RESPAWN-900 Racing Style Gaming Recliner, Reclining Gaming Chair

RESPAWN-900 Racing Style Gaming Recliner, Reclining Gaming Chair

RESPAWN-900 Racing Style Gaming Recliner, Reclining Gaming Chair

Overview
Ready to take your gaming to the next level? RESPAWN has the perfect seating solution for the console gamer who craves an extra level of comfort. The RESPAWN-900 Racing Style Gaming Recliner, Reclining Gaming Chair, in Blue, helps you win while relaxing in style. The gaming recliner features segmented padding that provides all-day gaming comfort with a headrest pillow to keep your spine aligned. There's even a built-in cup holder, in the left arm, to make hydrating easy and convenient and a removable side pouch to keep game controllers and headphones at an arm’s length away. The chair and footrest are a continuous unit, which eliminates traditional recliner gaps for wires to get caught when you collapse the footrest. The back reclines 135-degrees and moves independent of the extendable footrest, and vice versa, to provide freedom of choice in how you sit. The pedestal base provides sturdy support so you can recline and extend the footrest with confidence. The recliner swivels 360 degrees and holds users up to 275 lb. Sure, you can level up without this comfy gaming recliner, but why would you want to? Rest comfortably, and assured, because the chair is covered by the RESPAWN Limited Lifetime Warranty. Game on!

Features:
Segmented padding and a headrest pillow provide comfort

Built-in cup holder on left arm

Back recline and footrest operate independent from each other

The independent back reclines 135-degrees

Chair and footrest are a continuous surface unit

Removable side pouch for remotes and controllers

Pedestal base provides sturdy support for recline and footrest extension

Recliner swivels 360 degrees

Chair weight capacity is 275 lb and is covered by the RESPAWN Limited Lifetime Warranty

Learn more about the OFM RSP-900-BLU

GeneralBrandRESPAWN by OFMModelRSP-900-BLUTypeVideo Gaming Chairs
Physical SpecificationPrimary ColorBlackAccent ColorBlueMaterialBonded LeatherArmrests IncludedYes
Physical SpecificationSeat Width30.71"Total Dimension35.04" - 51.18" D x 30.71" W x 44.88" HTotal Weight48.50 lb
Audio SpecificationBuilt-in SpeakersNoAdjustable Bass/TrebleNoAdjustable HeadrestYesAdjustable VolumeNoBattery Power OptionNoErgonomicNoFoldable DesignNoInteractive VibrationNoAccessories IncludedN/AHDMINoHeadphone JackNo

PROS
Comfortable and sturdy. Clever design. Built-in cup holder.
CONS
Not quite as solid as a conventional recliner.
BOTTOM LINE

The unconventional Respawn-900 is a fixed-base gaming recliner with a footrest, a cup holder, and a friendly price.

Construction and Design

Assembling the Respawn-900 is slightly different from putting together a conventional wheeled gaming or office chair. You start with the base, a cone-shaped structure of faux leather wrapped around a metal ring that sits on the floor. A support cylinder fits in the middle, but unlike wheeled chairs it isn't pneumatic. The bottom half of the seat fits on top of that, with the adjustable footrest and sides of the armrests already attached to form a single piece. With that in place, the back of the chair bolts to the back of the seat with two sets of metal eyelets that line up and stay in place with bolts. Finally, the large, overstuffed armrests fit snugly on top of the sides of the seat, held with their own screws hidden behind small zippers on the backs.

Once everything's screwed and bolted together, the Respawn-900 looks like a wildly overbuilt, wheel-less gaming chair. The faux leather-covered seat and back are shaped similarly to other chairs we've tested, with generously padded contours sewn into angular patterns between the black base and whatever highlight color you choose (black, blue, gray, or white). The headrest on the back is tall and flanked by two wide wings to support the shoulders. Two large vents under the headrest offer ventilation, and provide an attachment point for the elastic strap on the included faux-leather neck pillow.

