Cruiser Joystick

Your Sinclair

Linda Barker

TIDINGS OF COMFORT AND JOYSTICKS As we've no doubt pointed out about 20 times already this issue, Christmas is almost upon us, so what better time to take a good long gander at the wonderful world of joysticks? After all, they make an ideal stocking filler! (Or so LINDA BARKER thinks anyway.) Not really knowing a massive amount about joysticks (it has to be said) I thought I'd check with a couple of my sources before embarking on this feature. What a waste of time - the only comprehensible (and non-indecent) answer I got went along the lines of "Um, er, um, they're those smelly things you light, aren't they?" Useless. Vowing to get a better class of source, I made my excuses and left. The research was all up to me. Ahem. So where are we? Well, what with it being Christmas (the 21st time we've mentioned it this issue) and everything, we thought you'd be wondering what to ask good old Santa for this year. Well, how about a joystick? They really do make rather lovely little presents - not too extortionately priced (usually), made of spiffy red and black plastic (almost always) and just a nice size to wrap up too! The only problem is there are so many to choose from. Decisions, decisions. I hate 'em (and I'm sure you do too), so being incredibly kind-hearted souls we thought we'd save you the trouble of traipsing round all the stores. Now there's no need to work yourself into a hair-tearing ninny because you can't decide what to get, because we've done all the deciding for you. All you have to do is settle down, get yourself comfy and read on. (Hurrah!). COMPETITION PRO 5000 BLACK (£14.95). COMPETITION PRO PHANTOM (£14.95). COMPETITION PRO GOAL (£14.95). COMPETITION PRO 5000 CLEAR (£15.95). COMPETITION PRO 5000 EXTRA, RED GLOW AND GREEN GLOW (£17.50) The Competition Pro 5000 is the one that we generally use in the office. It's a good medium sort of size and simple in design - a car gear lever-like shaft with a knob on the top, and two big fire buttons on the base, all finished in ubiquitous red and black. Some may think it looks a bit old-fashioned, but I like it - there's no fuss and pretension here. It's been around a while (eight years or so) and is still popular, probably because it's so durable (the shaft's steel-plated, you see). Seeing as it's the one that's almost always plugged into our office Speccy it's been the standard I've been judging the others by. All versions of the stick come with microswitches on the fire buttons and a two-year guarantee, no suckers though (so desktop work isn't too hot) but the more expensive ones get autofire and slow motion features. It's easy to get to grips with and a good shape to hold but (but! But!) one problem - the stick's too stiff for me and doesn't waggle enough. They loosen up with age apparently (and tend to be fairly unbreakable) so perhaps that's worth putting up with however. Of course, if you're bored of black and red (and if you're not now, you will be by the end of this feature) you can get the same basic design finished in different ways. The Phantom is a ghostly white ('startling', according to the packaging), with a black handle and fire buttons (very stylish), while the World Cup series comes in ten different colour combinations for different teams. We've got the England one (a white body with red buttons and stick) but more exciting is Brazil - green and yellow. Ideal for Kick Off II! What else? Well, the Clear is, as you might expect, clear (so you can see all the wires and nice little gold bits inside) while the 'Glow Style' Extras are a sort of transparent luminous acid green or pink. Nice and bright, but really worth the extra three quid!? (I think not.) POWERPLAY CRUISER BLUE, BLACK AND MULTICOLOURED (£9.99) I like this one lots and lots - in fact, it might even be my fave. It's such a nice shape - no bulky square base, this one's rounded, flatter and streamlined. I've got the blue one with red stick and white fire buttons (mmm!) but they also come in black, multicoloured and clear (with autofire) for a little bit more dosh. Nice to hold and easy to use, it's even got my fave sort of handle - a plain stick with little round knob on the end. What's more the whole thing feels quite sturdy, despite the fact that it's relatively small compared to lots of them. The suckers are good too and well spread apart for good desk stickability. One extra selling point is the unusual shaft, which is adjustable so you can get the amount of stiffness you want - extra sensitivity, normal use, or firm control (for waggling). And as if this wasn't enough it also makes those nice clicky noises that I'm so fond of - an absolute winner! STOP PRESS: Linda acquires black Powerplay Cruiser and falls in love! I bet you didn't think anyone could fall for a joystick, but this is the cool dude of the joystick world (if Julian Cope was a joystick he'd be a black Cruiser). As an extra plus, this is already Spectrum adaptable, so there's no need for an interface. LINDA'S PICK OF THE STICKS So there you have it. After much debate and deliberation in the office (and a fair amount of arguing) we've managed to narrow it down to the top three. (Or at least, I have.) Here we go... 1) POWERPLAY CRUISER (in black) A nice shape, well-built, a good price and oh-so-sexy in black. A bit of a winner all-round really. 2) KONIX NAVIGATOR Quite well-built, small and futuristic-looking, and ideal for when you haven't a table to lean on (or don't want to anyway). Quite expensive for what it is though. 3) = COMPO PRO 5000 Super-sturdy and quite accurate - worth the high(ish) price. 3) = CHEETAH 125+ Accurate and comfortable, if a bit cheap looking in the plastic casing stakes. Very good value though. Now all you need to do is a) ring the one you want, b) leave this issue innocently lying around the house (open at these pages of course) and c) hope that someone with a bit of money takes the hint! Merry Christmas, everybody!

Clockwise from top left: Quickjoy Junior, Quickjoy Jetfighter, Cheetah Exterminator and the Quickjoy Supercharger.

Clockwise from top left: Tac 50, Command Control, Blue Powerplay Cruiser and the Black Powerplay Cruiser.

Left: Cheetah Star Probe. Centre: Cheetah 125+. Right: Cheetah Mach 1.

Left: Competition Pro 5000 Clear. Centre: Competition Pro 5000 Red Glow. Right: Competition Pro 5000 Green Glow.

Left: Konix Speedking. Centre: Konix Megablaster. Right: Konix Navigator.

Powerplay Crystal Standard

Star Cursor - Professional Computer Joystick: Centre.

