I consider myself a fighting game fanatic...at least as far as the 2-D ones are concerned. A few odd 3-D ones have caught my eye in the past, but I always find my way back to Street Fighter or the King of Fighters series. This is all well and good except for one thing: I'm terrible at them. Beyond terrible actually. In fact, I may consider myself one of the worst players in the modern world when it comes to the genre. This in no way however kills my love for them and is exactly why I was a candidate for one of these gorgeous 1-player X-arcade sticks. Though there are some minor problems with the stick, you really can't go wrong if your one of those people who is still clinging to the games of old.
Right out of the box, the X-Arcade screams quality. From the flawless veneer finish to the solid wood used to create it, these guys have spared no expense.The buttons have an exremely solid feel and the sticks spring loaded recoil is unparralleled. The box is also very professional looking and the packaging didn't allow for any movement during the shipment. Speaking of which, the X-Arcade arrived at my door in 2 days....and that's only because that Monday was a holiday. This was with their offer of free ground shipping yet! My only complaint was with Airborne who obviously decided my package wasn't important enough and let it sit on my front porch for over 2 hours in freezing temperatures without so much as a knock or a doorbell ring. Jerks.
The stick features 9 face buttons, enough to support any of the major consoles. Button maps are avaialble with the included nstruction book. 2 buttons are featured on the side, just underneath the top panel. These serve their purpose of replicating a pinball machine accurately for whatever video pinball games you may have laying around. Another button on the back is for programming moves into the peripheral. 3 banks are available and can be set to any button.
Article comments
1 - Kurt Nordstrom
Ah, yes, I remember when I first got Street Fighter 2 for the SNES. Going from a nice arcade stick to a little joypad just wasn't right. I've lusted over those HAPP sticks, but my budget was never overflowing enough to get one.
I do enjoy the newer 3d games, but the test of a true fighter will always be how well you can throw down at Street Fighter 2. Shoryuken!
2 - Dew
I'll take two please!!
I love Mortal Kombat (everything) and Tekken fight games. I will play others but none capture me as those have.
3 - ven helen
wee chi chung.. i love mortal kombat on mame with this stick heehaawww. smuf