Backbone has announced today that it is launching Backbone+ — a new paid membership that makes one of the best mobile game controllers even better.
Backbone+ overhauls the Backbone app, introducing a ton of new and useful features for the iOS mobile controller as well as a new home screen that helps identify where you can play games, whether it's on Apple Arcade or a cloud gaming service.
Backbone+ also features improved game recording features. Including the ability to record, edit, and share gameplay videos at 1080p resolution at 60FPS so long as your iPhone has iOS 15 installed. Backbone+ also features a Smart Record feature, which allows you to save the last 15 seconds of gameplay — alongside Twitch integration, allowing you to seamlessly set up a livestream when playing your favorite mobile games.
Additionally, highly requested features such as the ability to connect the Backbone One to devices, including an iPad, Mac, or PC, and play games that are available on Amazon Luna, Google Stadia, Nvidia GeForce Now, and Xbox Cloud Gaming. Connecting to non-iPhone devices requires you to directly connect the Backbone One via a USB cable.
The Backbone One was released in October 2020 and quickly became one of the most popular mobile controllers for iPhones. The announcement of Backbone+ comes roughly two months after it was discovered that the controller requires an adapter if you plan to use it with the recently released iPhone 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max. You can request at no additional cost or you can print one yourself if you have a 3D printer.
Alongside a ton of new and improved features, Backbone+ will also give subscribers exclusive perks, including free months of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and access to new future updates to the service. Backbone+ will cost $4.17 per month, but all new Backbone One owners will automatically receive a free year of service. Those who created a Backbone account before today are guaranteed a lifetime membership to Backbone+.
Taylor is the Associate Tech Editor at IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @TayNixster.