Crash

Response 5/5

Feel 4/5

Look 4/5

Overall 5/5

Mark Caswell 5/5

IT'S A STICK-UP Whatever happened to the days of all joysticks being a small base with a stick in the middle and a fire button that never worked? Today they look more like something from the control panel of an F-16 and get bigger and sillier all the while. Nick Roberts and Mark Caswell delve into the CRASH joystick bin to discover whether the joystick really is a gamesplayer's best friend... QUICKJOY III Spectravideo £10.95 MARK: I'm not fond of Quickshot joysticks. I owned a Quickshot II many moons ago and that busted within a couple of months. This looks a first glance just like it, but its trendy red body sets it out from the crowd. Again two buttons are present and each gives a solid click with each depression, though one problem is the uncomfortable hand grip. With a fairly long shaft the Quickjoy III works best on a table top, but with my shovel-sized hands I found holding the stick quite easy. A relatively cheap stick that should be given serious consideration. Pro 9000 Euromax £14.95 NICK: This joystick has a classic design that has been copied so many times. The rectangular based with its two fire buttons on the end is comfortable to use both on a table and in the hand. The handle is quite short and has a ball at the top. The two fire buttons are not too good though as they're not microswitched and this lets the stick down. Not bad. QUICKJOY JET FIGHTER Spectravideo £14.95 MARK: Sadly the Jet Fighter costs too much for what it delivers. At first glance the stick is so impressive with its moulded shaft and very solid looking base. But the major problem here is the length of the travel: you have to move the stick so far to get a response that quick movements are near impossible! Diagonals are as elusive, though the fire buttons again answer with a responsive click when pressed. Steer well clear of this one: to quote The Hitchiker's Guide To The Galaxy - it looks like a fish, it moves like a fish, but steers like a cow! QUICKJOY V - SUPERBOARD Spectravideo £19.95 MARK: It looks like this stick contains everything but the kitchen sink!! With six fire buttons (four on the base, two on the shaft), top or base fire button selector and a digital timer (what for, I've no idea) it's a big mutha! On the table is the only practical way to use the Superboard. Travel is fairly short and thus responsive. A tough stick that should up to punishment pretty well, but twenty quid is serious dosh. WICO COMMAND CONTROL Suncom £24.99 NICK: The Command Control has a classic joystick design - a sturdy base with a long stick coming from the centre and fire buttons on both the base and the top of the stick. Unfortunately the size and shape of the base make it very uncomfortable to hold in your hand. A good feature is the inclusion of three interchangeable grips that slide onto the stick to suit all gamesplayers. There are some bad faults though. The grips do not come far enough down the stick, thus leaving a gap at the bottom. This can easily pinch a chunk our of your hand while you're playing, making the baddy who's torturing you on screen seem more realistic! The top fire button is also annoying as it needs a hard push to make it work. SURESHOT COMMAND MODULE Sonmax £17.95 MARK: If you want to know what big means, you should see the Command Module! With two large microswitched buttons you don't need to move your hand far to fire that laser, though I'm not overly fond of the gaudy sticker on the base. Stick travel is short making the Command Module very responsive, and so are the microswitched fire buttons. I'd advise you to wear sunglasses when using this joystick (due to the sticker) but it's a good all rounder. TURBO PEDAL Euromax £24.95 NICK: You've got to be joking! This is so rubbish I couldn't stand using it for more than one game! You put your foot down on the pedal and all you hear is a bang - the sound of the plastic pedal against the plastic base. Eventually you do get some response from it (after a few more bangs). I found that my feet and legs began to ache soon after starting to use the Turbo Pedal, making playing a long racing game an agonising experience. A few suckers on the base wouldn't have gone amiss as the thing keeps sliding away from your foot! ZIPSTICK SUPER PRO Sonmax £13.95 Standard Autofire £14.95 MARK: I'm afraid I'm a bit biased towards this stick, I've owned one of these for four years or so and it's still going strong! The sleek black shape and trendy yellow fire buttons and collar look good, and the stick itself feels 'worn in' even when first used. Button pushes and stick movement are rewarded by solid clicks, and both pixel perfect and wild waggling movements are easily achieved. Check the Super Pro out for yourself, I reckon this and the Cruiser are the two best sticks around. THE ARCADE Euromax £17.95 Standard Turbo £19.95 NICK: With a triangular base, a fire button on the end and a short handle this joystick is very comfortable to use. Euromax claim it's been the best selling joystick for nine years. The turbo version of the stick comes with an autofire and a Pro 9000 type handle to support a fire button. The fire buttons are not too hot though. Using a single leaf switch they need a bit of prodding to get then to work. ULTIMATE RAPID FIRE Euromax £22.95 NICK: This is one BIG joystick! The Ultimate Rapid Fire is probably the closes you're going to get to an arcade stick with its large base and two fire buttons either side the short ball handle. A dial-a-speed rapid fire button sits on the top of the base and can be turned to vary the speed of fire or to turn it off. With this stick being the size it is you can easily rest it on your lap to pay a game but there are also suction cups on the base to secure it to a table top. This is definitely the best of the big sticks and a personal favourite. COMPETITION PRO Dynamics £14.95 MARK: The Competition Pro is another distinctive stick with its red shaft and fire button. The ball shaped handle is comfortable to hold, though table top use is hampered by the lack of suckered feet. The medium travel of the stick makes it responsive, but I find the use of leaf-switches in the fire buttons very silly. Overall a rugged, comfortable stick that should be considered. CRUISER Powerplay £12.99 MARK: Now here's my idea of a perfect stick: the comfortable rounded handle along with the sensibly placed microswitched fire button make this a definite winner. It comes in several colours: blue, black, clear and an eye warping multi-coloured best. All have the innovative "pull and twist" collar ring that adjusts the stick tension. Like the Super Pro the Cruiser's ruggedness is legendary - we CRASH louts have been abusing Cruiser sticks for years without complaint. Unreservedly recommended. QUICKJOY JUNIOR Spectravideo £5.95 MARK: This is a cheap stick, and unfortunately it shows. The fire buttons are placed sensibly enough on the base and under the index finger, but sadly a lot of bashing is needed to gain response. The stick is small so young hands will find it easy to hold, and table top players are well catered for with four strong suckers. With such a short 'stick', response is fairly good, I found diagonals easy to obtain and the Junior is almost silent when the stick is moved (no metal grinding on metal sounds here, matey!) At six quid the Quickjoy Junior is okay as a first buy, but I'd personally save my pennies. SINCLAIR STICK Amstrad Free With Speccy NICK: This is one of the easiest joysticks to break! I've lost count of how many I've destroyed over the years! It responds quite well, although you feel as if you're hitting against plastic all the time instead of a nice micro switch. The main problem is the shape of the base. The rectangular box design has rounded-off corners but can still be very painful if you lean on them. Supplied with all +2, +2A and +3 computers there can't be many people haven't seen one of these sticks. Not the best in the galaxy, but how can you complain when it's free? CHALLENGER REMOTE CONTROL Euromax £29.95 MARK: Let's face it, remote control sticks are a very expensive gimmicks that serve little purpose. Although this one works pretty well there seems to be a slight delay between you pressing the button and on-screen response. The stick is a rather natty grey colour with two fire buttons both on the shaft, though the handle isn't moulded and I found that prolonged use cramped my hand. There are plenty of cheaper 'normal' sticks on the market, and in my opinion the Challenger will only be bought by people interested in gimmicks. SPEEDKING Konix £9.99 Standard £10.99 Autofire NICK: The Speedking is one of the better joysticks when it come to the left/right waggle. You can get very high speeds on sports games using it. The only problem is that it creates a giant strain on the hands and arms. You can't use it vigorously for long, you have to take a break. For normal use the hand moulded stick sits comfortably in your left palm and the position of the fire button on the right is perfect. To my knowledge the Speedking is only available n a version for right handed players, cutting out a large segment of the joystick market. Overall a good stick but playing Daley's Olympic Challenge can be hell! WICO ERGOSTICK Suncom £18.99 NICK: This is a real winner with me. It's similar in size, shape and design to the Konix Speedking but has one important difference: instead of being made from hard plastic, the Ergostick has a rubber covering which makes it much easier on your hands. The rubber also stops the stick slipping and sliding about. The only problem is a knobbly bit on the end, it really begins to hurt after a long playing session! An excellent joystick I would recommend to all byte bandits out there! NAVIGATOR Konix £14.99 MARK: Beam me up Scotty! The Navigator is somewhat akin to a Star Trek phaser. Due to the handle, table top use is impossible (or at least improbable), and prolonged use can lead to hand cramping. The stick is physically very short (no more than an inch or so high) so people with big hands will find holding the handle very difficult. Response is fairly good due to the short travel, but I must say this is none of my least favourite sticks. Right, there you have it: the professionals' view of the joystick world. Choose your stick carefully - it can make or break your Speccy gaming fun!

