As a gaming enthusiast, I am always looking for ways to expand the experience. I have a 52” 1080p HDTV, 7.1 lossless surround sound system, several steering wheels, tons of peripherals and more. The technical environment I play in is geared towards getting the most out of my gaming, but my seating needs are currently served by the same futon that I sleep in. When I heard that I was going to review the Renegade Gaming chair from the Ultimate Gaming Chair company I asked myself, “can what I sit on also add to my experience?”

So I arrived home late last week to find a huge 50 lb blue box sitting by my door. After about fifteen minutes of unpacking and some straightforward assembly, the Renegade gaming chair was ready for use.  Once assembled, my mom wanted to see what was in the blue box and her first words were, “where the hell did you get a car seat from and why is it in your room?” She was right; it really does look like a car seat, although more like a sports car bucket seat than one you would find in the average showroom model.

 

The general color scheme is grey stitched cushioning, with black hard plastic rounding out the design. The armrests - which unfortunately cannot be adjusted on the fly - are a little too low for my comfort. The other oddity is the backrest recliner knob, which is very hard to rotate, making the adjustment process a bit of a chore. To add practicality, the chair features a storage drawer for controllers and such, and also comes with a removable cup holder. There is an adjustable head rest labeled with the logo of the folks who were nice enough to send me the review unit.  Check out  www.theplaydiumstore.com  to order your Renegade gaming chair. The final design trick up the Renegade’s sleeve is the LED’s that line the bottom of the chair and light up with the audio.

 

One thing you need to realize is that the chair has a pretty big footprint and is quite heavy. The packaging promises easy storage, but unless I am supposed to dissemble it each time I put it away, I fail to see what it is referring to.  The room where all my hardware is does not have that much extra space to begin with, so you must make sure you have got the room to use and store it before laying down the money. The design is pretty appealing in general. It definitely does not look like a standard chair and when you get into your game it certainly does not act like a standard chair either.