X-Arcade MAME Dual Controller Rated

VL writes "Keyboards and mice are great for gaming, but sometimes you need something old school... especially when playing those MAME classics - here's ViperLair's review of the X-Arcade dual controller." X-Arcade also makes a single-player version, and a sturdy-looking trackball.

Comments

this is headline news?

[falcon5768]

its been out for a year now, actually i think longer, how is this headline news, it seems more like a ad to me. now if the guy MADE them himself like i know a lot of people have and posted how, then i would be impressed

Re:this is headline news?

[PurpleFloyd]

Have you ever actually played an arcade game (and I don't mean via MAME, I mean played a real game in a real cabinet)? The controls have a certain "feel" to them that simply cannot be easily replicated. This is mostly due to the fact that while almost all keyboards, joypads and the like on the market use rubber dome switches, arcade machines (and, presumably, the X-arcade) use microswitches designed to be hammered upon by excited and frustrated kids.

Obviously, the parts in this thing aren't cheap, and since it's a fairly small-run item, each customer has to bear a significant portion of the manufacturing costs. Still, there are a lot of kids who cut their teeth on '80s arcade games who are just now becoming sucessful in the corporate world. These people have money to spend, and are willing to spend it to create a nostalgic experience.

Basically, it's a hobby item. You might not spend $5000 on an elaborate model train setup, but there are enough model train fanatics in the world to support a small industry. The situation with the X-arcade is similar - while the customer base certainly isn't mainstream or huge, it is dedicated, has money, and is large enough to support an (apparently) successful business producing replica arcade controllers for the PC.

Re:this is headline news?

[ArcadeNut]

If you want a trackball, check out the HotRod by Hanaho Games.

The pictures they have are of the older model, but you look at the Arcade PC, you can see the one with Track Ball.

I own both the X-Arcade controller and the Hot Rod and the Hot Rod is a better product overall than the X-Arcade.

Not only that, you get a lot of the original Capcom games with the controller.

Re:this is headline news?

[DjMd]

Worse yet this VL (submitter for the article) is ViperLair. It is just to generate traffic to his website... all of VL's story submitions are just post on his website.
(User vl has never even made a post)
It is either sad that slashdot editors don't pick up on this or worse they know and are intentionally supporting it...

x-arcade dual sticks too close together

[enrico_suave]

The one complaint I'd have with the x-arcade is that it's a little tough for two adults to stand side by side and play a game without feeling "crowded"... although they are close enough to play a nice game of robotron... but you can take your friends teeth out if while performing zangief moves in 2player street fighter II =)

I actually used x-arcade joystick and buttons (from an ebay auction... like 20 bucks for 2 happs super clone joysticks and 20 buttons) on my taito mame cabinet conversion

The buttons are made a little bit cheaper/thinner plastic than happs/etc and use cheaper zippy microswitches (as opposed to cherry brand switches) but pretty solid overall... they've survived numerous track and field poundings =)

e.

What they really need...

[Black Art]

is a dial for playing Tempest.

Using the keyboard is just not the same.

something like...

[abscondment]

sometimes you need something old school...

Like a baseball and a bat?

Re:Just build your own, it's very simple.

[Anonymous Coward]

You know I'm sure your just trying to be helpful and actually the post is informative. But your project is NOT "very simple". Simple for an EE major? Yes. Simple for anyone else including advanced comptuer users? No way. I agree the price is a little steep but compared to an expert DYI job like yours $150 is a bargin. Your way just isn't an option for 99% of people and certainly would not be fun project to take on unless you have a lot of experience with micro electronics and modding.

To be fair, I only skimmed your tutorial...

[TheHonestTruth]

Here's two scenarios:

1: I follow your tutorial. I buy a soldering iron and solder stuff. I have wires everywhere (and my wife is growing increasingly annoyed with my "project"). It takes me at least a couple days working after work on it. Crap, I messed something up. I solder some more. OK, I'm finished. Tada, working controller, albeit not very pretty because I'm not good at making things look nice. A couple months go by, it breaks after heavy use. Go back to the beginning.

2: I order the X-Arcade off the net. It arrives. I plug it in and play. A couple months go by and it breaks. I ship it back, they fix it for free. Repeat.

Sorry, but scenario 2 seems better to me. Maybe it's because I bought a mac, but I personally just want something that works and works now. I don't want to build my own. It's great that it can be done and that you did it. I'm sure you do (and should) take great pride in your accomplishment. But that's not what I'm looking for. I'll pony up the money if I don't have to dick around with making it myself. But that's just me.

-truth

Does this have a 49-way joystick for Sinistar?

[StandardCell]

The 49-way joystick (12 gradations in four directions plus center) to me would've made it worth the price along with a rotary knob and trackball. As it stands, Sinistar had one of the most complicated joystick arrangements in terms of control points.

Really, folks, this is $150 we're talking about here. That's not chump change. I honestly expected more.

Re:Does this have a 49-way joystick for Sinistar?

[HBI]

So THAT is why the joystick was always busted on the one Sinistar machine in Seaside Heights, NJ.

Great game, too. (this is mid-80s i'm talking about here)

Keyboards and mice great for gaming?

[Rolman]

Well, if you're limiting yourself to the genres where these input devices really shine (FPS, RTS, RPGs) then you can say they're great.

But a control pad is definitely not "old school" it has seen more innovations in the last decade in terms of responsiveness, force feedback, analog control, durability and ergonomics than any other input device in history. Just look at the PS2 controller in its third generation, look at the N64's, Gamecube and even the SNES pads, they ooze polishness and innovation at the beginning of each console's life-cycle.

Compare that to keyboards, which are not really designed for games and that haven't changed at all for how long? Twenty-something years? And what about the mouse? The middle button is not even standard! The scroll wheel seems to be achieving that status faster (but ooooh, we have optic mice now *drools* :p). Perhaps I'm missing something, but I don't see the point of playing an action or fighting game with a device not designed to let you press more than one key at once. And don't get me started on offline multiplayer or when trying to play while in any other place but an office desk.

Really, the "old school" devices here are the keyboard and mouse. They may work great with some games that are _designed_ around the limitations and advantages of those input devices, but if you want to see the future, look at the advances in HCI (Human-Computer Interaction) on game consoles, especially the upcoming portable ones.

Things like X-Arcade controllers will always have a market because they are input devices designed for games, not the other way around.