The Games Machine

Overall 9/10

CENTRE BYTES THE PUNISHERS Back when Spectrums were first released, joystick owners were a breed apart. That elite group of computer owners who took their gaming seriously. Nowadays, though, with all new games machines having built-in joystick ports, there's no excuse not to have one But there's such a wide range that it's difficult to choose. Fear not, as the Centre Bytes teams look at all the popular joysticks around, plus some newer and more innovative ones ways to hand out the punishment. CRUISER Power Play £12.99 Available in a variety of colours from just matt black (for gothic gamers) to multi-coloured designs (distinctive but horrible), the Cruiser is one of the TGM office's favourite sticks. It can be held comfortably while suckers are provided for extra stability. It is popular because it's not only durable, but also responsive. You can waggle to your heart's content, then flick to Kick Off in the knowledge that every movement is being accurately interpreted.

Your SinclairYour Sinclair Best Buy

David Wilson

Jackie Ryan

Matt Bielby

CHEETAH 125+ £8.99 Your Sinclair Best Buy A fairly large, black plastic joystick modelled firmly along aircraft lines. It's nicely designed, with a comfortable handgrip, four well-placed fire buttons, autofire, twin leads (black for 48/128K with suitable interface, grey for +2 and +3) and even a non-slip effect around the base for extra grip. Unfortunately, this is slightly marred by the overall plasticy feel of the thing. That having been said, it proved to be one of the nicest to use and good value to boot! It comes with a 12 month warranty too so you should be okay. Recommended. Jackie: Sticks well to the desk, but the shaft is a bit wibbly and loose. I like the grip effect and it's got loads of lovely fire buttons all over the place which means you can swop which ones you use and rest your hand. David: Very light on the controls and quite responsive. Comes off the desk quite easily though because the base is a bit narrow. I'm slightly scared of the durability - it feels quite fragile. Matt: I like the light touch - it's a lot less tiring if you're having a long session with a game. Very precise for shoot 'em ups, but not easy to waggle (none of these aircraft-style ones are). I found it stuck to the table okay, but it's got a very small base compared to how tall it is, so I could see a problem with leverage (ie it might pull off). I like it a lot, it's excellent value, but I'm concerned about how long it would last. QUICKJOY V SUPERBOARD £19.95 Ber-limey! Now this ain't just a joystick, it's an, erm, goodness knows what it is! It's gigantic for a start with a whopping base absolutely loaded up with gimmicks. In fact, all those buttons and switches only amount to an autofire option (with two speeds for the settings - the first one too slow to be of any use) and a stopwatch! What a disappointment. There's another massive things about it, of course. That's right - the price! David: Now this is weird. I dunno, I like the feel of this stick - not too light like the Cheetah ones, but not too heavy either. The autofire doesn't seem to work... Oops, yes it does, I was just doing it wrong! (What a clot. Ed) Now let's try holding in my hand - lummey, it'd be easier holding a cello! But I suppose it's not designed for that, so it's a bit unfair to criticise. Autofire slow is a dead loss - you'd only ever use autofire fast so it's a waste of time. I'd never get one - it's just ridiculous! Jackie: What do all these buttons do? (Nothing really. Ed) The point of having lots of fire buttons is that when your fingers get tired you can swop hands and use different ones, but here you can't because you have to choose which ones will be functional before you start playing! If you choose the ones on the stick, none of the others will function! Otherwise response is slow - and it pulls off the desk easily. Quite comfortable though. Matt: It looks good but basically it's crap. It's ludicrously big, won't stay stuck to the desk and most of the gimmicks are useless. Why do you have to use a separate button to switch between the controls at the top of the stick and the ones at the bottom? And, as for the timer, well, have I boiled an egg yet? QUICKJOY 2 £8.95 Another black and red job trying to look as much like part of an F-16 as possible. The Quickjoy 2 has two fire buttons mounted at the top of the stick (none on the base) and an autofire option. Reasonably priced, but a very average stick. Jackie: Blimey! Steering's not very good! For some reason when I fire (She was playing Dragon Spirit, a vertically scrolling shoot 'em up when she wrote this. Ed) the dragon goes left automatically! Fire again and it goes left a bit more! Totally unplayable. When I try to go forward I go left too! Otherwise, it sits firmly on the desk and is comfortable to hold - I quite like it. I can only assume this is a faulty stick. Matt: Not too bad to hold or have on the desk (sticks quite well) but the fact this one made the dragon go left all the time made it impossible to assess. I can only hope it isn't because the build quality is diabolical. David: Very stiff trigger. Not very responsive - the shaft doesn't seem to move too well, even if it isn't doing that going left business. Nicer grip than the Superboard thing though. QUICKJOY 2 TURBO £10.95 Basically the same stick as the Quick joy 2, but this time with a stylish red base. The difference seems to be that this model operates with microswitches. Still, where Quickjoy does well is in getting the balance between stiffness and accuracy right. Despite the fact that the casing seems to be the same as the Quickjoy 2, this stick has a nice feel. Jackie: This one goes forward and to the right when you push forward! What's going on?? I quite liked this at first but after a while my trigger finger got a bit hurt. I found the fire button on top of the stick hard to use. Generally slow response. David: Unusually for Quickjoy this one feels really light and the fire buttons aren't as stiff as the normal Quickjoy 2. The grip on it isn't too bad either - for some reason it feels a lot better than the normal 2, though it looks just the same. A good, basic stick, and the best of the Quickjoys. Matt: Feels a bit vague all round, and is ALMOST comfortable, but not quite - there isn't enough space given to your little finger. Probably my favourite of the Quickjoys though. QUICKJOY 3 SUPERCHARGER £12.99 A very swoopy, futuristic-looking joystick moulded in black and red. This one boasts exactly the same features as the Quickjoy 2 Turbo (auto fire, two fire buttons, 'ergonomic design', six microswitches and whatnot) so it's hard to see the point, especially when the handgrip proves to be far from comfortable. At £12.95 it's hard to see the appeal. Jackie: It's a bit too chunky for me. I reach the trigger or fire buttons on the top - the shaft is just too big and fat. It's not very good at staying on the desk - the suckers slip. This is the third Quickjoy that's got