Genki Manta Puts the Controller Settings App Onto the Controller

Genki has opened Kickstarter funding for Manta, a pro-tier game controller built around the idea that tuning a controller should not require a second screen. Instead of a companion phone or desktop utility, Manta carries a 2.79-inch color display and its own operating system, MantaOS, so profile switching, button remapping, tuning, macro editing, diagnostics and connection management all happen on the device itself. The campaign has cleared more than 500 percent of its $100,000 goal with roughly a month still to run.

MantaOS Runs on the Controller

MantaOS is the centerpiece of the pitch. Genki describes the on-board system as handling profiles, remapping, advanced tuning, diagnostics, connection management, dashboards and apps directly on the hardware. Coverage of the campaign attributes the display to a Raspberry Pi RP2350 controller, with the panel listed as a 428×142 color IPS TFT-LCD.

The premise Genki leads with is a familiar one for anyone who has opened a companion app just to nudge a dead zone or swap a profile between sessions. Manta’s answer is to keep all of that a button press away on the pad in hand.

Sticks, Triggers and Buttons

• Adjustable TMR Joysticks: drift-free magnetic sticks that glide on a silicone ring, with tension adjusted by twisting the stick itself. No tools and no module swapping are required.
• Analog Pulse Buttons: four full-range analog face buttons, so face inputs register pressure rather than a simple on or off state.
• TriStage Triggers: Hall effect triggers with three selectable behaviors. Digital is for instant clicks, Rapid is tuned for the fastest repeated inputs, and Analog keeps the traditional full range of motion.
• Maglev Haptics: magnetic levitation actuators in place of conventional rumble motors, which Genki positions as higher-definition force feedback.
• Extra controls: six additional inputs beyond the standard layout, covering two shoulder buttons, two rear buttons and two removable paddles.

Action Timeline, KBM Mode and Genki Forge

Three software features sit on top of the hardware. Action Timeline lets players capture inputs with a dedicated button, edit the recording in a visual timeline and replay it across six programmable buttons. On-the-Fly KBM flips Manta into keyboard commands and mouse navigation with a single button, aimed at couch-PC setups where a desktop is being driven from a sofa. Genki Forge is an open developer hub carrying hardware documentation, reference apps with source code, and tooling for loading community-made creations onto the controller.

Connectivity and Reported Specifications

Manta reports inputs at up to 8,000Hz over USB-C and 1,000Hz over its bundled 2.4GHz receiver, with Bluetooth LE handling lower-rate wireless duty. Compatibility spans PC, Mac, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, Android and iOS.

Genki’s Crowdfunding Record

Manta is Genki’s ninth Kickstarter campaign. The company states that its previous eight campaigns raised more than $10 million combined and shipped products to over 80,000 backers worldwide. That is a stronger delivery record than most crowdfunded hardware carries, though as with any campaign the pledge is for a product that does not exist in buyers’ hands yet, and the February 2027 window is more than a year out from launch.

Availability

Manta is live now on Kickstarter under the Human Things account, with pledges open until the campaign closes and deliveries estimated for February 2027.