Razer Freyja

Remember the ButtKicker? That piston motor you attached to your office chair? It was further developed by American companies like Earthquake, who made versions for both chairs and sofas, all with the same concept: a piston motor connected to an amplifier that only receives low bass frequencies. This turns your chair or sofa into a furniture subwoofer, allowing you to experience the deepest bass without having to have a 2x18" monster in your living room or office.

It's the same principle that Razer's Sensa HD Haptic products use. I first encountered it in the Nari Ultimate headphones, and now it's in a variety of products, including an office chair cushion called Freyja.

The cushion attaches to any chair with straps and there's a small cable for the power adapter that attaches to the chair with a detachable cable. This cable separates itself if it gets torn, so it won't break. However, the cable is a standard bullet-plug, so spare parts should be easy to find in case of an accident. The signal is transmitted via radio waves and a small dongle or Bluetooth, so it can be used with almost any electronics. It sends a signal to the six built-in actuators, or "haptic devices" as Razer calls them. It's all controlled via software, but there are also physical buttons to switch it on, off and turn it up or down, and it's quite impressive how much it can be shaken.

The signal comes either in the classic way by the software reading the radio signal and sending a copy to your Freyja cushion, which gives you great opportunities to customise the strength to your liking. Alternatively, you may be lucky that the game has built-in Sensa support.

I've used it myself with a strength of 4 out of 6 and with Haptics gain set to 70 per cent combined with a Balance profile. Dynamic gain higher than 70 per cent or haptic force set to maximum is simply too much, so even people with great physique will get plenty of effect. The menu may seem a little overwhelming at first, but there's good reason why you have to adjust a little. My better half, for example, found it uncomfortable on the strength I was using. The cushion is quite massive, and in future generations a mesh solution could make it more comfortable.

When using the generic "audio-to-haptic" function, it still works pretty well, where especially films and music get the subwoofer punch that many computers lack. The list of games that support the feature isn't long, but the native implementation in games is absolutely brilliant. Only certain things like gunshots, magic and specific events like falling rocks trigger the little actuators, giving a more precise and directional effect. More titles are on the way and games like Elden Ring have a custom audio profile. Even better, Unreal Engine 5.5 - although only in beta at the moment - has built-in support, so future games will likely support it.

I couldn't find any local stores selling it, but Razer charges €300 for it. Yikes. Even though the quality is high and the actuators are sturdy and flat, it's a bit pricey. That said, I use it daily and I'm still not tired of it after a month, which is a good sign.

It's not just marketing either, it adds a really fun physical dimension to your games. Unless you're playing on a projector and have a powerful surround system, the immersion is elevated to a higher level, especially if you also use a headset with the same function. Grenade explosions have a completely different effect when both the right side of the body and head start shaking. I think I would have bought one myself - maybe on sale - because the effect is there, but the price makes many people hesitate. It works well in action and car games, but shooters are without a doubt where you feel the biggest effect.

It's fun, but as with anything that's "nice to have" and not "need to have", it might be a good idea to try it out before investing over €300 in a cushion.