some funny steering quirk. One this one when I pull backwards the dragon starts going left! (She's still playing Dragon Spirit. Ed) What's going on? Is it something to do with the Amstrad CPC 464 option-switch?? David: This is a bit of a bulky one. All the people at Quickjoy must have very big hands! It makes a horrible crunch sound when I move it - I don't think this'll have a very long life expectancy. I think the Quickjoys have the balance between lightness and resistance just right, but it's too fat for my hands as well. Matt: Nope, far too fat. When I pull to the left or right the base of my hand hits the casing, and the fire buttons at the top aren't too easy to use either. I think David's right about the weighting though - the shaft inside feels good but the casing is terrible. KONIX MEGABLASTER £8.99 A conventionally designed but tiny little stick from Konix, featuring microswitch precision at quite a low price. It has a medium sized shaft with a fear leveer-like knob at the top, two fire buttons on the base and, erm, that's it... David: Not really a desktop stick since it won't stick down, but I found it a bit awkward for hand use because it has little legs underneath that get in the way. Cheap and well built, but I don't really like it. Jackie: Stick easily controlled with fingertips, but stiff fire buttons and it won't stay on the table (no suckers). Response of stick too slow. Easy to hold in either hand, but, again, it's all a bit stiff. Matt: Easy to hold in either hand, but a bit too small all round I felt. Could do without the strange nobbles moulded into the base for no particular reason which make it really weird to hold. I didn't like the fire buttons much either. POWERPLAY CRUISER Black, Blue, Multi-coloured: £9.99 Clear (with autofire): £12.99 Your Sinclair Best Buy This one's been around for ages, and is now in a choice of blue, natty black, clear and even multi-coloured models. The coloured one is sort of pastel green with a pink shaft, blue base and yellow buttons! All models have four good suckers spread wide apart on the bottom so it sticks to the desk very well, but you can hold it in your hand if you prefer quite easily. One of the stick's main selling points is that you can adjust the tension of the shaft to one of three degrees of tightness. You can set it to extra sensitivity, normal use or firm control (for waggling). The ease with which you can do this seemed to vary from stick to stick, but it's a useful feature. Recommended. Matt: I'm amazed at how much I like this one. It's very old fashioned looking - even ugly - but it seems quite durable and does everything at least passably well. It's fairly precise for shoot 'em ups, it's possible to get a good waggle rhythm going and you can hold it for long periods without getting too uncomfortable. It sticks well to the desk too. David: Actually, the reason it plays well when it's stuck to the desk is because of the large, flat base - it means the suckers are spread well apart for more grip. It's a dead loss to hold though - it's too big. having said that I like the Cruiser, even though it looks so horrible. Jackie: It's good for shoot 'em ups because it sticks well to the desk, you can change hands easily when you're tired and the actual stick responds well. The green one is lovely and I'd have it as pride of place in my bedroom. Not so much a joystick, more a work of art(!). QUICKSHIT WHIZZMASTER GAME CONTROLLER £11.95 Excluding the Superboard, this was the only novelty stick we could get hold of. In fact it's quite a serious proposition. Basically, it's small, grey and flat, like a bloated version of the joypads you find attached to Japanese games consoles, but offering you a number of control options. For a start you can use it like a joypad, manipulating direction pad with your left hand thumb while you jab fire with your right. This may sound weird, but once you get used to it it can give more control than an ordinary stick. Your other two options involve screwing short sticks of varying sizes into the pad - a tiny stumpy one for the thumb only (which we promptly lost) and a large (but still quite small) stick for fingertip manipulation. You also have the option of holding it or sticking it firmly to the desk, so at the very least you'd have hours of fun going through the various permutations. Comes with autofire and a one year warranty. David: I was quite excited to see this because I like the keypad on the PC Engine, but unfortunately it's a bit bulky to grip. Hold it with your right hand and it wibbles about all over. The little plug-in joystick is useless. THis is the opposite extreme of a massive stick and a tiny base - a big base with a miniature stick and the fire button too far over on the other side. Matt: This is quite hopeless when it's stuck to the desk, or with either of the pathetic little stick things in place, but holding it in both hands like a Nintendo keypad is a different story. It's a bit too bulky for that but I really like pad controls and this is the only one available for the Speccy. These things take some getting used to but for most games I think they're in fact better than joysticks. Jackie: I totally disagree. if it's on the desk you have have the joystick on or your finger slips all over the place. With the autofire button on, the joystick in and the thing stuck firmly to the desk I like it. I don't like the pad - it gets too slippy and the but where a stick screws in hurts your thumb, but with the joystick it's very light and easy to control. You need autofire though because the fire buttons are too far from the stick. KONIX SPEEDKING Standard: £11.99 Autofire: £12.99 This unusual little one's been around for ages but some people still can't seem to work out how to hold it! in fact, nestling in the palm of the left hand with your index finger on the fire button underneath and your right hand operating the stick itself, you've got a neat (if sweaty) little device. Matt: There's only really one way to hold it so you can't swop from hand to hand when you're getting tired. I quite like it, but the Navigator is a loot more comfortable for prolonged playing and worth considering splashing out the extra dosh for if you're a firm hand-held fan. Jackie: The shaft's easy to move and you can change direction well, but because of the big chunky grip and awkwardly positioned fire button it makes your hand really ache. The design makes it impossible to change to the other hand, so it's no good at all for left handers. CHEETAH CHALLENGER £4.99 A small, conventionally styled bottom of the range model from Cheetah, with one fire button on the base and another on the top of the shaft. For all that it's a new design we thought it looked very plasticy and old fashioned. You can't carp though when it's only £4.99 - ludicrously cheap compared to some other sticks, and it does come with a one year warranty. Jackie: Urgh! It's like something you'd buy off a market stall! It sticks well to the desk but the fire buttons are awkwardly placed and