The armrests are much larger than the rests on other gaming chairs we've tested. Instead of narrow chunks of dense foam or rubber mounted on metal arms that attach to the seat, the Respawn-900's armrests are wide slabs of padding wrapped in the same faux leather as the seat and back, completely covering the sides of the chair down to the base of the seat. They're generous and supportive, and the left armrest has a large plastic cup holder (a feature I've wanted to see in gaming chairs since we first started reviewing them). A hook-and-loop strip on the underside of the left armrest can support the included accessory pouch, which is a simple, black bag with two pockets separated by nylon, large enough to hold a gamepad.
Leaning Back and Spinning

The footrest is perhaps the most notable part of the recliner. It's a cushioned, rectangular pad covered in faux leather that extends forward from the seat. Metal arms connected to a handle below the right armrest lift the footrest forward to comfortably support your legs at the knees and calves (unless you're quite short, in which case your feet will likely dangle off). Pulling the handle forward again drops the footrest down to hang in front of the seat unobtrusively.

The footrest works separately from the back-reclining feature, which is controlled by a smaller, flatter lever near the one for the footrest. Pulling that lever and leaning back will move the seat forward slightly and recline the back up to 135 degrees, a standard recline range for a gaming chair. It doesn't lean quite as forward as a deskbound gaming chair, though; the chair naturally reclines back 10 to 15 degrees before you even lean, rather than nearly straight-up. This makes sense, since it's designed to be used a relaxing distance from a large screen, rather than close to a monitor on a desk directly in front of the chair.

The seat rotates freely left and right like a wheeled gaming chair, letting you turn a full 360 degrees. The central mount that lets the seat spin has a bit more friction than on a wheeled chair, which requires you to consciously press your feet down and turn the chair with your legs to get the angle you want. This is a good thing; a looser rotation could let the chair spin aimlessly while you're reclining back with your feet up.

The Respawn-900 is built as sturdily and generously as any quality gaming chair, with a maximum weight capacity of 275 pounds and an interior width (measured between the arms) of 18.9 inches. Of course, it isn't quite as sturdy as more conventional Lay-Z-Boy-style recliners, which are built more like armchairs or loveseats, don't turn, and generally cost significantly more than the Respawn-900. Regardless, this is a one-person chair; don't expect to do any snuggling on it.

How to Sit

I placed the Respawn-900 in front of my TV, about five or six feet back. I've been spending plenty of time in the recliner playing games and watching TV, and I've found it to be a really pleasant experience. My cat Pixel also appears to like the Respawn-900, and consistently approves of it when I'm not using it.

The Respawn-900 felt supportive when I was settled in for long, frustrating sessions of Apex Legends and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. With the back upright, I could sit back while keeping a relatively active position. I found myself leaning forward on the chair during tense matches and boss fights, but that's more an issue of my own posture and tendency to scoot closer to the screen when I'm focused.

Reclining back for watching TV also felt quite comfortable. A partial recline let me relax and zone out for Twitch streams or movie marathons. The footrest properly supported my knees and calves, letting me put my feet up as I stared at the screen. The chair also provided enough room for me to occasionally cross my legs and put my notebook on my lap to write. I could put some music on, turn away from the TV, and type without strain, even without any form of lap desk or hard surface.

The cup holder is immensely useful, and a feature I've wanted to see in gaming chairs for years. However, it's a little big for most drinkware. It's fine if you have a nice, fat can of soda, but tumblers and rocks glasses sit loosely in the compartment. A rubber gasket or tiered system of concentric cut-outs to support different cup sizes would have been better. It's still functional, though, and I got used to the wiggle room enough to confidently use it for holding beverages.
A Gaming Chair for the Living Room

The Respawn-900 Gaming Recliner is a clever variation on the typical gaming chair. It takes the flexibility and support that a wheeled gaming chair provides, and gives it a much more living room-friendly stationary base, a footrest, and a cup holder. It won't replace a couch and it doesn't have the heft and sturdiness of a conventional living room recliner, but as a chair for playing video games in front of your TV instead of your desk, it's excellent. If you mostly game on a big screen and want something a bit more purpose-built than your couch, the Respawn-900 earns our Editors' Choice. If you're looking for a conventional gaming chair with a wheeled base, the SecretLab Titan remains our favorite for the premium feel of its supple material and dense foam.

