With their acquisition of ZeniMax and Activision Blizzard, on top of the popularity of their Game Pass service, Microsoft is in a prime position to actually take the throne for the current console generation. Whether they succeed or not is an entirely different story, of course, but it’s definitely a good time to pick up an Xbox Series X or Series S. If you’re a longtime Xbox fan, chances are, you’ve already burned through hours on Starfield, Forza: Horizon 5, and all the other available titles, while Playstation diehards might actually want to seriously consider switching things around for this generation.
As with every console generation, there’s an all-new range of Xbox Series accessories to go along with your gaming console. There are gaming headsets designed to optimize your in-game comms, battery packs meant to minimize the amount of time you spend plugging in to a power source, specialty controllers designed to enhance the tactile experience for different games, external SSDs to let you install more games at once, media remotes to use the console for more than gaming, and a whole lot more.
Do you need Xbox Series accessories to properly enjoy gaming on a Series X or Series S? Not really. However, the right mix of accessories can definitely elevate your overall gaming experience. For instance, playing Microsoft Flight Simulator on an Xbox Elite Controller is nice and all, but pulling levers and maneuvering a big stick like you do with a proper flight controller gives it a whole other kind of realism. If you play a lot of multi-player games, investing in a headset with a good mic can do wonders for your team comms in-game, while a charging stand can spare you from the hassles of dangling USB chargers and all the messy wiring that entails.
These are the best Xbox Series X and Series S accessories to give your console gaming setup a boost.
8Bitdo Media Remote
While neither Sony nor Microsoft have really succeeded in turning their game consoles into media centers, both do have features that make them functional enough to serve as one. If you want to use your Xbox Series X or S in that manner, a media remote like this one will make navigating the onboard menu a whole lot easier than the typical gamepad. For one, you can use it with one hand. More importantly, it’s got dedicated playback buttons, volume buttons, channel buttons, and other media-focused controls, sparing you from having to use analog sticks and triggers to navigate your favorite streaming service’s interface.
PowerA Enhanced Wired Controller
Not a fan of the constant charging wireless controllers require? We understand. If that’s the case, you’ll want to stock on cheaper wired controllers and PowerA makes a good one with this model, which comes with the standard Xbox controls, mic mute switch, dual rumble motors, and two remappable paddles. Unlike traditional wired gamepads, the wire is actually connected to the controller via USB, so you can separate them if you want to store your cables elsewhere. Plus, there’s a whole load of colors and designs available if you like a little aesthetic with your Xbox Series accessories. Pro-tip: their Amazon page sets lower prices for colors that are about to run out of stock.
Venom Twin Charging Dock
Plugging in your controller after playing is part and parcel of a console gamer’s life. The last thing you want is to fire up the Xbox Series X and realize you forgot to charge your gamepad, after all. Instead of fiddling with USB cables each time, this Xbox Series accessory lets you simply dock your controller after playing, with two slots, so you can get both gamepads charged after a drawn-out Street Fighter showdown. Set comes with two rechargeable battery packs, too, so you’ve got extra batteries on hand when you run out in the middle of the game, while the dock itself includes a USB port in the rear, in case you want to charge other devices on it (like your phone).
Turtle Beach Recon
We’re big fans of Turtle Beach’s React-R controller, which is one of the better cheap wired gamepads for the Xbox Series. For this list, though, we’re instead including their Recon controller, which takes that wired controller (including the awesome paddles in the back) and adds enhanced audio features for users who play with wired headsets. To use, simply plug your headset into the gamepad’s 3.5mm slot and you’ll instantly gain access to its clever audio tricks. Specifically, the controller allows you to adjust volume, tweak the balance between game sound and voice chat, mute the mic feed, and activate Superhuman Hearing, an audio enhancement that raises the volume of various detailed in-game sounds (e.g. footsteps, reloads) to give you a slight advantage during competitive play. Additionally, it offers four equalizer presets that you can cycle through to quickly change up the sound profile: there’s the default preset, a bass boost preset, a bass and treble boost preset, and a vocal boost preset. Controls for all sound features are available at the top center section of the gamepad.
Corsair HS35 Stereo Gaming Headset
This wired headset is consistently in people’s short lists for the best gaming headset on any platform and it works just as admirably as an Xbox Series accessory. Thoughtfully-designed, this headset is extremely comfortable to keep on during long periods of gaming, while being durable enough to handle your clumsiness after a 12-hour romp on whatever newfangled FPS is keeping you glued to the TV. The sound tuning is very punch and lends itself well to the sound on most games we tried, while offering one of the clearest microphones we’ve ever found on a gaming headset. That mic, by the way, is detachable, so you can easily take it out of the way when you just want some single player action.