a bit stiff for a weak wibbly female like me. Seems quite strong though, and 'the price is right' after all. David: It's not the Cheetah Challenger, it's the Cheetah Crap! It sounds awful, it looks awful, it won't go a long way. Hmm. It's basically a desk top job, but it doesn't stick as well as the Cruiser. The fire buttons are weird - there;'s one on the top instead of a nice trigger - and it's terrible to hand-hold. Cheap though. Matt: Sticks well to the desk, but looks and feels horrible. The fire buttons are tacky and clicky, and the shaft feels stiff and unresponsive. A very awkward shape to hold. If this were a bit less tacky and a bit more comfortable it'd be a Best Buy. CHEETAH STAR ROBE £14.99 Another black, aeroplane-style stick with four red fire buttons and an autofire facility. It comes with a one year warranty and a dual head lead like all the bigger Cheetah sticks, but again feels a bit plasticy in construction. Try as we might though, we can't see how they can justify the fact that it's more costly than the (superior) 125+ Jackie: Another one of the Cheetahs that looks quite cheap. Fire buttons are well placed, apart from the trigger one that makes my finger ache, and the one at the top's a bit odd as well. Hmm. Perhaps they're not so well placed after all. It looks like it will split apart any second. It sticks decently to the desk and directional steering is quite good with very light controls again, but it's too big to hand-hold. Matt: The look quite big and macho but I wonder about the durability of these Cheetah ones - the sticker's already peeling off and I've only just taken it out of the box! It's got quite a nice light feel again, and the fire buttons are good, except for the trigger which I found a bit too curved to be comfortable for my finger. David: Not a bad stick, but not one I'd choose myself. I'm a bit heavy handed so I like something fairly sturdy. This is a bit too big and light for me. CHEETAH MACH 1 £10.99 Blimey! Another joystick from Cheetah moulded in black and red with a metal shaft, autofire, four microswitch fire buttons and a one year warranty. Just like the 125+ and the Star Probe in fact! In general, the Cheetahs have very light controls, well placed fire buttons and feel like they might be very strong inside but they're let down by cheap outer casings. And this one's no exception! Why do they make so many similar sticks? Jackie: Sits firmly on the desk, but the shaft slopes forward which is a bit disorientating. Pulling back and left and right is fine, but when you push forward it seems to go a long way before you get any effect which is weird. Fire buttons well placed for the right hand, but less so for the left. Matt: Hmm. Sticks down quite well, and the autofire is good, but the placement of the other fire buttons is a bit weird. The normally-quite-useful trigger one is so small as to be almost useless! Good for flight sims though 'cos it's like a real aeroplane stick. David A very popular stick - it's not too expensive and there are always loads for sale in input Output so lots of people have got them. To use the top fire button you have to take your thumb off the stick which loosens your grip, and the trigger one is far too small. A bit wide to hold, but it's light so it doesn't work too badly. POWERPLAY CRYSTAL STANDARD £14.99 Autofire: £16.99 A stylish transparent microswitched joystick with a large clear base and neat red handle. We tried the basic Crystal model, but it also comes in autofire form and in solid colours (red or green) for a couple of pounds less. It's probably the best looking of the clear sticks. Jackie: It looks like my telephone! (Jack's got a transparent telephone at home, fact fans. Ed) The stick's a bit wibbly and loose on the base, the switches are quite stiff but it moves well. A bit small though and your fingers get tired after a while. Matt: It looks really nice but I think the grippy handle is too small (and I don't even have very big hands)! The fire buttons feel funny to me too - they're stiff and tend to stick a bit after a while. All in all a good looking device, but to me it looks better than it plays and it's quite expensive. David: This is weird. The way I hold it my thumb is on the fire button but the base of my hand gets in the way of the full joystick movement. I think it's a bit of a dodgy design - at least it isn't comfortable for the way I like to use a stick. I think it might break quite easily too. COMPETITION PRO 5000 Black: £14.95 Clear: £15.95 Extra Clear with Autofire: £16.49 These three Competition Pros are basically the same stick, the Extra being a souped-up version of the standard thing with rapid fire and slow motion features. Each has a steel shaft with a large car-like gear knob on the top and two large microswitched fire buttons on the base. Although it can be used as a desk-mounted stick it lacks suckers, so it's probably best to hold it in your lap. For once it's a stick that feels as sturdy as it says it is on the packet. Good but pricey. David: This is the one I've always played with at home, so I'm a bit biased but I find it very accurate and it has lasted for five years no trouble. My sister got a Quickshot 2 at the same time as me and it broke ages ago. What else can I say - it's a bit old fashioned, expensive and feels stiff when you first buy one, but I wouldn't play R-Type on any other joystick. Jackie: This is David's favourite?? You can't have it on the desk 'cos there are no suckers and the shaft's too stiff to move easily. It's alright to hold with my right hand, but I can't grip it properly with my left and there's a big knob on the top that I don't know what to do with. Matt: I find it a bit stiff, but David assures me it loosens up with age. It's definitely best hand-held - useless on a desk 'cos there are no suckers - and it feels like perhaps the most solid stick here. KONIX NAVIGATOR £14.99 A rather oddly shaped joystick to be held in the hand - some people likened it to a Star Trek phaser, others to a stumpy racing yacht complete with keel! Ideal for those without a desk to lean on or who simply like to sit away from the screen. The grip does have a tendency to get a bit wet if a) you're a big fan of waggling games or b) you suffer from sweaty hands. Best of the sticks designed for hand use only, but ridiculously expensive for what it is. Matt: This is one of my personal favourites because I like to hold a stick in my hand away from the desk and most of the larger ones are a bit awkward. We've had one in the office for ages and it's not broken yet! Definitely an advance over the Speedking which I was never quite sure how to hold, but isn't it a bit expensive for what it is? David: it's obviously designed for you to hold in your hand (very tightly) but I find it's too bulky for that and it makes my mitts ache. The shaft's so small you're using your fingertips all the time. Jackie: I really like it. It's small, light and you don't have to sit close to the screen to use it. Ideal if you've got small hands.

