connection

In 2021, Backbone released the Backbone One PlayStation Edition, a white model with PlayStation's familiar face-button symbols, developed with Sony. It was designed in part for PS Remote Play, which streams games from your own PlayStation console at home to your phone.

That partnership made the Backbone especially popular with console owners who wanted to keep playing when someone else was using the TV.

The app that makes it feel like a console

The other half of Backbone is software. Its app works as a launcher: it gathers controller-friendly games installed on your phone, links to cloud and remote-play services, and lets you capture and share clips. Pressing a dedicated button opens the app from anywhere, which helps the phone feel like a single games device rather than a collection of apps.

Some features sit behind an optional subscription, Backbone+, so check what is included before you buy.

What you can play with it

• Native mobile games with controller support, such as Fortnite and many action and racing games.
• Cloud gaming services such as Xbox Cloud Gaming and NVIDIA GeForce Now, which stream big PC and console games to your phone over the internet.
• Remote play from your own PlayStation or Xbox at home.
• Emulators on platforms that allow them, including iPhone since Apple changed its rules in 2024.

Do you need one?

Yes, if you already use cloud gaming or remote play, or mostly play shooters, action games or racing games that support controllers.

Maybe not, if you mainly play touch-first games such as puzzle games, card games or gacha RPGs, which are designed around the screen and often do not support controllers at all.

Also check compatibility with your exact phone model and case, as thick cases may not fit.

Why it matters

Backbone helped change how the industry thinks about phones. Once a large number of players own a controller, studios have a reason to support one, and the line between "mobile game" and "console game" blurs further. For more on the hardware side of mobile play, see our gaming phones history and our guide to Razer's Kishi range.