An important part of any gaming setup that could easily be overlooked is the seating equipment. A lot of console gamers play their favorite titles while seated comfortably on a couch. But what if you don’t have the room for a full-blown couch? Your options in that case are usually limited to office or gaming chairs. But what about a recliner? RESPAWN Products believes they have a comfortable solution in the RSP-900 Gaming Recliner. We’ve spent the past month or so with a red version of the chair, and have our RESPAWN RSP-900 review ready now.
Heavy Padding, Easy Assembly

Gaming can be a physically draining experience. Scanning the screen for threats, waiting for a cue from enemies to score a hit, or muting annoying trolls can certainly take a toll on energy levels. Sit for a long enough period of time, and even the chair your keister is on will start to sap energy levels. The RSP-900 has such ample padding that this is never an issue. The cushion’s thickness can be measured in inches, and the material surrounding them is more likely to wear out before the cushions themselves.

Most chairs and other seating equipment require assembly. The RSP-900 is no different, and comes with a single instruction sheet. It’s not terribly complicated to put together, and most people will be up and running within an hour or so of unpacking the massive chair. The reclining mechanisms are pre-built into the seat itself, so assembly mostly consists of putting a few large pieces into place, and screwing them all together via the included tools. There are zippers which conceal the screws and bolts, which is a nice touch to hide the metal frame.

The RESPAWN RSP-900 certainly looks the part of a gaming chair. It has a mostly black design, with accents or “colorways” available in five colors: black, blue, gray, red, and white. We received a red unit. The colors line the chair’s sides, while the back remains completely black. The entire unit can also swivel a full 360 degrees, so that you can turn to get whatever you need in your immediate area. Or just spin until you get nauseous. It’s up to you.

So how comfortable is this chair once it’s put together? The RESPAWN RSP-900 is the most comfortable gaming chair to hit the market. This is no doubt due to the fact that it is basically a one-seater couch. Think of the way couches are designed. They’re plush, made of materials such as bonded or genuine leather, and easy to fall asleep on. RESPAWN’s chair incorporates what appears to be bonded leather, stuffed to the brim with padded foam. The headrest also features a stuffed pillow, with RESPAWN stitched onto it. That pillow really comes in handy when lounging back, and makes playing games or watching movies that much more enjoyable.

Did We Mention the Padding?

Even the armrests are astoundingly padded. They are much thicker than an average chair’s armrests, and cover the entire sides of the chair so that there is no gap between the seat and the armrest. RESPAWN also claims that this prevents cords from getting caught in the chair, which is true. The left armrest also includes a cupholder, which can safely hold a SOLO cup or something approximately that size. Below the cupholder is a removable pouch, which is held in place via Velcro. This pouch has two compartments, and it is large enough to allow the storage of a few remotes, plus a controller. It’s not really big enough to store multiple controllers in each compartment, though it quickly became a handy place to store remotes and cords.

All of this thick padding and smooth bonded leather comes at a price: heat retention. We received this chair just over a month ago, and even though the weather has yet to really warm up, it is easy to sweat in the RSP-900. There are two large holes near the headrest, where the pillow sits, which may help with airflow. But generally, you’ll feel the heat after spending an appreciable amount of time in this recliner. Those in colder climates will no doubt love such a chair.

Another issue some users may encounter relates to durability. The chair we received arrived undamaged. Yet after only a few days, some of the material had been rubbed off. This was due to the fact that the chair was at the same height of a wooden shelf that we have in our room. So, sliding against that shelf resulted in the bonded leather being effectively shaved off from the padding. Thankfully, this was caught early on, and we make sure the chair is nowhere near anything it could repeatedly rub against. The material that flaked off also didn’t include any foam, and it was in fact in a seam along the headrest – so not a crucial location. After about a month of nearly daily use, the rest of the chair shows no signs of wear, which is much more important. Still, seeing raw foam on the top of the chair is jarring, and a reminder that this recliner needs to be treated like the one-seater couch that it is. In other words, gently.