Left to right: Cheetah Mach 1, Cheetah Challenger, Competition Pro 5000, Konix Megablaster, Quickshot Whizzmaster.

Left to right: Cheetah Star Probe, Powerplay Crystal Standard, Quickjoy II, Cheetah 125+, Quickjoy III Supercharger.

Left to right: Competition Pro Extra, Quickjoy V Superboard, Quickjoy II Turbo.

Left to right: Powerplay Cruiser (multi-coloured), Konix Navigator, Konix Speedking, Cruiser (clear), Cruiser (black).

So there we have it. It's nice to be able to say that this year's crop of joysticks all meet a decent basic standard - so even if your granny sets out to buy you one unsupervised she's going to find it pretty difficult to come back with something totally unusable. We've picked out a couple of Best Buys - sticks which offer a good compromise of high performance but low price - but choosing a joystick is such a personal thing we suggest you at least try to hold a few before you buy just to see which suits your hand shape and playing style. DAVID'S TOP THREE 1) Cheetah 125+ Because I found it very precise, comfortable to hold and well priced. 2) Competition Pro Because it's so durable - I've put it through a lot and it always comes out smiling. 3) Powerplay Cruiser I like a hand-held stick, but if you have to have it stuck to the desk this works well because it's got such a wide base. JACKIE'S TOP THREE 1) Navigator Best of the bunch as far as I'm concerned - it's the most comfortable to hold 2) Multicoloured Cruiser 'Cos I like a stick that isn't boring black and red and it's a damn good all-round joystick. = 3) Cheetah 125+ A good standard stick = 3) QuickShot Whizzmaster Game Controller A neat idea, but only as a joystick - it doesn't work for me as a keypad at all. MATT'S TOP THREE 1) Powerplay Cruiser Before we started I'd never have believed you if you'd said I'd end up liking this old warhorse best. However it does everything well, it's sturdy and it's cheap Best buy, easily. 2) Cheetah 125+ Accurate and comfortable, this was my favourite of the aeroplane-style sticks despite the dodgy plastic casing. Cheap too. = 3) Competition Pro Extra = 3) Navigator Both a bit expensive, but the Navigator is so comfortable and the Comp Pro so sturdy you can't ignore them.

Crash

Overall 5/5

Mark Caswell

Phil King

STICKS IN THE MUD Christmas time seems to have brought forward quite a few new joysticks, with the Navigator in particular being heavily-hyped. Most of them look really good, but how do they play? Two of the CRASH lads put them to the test, on all types of software ('cept word processors, of course!)... Cruiser Powerplay £9.99 (Original) and £12.99 (Clear) MARK: The original Cruiser joystick has been at CRASH Towers a fair while now and although the red/blue finish is a little bright, they've proved exceptionally durable. The shaft is very robust and the microswitches give a good, but not overly loud click at each movement. Fire buttons are large and respond well The unique feature, however, is a 'collar' on the stick - pull the stick up and you can swivel this into one of three positions, choosing either sensitive, normal or firm responsiveness. This is also featured on the new Clear joystick which has a neat autofire activated simply by holding down fire. Both of these have a year guarantee. PHIL: Now here's a stick which lives up to expectations. It looks good and feels very solid. Furthermore, its sensitivity is adjustable so it's suitable for any type of game and extremely durable - we've had them around the office for the past six months and they're still working! The Cruiser is definitely the joystick of the moment and for its excellent all-round qualities is very hard to beat. That's all folks, remember that the opinions of the CRASH lads are only meant as a guide. There are many joysticks on the market, we've covered what we could get hold of (further updates when we receive any more - hint, hint). Opinions on joysticks are as individual as those on games - 'every hand is different' as Lloyd's granny says. Certainly you should ask to try one before buying it, and of course keep your receipt, especially for those with long guarantees. You should also bear in mind none of these joysticks, with the single exception of the Navigator, will work with the +2 or +3 joystick interfaces without a small converter, such as the Frei adaptor (£2.50 - see the CRASH Hypermarket, page 95). But whichever one you choose it's got to be better than the Sinclair SJS-1...!

