How are we all,

well at the moment i am only using the keyboard which i find frustrating, especially for games like street fighter two with so many buttons to use... does anyone know of a good controller arcade style?......or do u prefer the keyboard? i know of the hotrod stick, but that is out of my price range.... i live in australia, so after importing it, it would end up costing me over $400.......which i can't justify :) any help is always appreciated.

thanks jarrod.

p.s i know ppl can make there own but i don't know, it looks rather hard and time consuming.......which i don't have a lot of at the moment.

-- Jarrod (jcalati@hotmail.com), May 15, 2001

Answers

i have an interact pc arcade pro, it was very cheap. It was on sale for 19.99 and I got a 20$ rebate for it... and of course it's broken but i still have it and it was very usefull while it lasted. i also have a hotrod which has it's problems (4-way vs. 8-way) but is probably worth it, VERY VERY VERY much worth it for fighting games since most are 8-way games and so is the hotrod an 8-way joystick. But then again you could probably purchase 10 pc arcade pros for the price of a hotrod and still play ok with fighting games.

-- Chad (churritz@cts.com), May 15, 2001.

I had an Interact PC Arcade. It "almost" felt like an arcade stick, and it had a heavy, flat base, so it wouldn't slide very easily. I actually still have it. The first one I bought didn't work correctly from the very moment it came out of the box. And I had to actually write a little program and explain what it did to convince the people at CompUSA that it really didn't work correctly. But then I got my free replacement, and it still works great. At least, I think it does, because I haven't touched it since I bought my HotRod one and a half years ago or so.

Anyway, I paid $25 for my Interact PC Arcade, and I think that was a great bargain. I don't think they sell them anymore, though...

Cheers, Ben Jos.

-- Ben Jos Walbeehm (walbeehm@walbeehm.com), May 16, 2001.

Just to make sure I made myself clear... I had the "regular" Interact PC Arcade, not the "Pro". I think the Pro actually wasn't as good as the regular one based on the reviews I read.

Cheers, Ben Jos.

-- Ben Jos Walbeehm (walbeehm@walbeehm.com), May 16, 2001.

Hotrod is worth every penny. Imagine you could buy a real arcade machine, instead you get dozens.

8 way games are great, and there are plenty of those.

Buttons are REALLY good, allowing you to time firing, jumping etc very accurately, not to mention enjoyment with sportsgames like T&F.

Even in a static shoot them up game like Galaga or Phoenix, it helps you a lot.

Only downfall is 4 way games, playing them is not perfect, but better than keyboard.

Or you might want to buy an "ozstick" for 100 Australian bucks. I dunno how good it is. http://home.iprimus.com.au/ozstick/

-- Tommi (tiihoto@hotmail.com), May 16, 2001.

Thanx guys

yeah i would love a hotrod from everything i have heard, maybe i can save up some cash. in the meantime i'll look around for a cheap one to get me going. i did check out the ozstick site (saw it on another post) and they say they can make custom sticks, so i emailed them for a quote. they looked pretty decent.

just want a single stick that works like a hotrod through the keyboard controller

oh by the way, are all games supported by the normal joystick port (on ur soundcard) or only some?? i heard not all will work

thanks jarrod.

-- Jarrod (jcalati@hotmail.com), May 16, 2001.

The Ozstick sounds good from what I've heard and is a lot cheaper than ordering a Hotrod from overseas- although I still reckon $240 is too much to pay for a controller. He reckons its the IPAC interface which bumps up the price. If you want a good arcade style stick fairly cheaply, get a Namco PSX Arcade stick- I found one in a sale at Chandlers for $50.. it uses arcade parts and has a 6 button Streetfighter style layout. Then you'll need a PSX-PC connector, I found one at a local PSX store for $19.95. It also supports the Multi Tap, so thats 4 PSX controllers you can hook up to it- lots of fun for 4 player Bomberman, D&D SOM and Muscle Bomber :)

-- JSW (usagi@dingoblue.net.au), May 16, 2001.

G'day Jarrod, I'm from Australia too and have tried a couple of joysticks. Still haven't got the same arcade feel however. I have just purchased a 2nd hand arcade cabinet which includes a standard arcade control panel for 50 bucks. Didn't have much trouble finding one. Look up amusements in your yellow pages. The wiring is quite simple but you need an old type keyboard. Check this page out (if you haven't already). It gives you an idea of what's required. The hardest part is finding the old keyboard. http://plaza.powersurfr.com/kevin/arcade/controloverview.html

-- Ashley Adams (nosilaa@bigpond.com), February 01, 2002.

http://www.ultimarc.com/

Home of the I-PAC (Interface for Pc to Arcade Controls).

-- TJT (tiihoto@nospam.hotmail.com), February 04, 2002.

Hey Jarrod, I have owned an Ozstick for about 2 years, great piece of equipment. You can buy a basic single for as little as $100.00 or go for the ultimate with a spinner (optional). Its probably better than the hotrod at a fraction of the price. Make no mistake these consoles can take one hell of a pounding.

-- Brad (bootleg @lis.net.au), May 07, 2002.

I bought a made unit for MAME games off eBay but also picked up two Interact controllers for cheap prices from my local Goodwill. They needed drivers to work, the Propad I believe and the PC Arcade I just got. I think it's fine as the style and type I use for home machines like the PS1 and 2. I didn't realize it was so old but I paid $5 for mine in late 2003! hehe

My computer is about that old and it doesn't have the power to run my favorite Vice City now on PC....bummer

Bill

-- Bill Schwenke (billschwenke@aol.com), October 02, 2003.