Do you like Vibrators?
Written: Jul 12 '00
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Product Rating:
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Pros: No Batteries Needed
Cons: More game profiles would be nice.
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| NGenTek's Full Review: Microsoft SideWinder Force Feedback Pro (656-00004... |
So you like flight and space simulation games? Microsoft has been producing a line of gaming peripherals known as the SideWinders to tailor to your game. Among these many controllers, wheels, and joysticks lies the Force Feedback Pro. The Force Feedback Pro comes flying at you with a hefty price tag and a sleek design.
How’s that Design?
The Force Feedback Pro (which will from hereon be referred to as FFP) has a design very similar to their SideWinder Precision Pro. In fact, it looks the exact same, with the exception of the height. The FFP has a large base at the bottom of the stick to house the mechanics required to shake, rattle, and roll you through your games. The FFP’s stick is contoured to your hand (assuming you’re right handed) and places all of the buttons in the proper places. The directional hat-switch and 3 buttons are placed on the back of the stick in a non-crowded manner to permit you to reach the right button with your thumb, without accidentally hitting another button. The base of the stick also houses 5 other buttons and a throttle wheel.
These buttons are what completes the design. The 4 buttons are laid out in a gaming controller fashion, which most of us should be used to handling with the left hand. The 5th button is placed at the very front of the stick, not particularly close to the others and when held, allows all of the buttons to do their secondary effect. Secondary effect? Well using Microsoft’s included software, you can map more functions to each of the buttons, giving you twice as many mapped buttons to use. To access the second set of buttons you simply hold in the shift button (the 5th) and fire away. The throttle works as you’d expect it to. Unlike the throttle found on my much older Microsoft SideWinder 3D Pro joystick, the throttle is a wheel, not a slider. This allows for more pinpoint stopping and starting of the throttle, as well as easy access with just your left thumb. With the older joystick’s placement you couldn’t use the throttle and the bottom 4 buttons without moving your entire left hand.
Lastly, the buttons found on the FFP are a little stiffer than most of Microsoft peripherals I’ve use. This allows you to accidentally bump a button without actually pressing it. This was always a problem with clumsy me on the Microsoft IntelliMouse Explorer where the buttons are so responsive you can breath on them and they’ll click. In terms of design, the FFP has really surpassed all previous SideWinder joysticks, as well as many other non-Microsoft joysticks that I’ve had the opportunity to try.
So it comes with software, big deal…
The software package that comes with the FFP is pretty minimal. But really, what did you expect? Most buy the joystick to play with already owned games. The more recently packaged FFPs include copies of MechWarrior 3. Along with MechWarrior 3 comes the Microsoft SideWinder software. Essentially, this little handy piece of software will let you customize your joystick to your hearts content. And in all honesty, MechWarrior 3 is a pretty fun game. Especially when you toss in the force feedback.
Ok, who cares? I want to know about the feedback!
The Force Feedback Pro’s feedback is superb. If your game supports the feedback be prepared for a fun adventure. Fighting the stick while your craft is getting hammered, leaning through hard turns, and ratting when firing weapons, the feedback adds a new feel to your game. I’ve been playing a lot of Allegiance lately and while it’s frustrating that the joystick moves you off your aim when you get hit, it’s fun as hell to fight it back to its position, not to mention more realistic. The stick’s control panel allows you to adjust the strength of the stick and the violence of vibrations. If you’d not like to have to fight a very strong force in the opposite direction but still want the stick going all over the place when you explode, the software allows you to do so. If fighting feedback isn’t your taste, I recommend you go with the Precision Pro.
So should I buy it or what?
The FFP is straight forward, durable, and feature loaded. It does throw akward design and weird button placement at you, but rather smart game-keyed vibration. The stick weighs in at $120US retail but I’ve seen it as low as $90US on store shelves. The addition of MechWarrior 3 to the box adds to the value. The joystick requires the same input as any other joystick, and nothing more. So in conclusion, if you’re looking for a precise joystick with feedback, and you have the desk space and money to spare, then I whole heartedly recommend the Force Feedback Pro.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 130.00
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Epinions.com ID:
NGenTek
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Member: Joel Buhr
Location: Bellevue, NE
Reviews written: 3
Trusted by: 1 member
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