Your Sinclair

Precision 4/5

Strength 4/5

Manouevrability 4/5

Value For Money 5/5

Overall Performance 4/5

Howard King

Miles Tudor

Steven Brewer

THE JOY OF STICKS We've waggled our way through the joystick jungle to bring you the latest on the firepower of ten top joysticks. If you're a real games addict you'll know how important a good joystick is. Games have moved on a bit since Pacman and Space Invaders where all you had to do was move left and right and blast the fire button every now and again. Then you could use the same joystick for all the seven games on the market. Nowadays, however, computer games are much more demanding and varied - shoot 'em ups, beat 'em ups, fly 'em ups, waggle 'em ups, steer 'em ups and even fry 'em ups - they all need differing degrees of precision, manoeuvrability and strength. Which is why you need a damn good joystick for the job - and there are plenty to choose from. So there's no excuse for a bad game player to blame his tools! But which joystick is best for the games you play? Which joystick do you choose? There are thousands. And you've only got twenty quid. Well, it just so happens that we've got a run-down on 10 of the most popular sticks on the market - read on to find out which one covers your every need. THE GAMES A joystick's performance varies considerably from game to game. The precise movements needed in a martial arts game become redundant in an out and out waggle 'em up. And then, the strength and slackness of one stick might not help in a steering game where full control and manoeuvrability is necessary. So, in order to test the joysticks fully, we chose three different titles to strain those sticks to the limit. Target Renegade tests for precision, Daley Thompson's Olympic Challenge for strength and Skate Crazy for manoeuvrability. And to make the contest even harder we asked three hot gamesplayers to give us their opinions on which sticks they preferred. TARGET RENEGADE A beefy beat 'em up. All that punching and kicking and butting requires a stick with easy access to diagonals and fire buttons, plus the ability to move slightly and quickly in any direction. SKATE CRAZY A loose and bouncy roller skate game, needing a combination of ease-of-movement and well positioned fire buttons for that sudden leap. A stick for this game will also need a strong shaft to resist those frantic circular steering motions. DALEY THOMPSON'S OLYMPIC CHALLENGE The meanest, the baddest and the toughest waggle 'em up in existence. The constant waggling environment requires a stick with excellent strength and good speed, coupled with a sturdy desk hold and well contoured grip. THE JURY Yes, solemn of face, tough of opinion, stingy of money, and ravenous of hunger, here are the three jury members, unswayable by money (or cheeseburger), ready to deliver their verdicts on the guilty sharp sticks. STEVEN BREWER Age: 16 Sex: Male Dist Features: Inane grin Computers: Speccy, QL Fave Rave: Gauntlet Hobbies: Grinning inanely, being enthusiastic about nothing Fave Music: U2 MILES TUDOR Age: 16 Sex: Twice a... (Snip. Ed) Dist Features: Bloodshot, knackered eyes Computers: I ain't got one, but if anybody's offerin'? Fave Rave: Target Renegade Hobbies: Sheep-spotting, train-spotting, spot-picking Fave Music: Prince HOWARD KING Age: 16 Sex: Male Dist Features: 'boyish good looks' Spluuter! Computers: Speccy 48K Fave Rave: Robin O' the Wood Hobbies: Boasting about his handicap (gold), kicking the dog 'bout a bit' Fave Music: Queen SPECTRAVIDEO QUICKSHOT 2 The Quickshot 2 is the father of most joysticks today, but its age does not show in its design. It has a square base, and a wide, sharply contoured handle as well as three fire buttons and an auto fire switch. It's four suckers stick relentlessly to any surface. The shaft is long and loose, which provides a fairly slowish response. The diagonals are difficult to locate in a hurry and it can't handle double movements (such as flying kicks) too well. It excels waggle-wise and the auto-fire switch is easily flicked on by the wrist. But despite all these faults, it works remarkably well in all games. Steve: 'Its slackness click irritated the hell out of my moody sister.' Miles: 'One old timer that's still up there with the new ones.' Howard: 'Ooh I'm a sucker for the suckers!' A little slow, a little temperamental, a little noisy - but what do you expect from a four year old joystick? Recommended. SUNCOM TAC 5 Now here's a very striking joystick - its beige and grey colouring is very chic, good-looking and elegant. The bulky square base sits on four studs and its size makes it unmoveably solid on a desk top even during savage waggling. There are three fire buttons. The stick moves with a very distinctive microswitch click that would annoy your parents and dogs. Movement is pretty good. The diagonals are excellent and there when you want them, although the stick does twist disconcertingly when you move it. It shines in all four departments but the granulated grip is a little too soft. Steve: 'I felt in full control when using this one. Great stuff.' Miles: 'Though it looks very "Habitat" I didn't find it very responsive.' Howard: 'I sweated so much the red directional marks rubbed off and I thought id cut myself!' Extremely attractive number with solid build, good diagonals and response. Annoying microswitch click, impotent fire button positioning and rub-off-when-wet paint let it down a little. Recommended. CHEETAH 125+3 The design of this joystick is very authentic, attractive and similar to the Quickshot 2. The base is robust and granulated for extra grip. It has four fire buttons. The stick, however, looks very plasticy and the seams were bluntly evident. The wide grip and tight throw allow magnificent handling although its size tends to make delicate or slight movements tricky. It responds quickly and smoothly especially in abrupt direction changes, despite the loud groans the stick emits under stress. Precision is perfect but in waggle-'em-ups, the stiffness of the stick prevents a good fast momentum. And it is simply perfect for games requiring manoeuvrability. Steve: 'The Cheetah 125+3 is the one for me - it's a beauty to handle!' Miles: 'I found this stick particularly useful in Skate Crazy which requires a lot of direction changes.' Howard: 'If only it would waggle better!' Outstanding all round joystick, authentically designed, furiously responsive, unbeatable steering but disappointing waggle-ratio. Recommended. POWERPLAY CRUISER The Cruiser is an instantly appealing and very attractive joystick, with its blue curved base, two-deep set white base buttons, and red standard stick. It rests solidly on four suckers on any desk top, but the curved design also suits the hand. The feature that really makes this joystick is the variable tension feature that allows you to select one of three degrees of tightness. The fire buttons are very well placed and click responsively. Diagonals are easy to find and direction changes are good. Adjusting the tension to number two helped in games requiring manoeuvrability, and as for waggling, number three seemed the best. The tightest tension (number one) worked best with Renegade. One of the less muscle-bound reviewers observed that the way you changed the tension (lifting then turning the stick) was quite difficult and a weak and feeble gamesplayer may find it a touch difficult. Steve: 'I'm a wimp so I found changing the tension awkward - I was so tired I couldn't play the game.' Miles: 'Not a bad little number for the all round gamesplayer. Worth, the money!' Howard: 'This is my top stick. It caters for everything and looks neat too!' Noisy but powerful joystick with unique variable tension option and