RESPAWN-900 Racing Style Gaming Recliner, Reclining Gaming Chair

Recline in Style

The RSP-900’s main feature is its ability to recline. It is called a recliner, after all. First, the footrest is technically a continuation of the seat cushion. One seamless unit combines the two, all controlled by a single rotating handle on the right side of the chair. It takes quite a bit of effort to lock the footrest into position, and a loud and forceful clunk verifies that everything is in position. Likewise, returning the footrest into its un-extended position takes a decent amount of force exerted on the handle. This does mean that accidental resets of the footrest should never happen. The footrest also only supports two possible settings, as the extended setting only locks at one spot and is not adjustable. The back of the RSP-900 reclines separately from the footrest, again via a handle on the right-hand side of the chair. Unlike the footrest, however, the back can be reclined at various angles, up to 135 degrees. Reclining as far back as the chair allows, combined with extending the footrest, results in a very comfortable seating arrangement. Yours truly has fallen asleep in this recliner a few times in the past month!

It should also be noted that the RSP-900 is not an office chair. As such, its height is static – there is the footrest adjustment handle, and the recliner lever, but there is no third knob to control seat height. What you see is what you get. The chair also sits lower to the ground than would be comfortable at most desks (though RESPAWN also sells adjustable-height desks…isn’t that convenient?), much like a couch.

RESPAWN has the potential to tap into a niche (and maybe underserved) market with the RSP-900 Recliner. This is a chair so comfortable, many a gamer will fall asleep in its embrace during those odd hours of the night they often find themselves playing. There may be some long-term reliability concerns in the use of bonded, as opposed to genuine, leather. However, good luck finding such a feature and comfort-packed chair made with genuine leather for this price. Treating the RSP-900 as the couch it really is should result in many years, perhaps even decades, of reliable service. Even if you have the space for a full-fledged couch, the RSP-900 is a serious contender that lets others know you take your comfort seriously when you game. The RSP-900 is easily the most comfortable gaming chair, recliner or otherwise, on the market today.

However, moving down the chair a bit, the differences become apparent. Remember, this is a console gaming chair, so it's designed with the living room or dorm room in mind. That means instead of a subtle, fold away footrest found on some gaming chairs, the footrest blends seamlessly with the rest of the chair, curving in a way I found extremely comfortable under my knees. Most chairs end abruptly about midway through the upper parts of my legs, but the Respawn 900's contour felt like a team of cherubs supporting my legs on a puffy cloud.

The cushioning is just enough for my larger than average frame, although I wish it had been just a little thicker. Still, at no point while sitting in the Respawn 900 did I ever feel uncomfortable. It's not a big, plush easy chair like your gramps might sit in, but it's not a harsh folding chair or piece of plastic patio furniture. It hits the Goldilocks zone of cushioning.

Being 6' 2" is a slight detriment when the Respawn 900 was fully reclined. My legs dangled just a little over the footrest, but for most people the length shouldn't be a problem.

Reclining is excellent, although I couldn't actually play anything while fully reclined other than Switch in handheld mode. There are various degrees to which it can be reclined, and at its "most reclined" setting it's almost horizontal to the ground, which required tipping my head up to see the screen. I can't see myself ever falling asleep in the Respawn 900, because it doesn't quite go far enough back for me to comfortably doze off. That's fine though, as that's a dad-bridge I'm not quite ready to cross.

There are extra features with the Respawn 900 to further differentiate it from the desk chair pack. First of all, there's a detachable pouch on the side large enough to fit a controller and a remote. I had a weird urge to fill it with snacks, but decided against it for a multitude of reasons.