Xbox Elite Series 2
Arguably the best controller for the Xbox Series X and S, this wired gamepad offers amazing customization, allowing you to tailor the controls precisely to your liking. Want to remap all the buttons on the controller for different games? You can do that. How about adjusting the tension on the thumb sticks? Yes, that’s an option, too. Want to swap thumb stick toppers? There’s a few different sets of toppers for the thumb sticks and the D-pad included, so you can find what you like for each game. On top of all that, it boasts shorter-hair triggers, four rear paddles, clickier action buttons, a 40-hour battery life, wraparound rubberized grips, and an onboard memory that lets you store up to three custom profiles for easy reloading.
Elgato HD60 X
If you plan on recording your Xbox Series gameplay, whether for streaming, short clips, or just for your amusement, a capture card lets you do that pretty easily and Elgato offers some of the best hardware for that particular job. For Xbox, specifically, we really like this model, which can capture 4K footage at 30fps and 1080p footage at 60 fps, both in HDR10. You’ll need to fiddle with multiple cables and recording software when setting this up, by the way, so it’s not quite a “plug it on your Xbox and forget” type of affair, but it offers a pretty simple and straightforward way of capturing gameplay at a really impressive quality.
Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Gen 2
While it doesn’t seem to be as popular as some of the other premium headset options out there, we find this Turtle Beach model to be our go-to headset for the Xbox Series. It just sounds so good for gaming. The 50mm drivers consistently deliver clear and accurate sound, while support for surround sound technologies (Windows Sonic, Dolby Atmos, and DTS Headphone X) really brings the audio immersion up a notch. It can also be paired simultaneously with both the Xbox Series X and your phone, allowing you to listen to music while playing, which is nice. Even better, it lets you fiddle with your audio settings on the fly via the companion app. You know those audio technologies that Turtle Beach integrated into their Recon gamepad? Those are all onboard here, too, except dialed up for even more functionality. The Superhuman Hearing feature is probably at its best here, allowing you to pick up the subtlest of in-game sounds, while the ability to tweak the balance of game sounds and in-game comms makes it easy to hear everything you need to hear as it happens.
Thrustmaster Eswap XR Pro Controller Forza Edition
When it comes to Xbox accessories for racing, most people immediately think of racing wheels. However, if you’re not in the mood the clear up an entire desk to accommodate that, you can get an elevated control experience using this unique racing gamepad, which comes with a mini-wheel accessory that replaces the left analog stick. That’s right, it has a mini-wheel control that you can maneuver like a racing wheel for better control of your onscreen vehicles. The wheel comes with a recentering system to mimic an actual steering wheel, a non-slip surface for a secure grip, and a 95-degree rotation angle for unparalleled control during turns. When the mini-wheel is used, by the way, the D-pad inputs are automatically remapped to the rear paddles, so you can dedicated one thumb purely to operating the wheel the whole time you’re racing. Do note, the mini-wheel is what makes this special, but the controller itself is just alright. It’s worth it, though, if you spend a lot of your time on the Xbox immersing yourself in racing titles.
Seagate Storage Expansion Card 2TB
Games have been getting ridiculously bigger since the last console generation. And that trend is just going to continue as we get better, more detailed graphics with our games. As such, even the 1TB storage in the Series X doesn’t feel all that much after installing a few AAA games. This is why storage expansion cards have become such an important Xbox Series accessory, as they let you install more games without sacrificing speed like you would with an external hard drive. Our pick for the Xbox Series is this 2TB expansion card from Seagate, which triples the Series X’s storage, so you can install more than a handful of games at the same time. Even better, games installed on the card feel just as speedy as those on the internal SSD, making it feel like a natural part of the console, rather than a third-party addition.
Logitech G923 Trueforce Racing Wheel
Sometimes, you just want to feel like you’re really zipping through a speedway in a fast car and using your thumb to maneuver into tight turns just doesn’t quite help the immersion. You need a proper racing wheel setup and the G923 Trueforce delivers an excellent experience for Series X and Series S players. It’s equipped with the outfit’s Trueforce technology, which delivers accurate real-time feedback very much consistent with what happens in-game, along with responsive pedals that let you accelerate, brake, and shift at will without fail. Truth be told, we had doubts about finding a good racing wheel for the Xbox Series early on, but this has definitely eliminated those concerns, as it works with, pretty much, every game we tried, including ones that other racing wheels just refused to even do anything with
Turtle Beach VelocityOne Flight
We’ve always used stick-based controllers for flight sims, so we weren’t sure how we’d feel about this flight controller from Turtle Beach. However, it’s the one everybody seems to recommend as an Xbox Series accessory, so we figured, it was worth the try and it does make for an incredible experience. With a full-sized 180-degree yoke, a throttle quadrant, and a big heaping of inputs, this offers superb realism for flight sim fans, making your forays into the sky feel much more memorable than you probably would have anticipated. There a certain stiffness to the control that will take some getting used to, but once you get the hang of how it feels, flying just feels seamless on this thing. This thing was designed with Microsoft Flight Simulator in mind, by the way, and works best with it, so support might not be immediate with other flight-based titles you want to try. Best check to make sure if you’re thinking of playing something else with it.
