Mad Catz PS3 Street Fighter IV Arcade FightStick (PS3)

I recently purchased this arcade stick after feeling frustrated with the difficulty of pulling off specific moves on the standard controller, and having played with one of my friends ones to get a feel of what they are like.
It cost more than I had originally thought, but it was so worth it, it makes playing Street Fighter so much more enjoyable, it's easier to pull off moves and you don't get blisters on your thumb after 5 minutes of playing.
The slant on the front of the base really helps with comfort as well, I play with the stick on my knee, which seems the perfect position, it is very comfortable and doesn't move around at all.
The size of the base is good as well, larger than the Hori 2 I had previously tried.
All the buttons are very responsive and the stick is a good stiffness. I originally had reservations about the square gate on the stick, but it has provided no difficulty at all.
I am new to the street fighter games, having only ever rented them in the past and never actually got good. With this arcade stick I have significantly noticed my playing abilities increase, as it's no longer a fight against the opponent and the controller.

So overall, nothing but positives for this stick, yes it is pricey, but worth it. I wouldn't pay the 150 pounds for the top of line model, but at 70 I can't complain about this one.

I managed to purchase this on the day of release through pure luck, I happened to log onto Amazon as they posted their stock of 1 and was lucky enough to order it before anyone else did! I was unsure of what I amy be getting as the Tournament Edition was getting rave reviews but no-one had reviewed the Arcade Edition but there was lots of forum activity focused upon Mad Catz poor track record with cheap controllers.

Let me assure you though that this is a fantastic piece of kit. As soon as I got it out of the box you could feel the weight and quality of the case, the transfers had some bubbling but very minor. The case is very solid with no rattle or squeeking as you hammer at the controls and the buttons are both sturdy but also responsive. The stick is mounted in a square gate, arcade stick experts may have their own opinion on whether a square or octaganol gate is better but I find it easy to use and very solid, I think you would have to try very hard to break it.

The USB cable is both good quality and long enough to reach from my Plasma to my sofa with slack to spare (around 6') and it sits on my lap comfortably without the need to place it on a table or other flat surface. I suspect this would be down to personal preference though, I thought I wouldn't like it on my knee but it fits very well without being uncomfortable.

It has full turbo mode which can be assigned to each button indivually if you wish and has the start button on the back so you dont accidently press it whilst being savaged online by a 10 year old from Texas. Overall I would advise anyone interested in trying an arcade stick but doesn't want to invest in the Tournament Edition to purchase this, I cannot recommend it enough for the price.

Delivered in good time for Christmas, and appears to do what my son expected it to do, which is all good. No issues with vendor or product.

With this 'little' acessory you can really bring that arcade feeling to your own living room.
Sure the Tournament Edition is better but this one is much cheaper and still great in quality.
One of the best price/quality acessory out there, a must-have for any fighting fan out there.
Put it in your lap and 'bring the pain' ;) .

Its a good stick and seems very responsive. One thing that annoys me though (and the reason i didn't give it a 5) is due to the fact that the stick seems really 'free' and im finding it hard to hit the corners, but i think thats just me getting used to the stick. All in all it is a good stick none the less.

Just got mine today and had my fingers tightly crossed as i wanted it to work on my pc with my MAME program and my PS3. Plugged it into my laptop (4 year old dell with windows xp) and it recognised it striaght away! To use it with MAME i had to enable the joystick in the games options but other than that it worked like a dream. It worked perfectly on the PS3 too.

Begin my first fight stick i don't have much to compare it to, but on first impressions it looks good, the buttons are responsive, the joystick a litte loose but nothing worth worrying about. You can pull off all the dragon punchs and fireball with ease in Streetfighter. The joystick clicks a little because of the micro switches but this is a minor issue and atleast you know its working if its making some noise.

Im a casual gamer so its perfect for me but i reckon if your more hardcore and enjoy smashing the buttons hard then you'll be replacing this with upgraded parts in the next 6-12 months.

Its well worth it, adds nicely to the whole arcade feel. The weight is nice, and you can sit it on your lap comfortably, but the base has rubber feet which can hold it in place if you place it on your table/floor.

The stick moves smoothly but with enough feedback to give you some feel for it. The buttons are a bit loose and could be more resistant, but you get used to it without it being a problem. They are responsive but not super sensitive so you have to actually put pressure on them. Finally the cable is nice and long, so you can sit far away from the TV/PC/Console should you need to.

I have the PC version of sf4 and bought the PS3 version stick because the Xbox360 one required drivers, and the PS3 one doesn't - its plug and play. Both are USB though.

You can get SANWA parts to replace the ones that come as standard, but I dont see a need to.
Oh and no blisters!

Only annoying thing is that because the stick is PS3 and the game was made with GFWL its got Micrsoft xbox branded controls inside the options, so you have to work out what PS3 button represents what xbox button. There are however a bunch of presets in the launcher for the stick when you load SF4 - and maybe the correct selection is in there. I didnt bother checking properly!

9/10

9 because at £55~ I would expect the buttons to be higher quality.