The pouch attaches under the arm rest with some heavy duty velcro, so it could probably handle a full bag of Combos. There's also a cup-holder molded into the arm rest on the left side. It's big enough for a can or bottle of your favorite beverage, but I would have liked it to be a bit deeper. It's deep enough that a normal 12-oz can is nice and sturdy, but I wouldn't trust a tallboy in it, especially if I started swiveling a bit.

Another big deviation from a PC gaming chair is the Respawn 900's lack of casters. Instead, it comes with a large, circular base covered in the same leather as the rest of the chair. Since it's designed to be immobile, it sits where you want it to sit, facilitating relaxation while gaming on your console.

The Respawn 900 swivels effortlessly in 360 degrees, and if you need to move it, it doesn't weigh very much. I had no trouble moving it out from the center of my living room for vacuuming. There is no height adjustment, like you find in most traditional desk chairs, but it doesn't really need one since it doesn't live under a desk.

One minor problem I had with the design of the Respawn 900 was getting used to its reclining mechanisms. There's one lever to control the footrest, and it operates like how you'd expect. There's another lever to recline the back of the chair, but to use it you need to pull it outward rather then back and forth.

Ultimately the action for both reclining parts is smooth, but I noticed a great deal of silicone lubricant doing the heavy lifting on the mechanism for the back, which makes me wonder how smooth it will be once the silicon dries up. Also, the levers are a little too close together for my liking. I managed to smash the hell out of my knuckles reclining the footrest too quickly. That wasn't fun.

Respawn 900 – Assembly

The Respawn 900 comes in a really large box, and is packed in several different pieces. Some assembly is required, but it was a reasonably easy process to get it all together. Everything you need is in the box and it even includes a few extra nuts and bolts in case you lose one (or at least, I hope they are extras). All the disparate pieces slide together and are held in place with the included bolts. There's nothing more complicated than lining up the correct holes. The moving parts of the reclining system are pre-assembled.

Working alone, I was able to construct my new throne in about 40 minutes. Putting it together as a solo mission wasn't bad at all, and I didn't need to resort to any sort of trickery or swearing to put it all together.

Respawn 900 – GamingThe Respawn 900 is made for console gamers, so if you're looking for a comfortable place to sit yourself down and play, the Respawn delivers.

Not having it roll around is both a blessing and a curse, but the scales tip way more toward a blessing. It's not particularly heavy, so if you want to move it around your living space, it's not an issue. It stays where you want it to stay, but is easy enough to move if you want to. Since there's no wheels like a desk chair, and its base is so solid, it stays exactly where you want it, which is great for a living room setting.

I'm a tall man at 6 foot 2", so the ergonomic pillow didn't sit where I wanted it to. To utilize it comfortably, I actually had to unclip it and move it further up than its designed for. People of normal or slightly above average height shouldn't suffer from the same problem.

The cup holder was handy, and it also made a great place to drop my phone for easy reach during loading screens or when I just needed to answer a message. The small pouch attached under the arm rest made controller storage easy and convenient. Since I have kids, controllers are always going missing, so not having to dig through couch cushions when I want to play was appreciated.
The cup holder was handy, and it also made a great place to drop my phone for easy reach during loading screens
“I don't think sitting in the chair improved my gaming skills, but I liked how easy it was to switch between reclined and standard sitting positions. When things start to get hairy in-game, I lean in and sit literally on the edge of my seat, and the curvature of the Respawn 900 was extremely comfortable during those tense moments when things got busy on-screen.

Since it's easy to move around, I positioned it much closer to the television than any of the other furniture in my living room. The couch is a great spot for gaming, but I can't easily move it, and I find being up close and personal improves the immersion level of games on a large TV. I also found myself swiveling one way or the other, depending on how my neck was feeling at any given moment. At some points, I was perpendicular to my TV while I played, and could easily switch to whatever angle I wanted to maintain a level of comfort.

Purchasing GuideThe Respawn 900 is available in five different colors with an MSRP , but you can find it on Amazon for slightly cheaper.