Gaming and Android have become good buddies lately. On tap this year, we have OUYA and XBMC. We’ve also seen the likes of Ringbow, DRONE and Gameklip. People like games, but they don’t always prefer to use the touch controls on their phone for hours on end. Thumb cramps anyone? This is the niche where the MOGA Bluetooth controller sits nicely.

Let’s get the bad (or good?) stuff out of the way: MOGA only has compatibility with games that have been specifically crafted for gamepads. So if you have that latest issue of Minecraft for Android, you may be out of luck. With that out of the way, let’s talk about this niche market and how many options are available at the moment for the serious gamer. I mentioned a few above, but really, the possibilities are almost endless.

The reason behind this burgeoning industry is that smartphones, by and large, are becoming more useful through their powerful GPU’s and CPU’s like the ARM Cortex A15. The only problem, for the serious gamer, is the poking about the touchscreen: nothing beats an actual gamepad. I can assert that this is true after playing a first-person shooter once with a touchscreen. My hands hated me for 2 days after that. Had I used a nifty d-pad like the MOGA, I would have had less strain on my joints. But enough about my lack of gaming foresight…

If you are interested to pick one of these u and add it to your growing zoo of gaming weaponry, PowerA,  the awesome company behind MOGA, has already worked out deals with major mobile game developers. Gameloft, Namco, Sega, Atari and Remedy Entertainment are currently on that list. Finally, the controller is set to release October 21, with a price tag of $50. Start saving your allowance now, kids.