multi-coloured "spaceship" look. Recommended. RAM DELTA The RAM Delia's design is very distinctive, futuristic and angular. The base is shaped like the front of a car while the shaft looks like a gear-stick. It's supported on three suckers placed at each corner, but holds just as well in the palm of your hand. Unfortunately it's shortness restricts precision, especially during hectic Renegade combat. Response is very polished and light, and the microswitches make the direction changes quick and substantial. While waggling, the small throw (the distance the stick moves in any direction) of the stick creates a good rhythm, but excess exertion leads to a sweaty slippery grip. All directional movements are springy, and the clicks of the switches are quiet and unobtrusive, yet loud enough to indicate when you had forced the joystick far enough. Steve: 'I liked the design but found handling a little awkward.' Miles: 'This one is definitely my favourite - I've never gripped such a nice stick!' Howard: 'Control is superb - and I loved those suckers!' Superb sculptured joystick, dedicated to those who like looks, body and character in their sticks. Recommended. EUROMAX PRO-ACE The Pro-Ace is a sturdy-based joystick with a long slender shaft and two fire buttons. The shaft is good and stiff but feels rather flimsy - as if it might break off at any moment. The lack of suckers and a firm base make it rock drunkenly on the desk during any frantic action. The fire buttons, however, are well placed and responsive. The throw is microscopic and renders waggling virtually useless. Described as emphatically pedestrian (What?? Ed) the Pro-ace steers quite well considering the limited throw, but the diagonals have to be forced and the shaft is too long for the field of Renegade movement. Steve: 'Not bad, not bad! I've used a better tool though!' Miles: 'Nice looking stick this - and it handles well too!' Howard: 'Cor this is rather good. I quite like it.' A stiff and flimsy affair, which rocks on the table and reacts very slowly. Steers well though. SUNCOM TAC 2 This small, square based joystick is the most solid on a desk top, and is compact, durable and quite rugged. It has two buttons The stick only moves slightly in each direction but triggers first-rate responses. However this light operation is let down by the overly (or underly) short shaft. The sensitivity is excellent and made both steering and diagonals a piece of cake. After a bout of waggling though, the handle became quite wet and one of the more sensitive reviewers suffered from a sore thumb after a heavy game of Renegade. Steve: 'This one was in a class of its own in playing Skate Crazy.' Miles: 'Not as good as the Suncom Tac 2 I'm afraid.' Howard: 'Tac is an apt name 'cos it's one of the tackiest objects I've seen.' Sturdy solid joystick, attractively metal-plated, is not so hot precision-wise but practically boiling in the steering field. KONIX SPEEDKING This unusually shaped joystick looks a little like a lost jigsaw piece and half a pelvis. It's very well designed for a hand held grip but so does not sit easily on the desk. The stick is a short red affair in arcade-machine stumpy style and is microswitched. It slides quickly into diagonal position and the small throw allows very fast direction change. But the same smallness restricts steering and makes the joystick feel disconnected in games like Skate Crazy where it only gives a fair degree of control. The smoothness of response is great for Renegade, and perfect waggle rhythm is a cinch to get going. The disparity of the design is difficult to get used to, and a sweaty session of waggling can make the stick very slippery. Steve: I just couldn't decide how to hold this one.' Miles: 'It looks quite natty and is a good all round joystick.' Howard: 'It's a bit small for my tastes.' Originally and economically designed, the Speedking is perfect for those who don't have a desk to lean on and don't sweat much while waggling. TERMINATOR Believe it or not this strange looking object really is a joystick. Shaped like a hand grenade (for the Rambo addicts?) this joystick is aimed more at the novelty and toy market rather than our serious 'executive' gamesplayer. The metallic fire button is the clip on the side, while the small Meccano stick juts out of the top. It sits well in your hand and is lighter than its explosive counterpart. As a joystick it's pretty useless, a nightmare to use and makes you want to go "aaarrghhh!". The fire button is awkwardly positioned and is easy to press unintentionally. The stumpy stick is awful for precision and all movements have to be shoved into direction, although the diagonals are easy to obtain. Obviously an excellent novelty and gimic but not very useful as a serious tool. Steve: 'The slippery stick is hideous and waggling is bleuuuch!' Miles: 'I really couldn't get to grips with this one.' Howard: 'I reckon you'd get arrested if you walked into a bank carrying this!' Excellent 'macho' gimic that looks exactly like a grenade with a piece of Meccano stuck in the top. Absolutely rubbish as a joystick though. VOLTMACE DELTA 3S The old fashioned prehistoric design makes the Volt mace Delta an instant turn off, but it's not as bad as it looks. Shaped like a door wedge, the Delta has three fire buttons and a small orbiting stick. It's quite awkward to hold and is happier on a desk top. The three red base buttons are too far away and tiny - rather like TV remote control buttons. The stick is also too small and weedy making small turns and movements virtually impossible - to go anywhere you have to exaggerate the movements. Changes in the direction and precision are easy because of the movable stick and the wide gap for movement, but the diagonals are spindly. Waggle-wise it performs surprisingly well and with the minimum cramp or restriction. Steve: 'I wish I could say this is a pleasure to use - but it isn't.' Miles: 'Urrggh! This one looks like a bar of Dairy Milk - shame you can't eat it!' Howard: 'If you like waggling, you'll like this!' Prehistoric design is not too attractive but it sits comfortably on your desk despite spindly diagonals and misplaced fire buttons. Comparatively outstanding at waggling. VERDICT It was a close thing with each reviewer snuggling up to their favourite sticks, and beating each other about the head with their not so favourite ones. But in the end the Cheetah 125+ scraped into first place, with the RAM Delta and Powerplay Cruiser coming second and third respectively, closely followed by the Konix Speedking and Quickshot 2. The overall positioning was: 1. CHEETAH 125+ 2. RAM Delta 3. POWERPLAY Cruiser 4. KONIX Speedking 5. SPECTRAV1DEO Quickshot 2 6. SUNCOM TAC 5 7. SUNCOM TAC 2 8. VOLTMACE Delta 3s 9. EUROMAX Pro-Ace 10. TERMINATOR Now for the votes on the best and worst buys. Here's what the reviewers had to say and they mean that most sincerely folks! STEVEN BEST - Cheetah 125+ "Magnificent handling... brilliant fire buttons... a real treat." WORST- Terminator "Aaarghhhhh... awful... my goldfish steers better than this." MILES BEST- RAM Delta 'Looked quite sexy... the knob was really nice... good and springy." WORST- Terminator "Bleuchhh!... Terrible... Looks too much like a hand grenade and 1 didn't know to hold it." HOWARD BEST - Powerplay Cruiser 'Fits well in the hand... stands out... good stuff and the stick variable tension - wow!" WORST - Terminator "Yicckkk!... a nightmare... it's bad, really, really bad." 1st Place Supplier: Cheetah Marketing Ltd, [redacted] Price: £12.99 Guarantee: 1 year Features: A C D E F G

FEATURES A- Suckers B - Studs C - Thumb Button D - Trigger Type Button E - Base Button F - Auto Fire G - +2/+3 Compatible H - Metal Shaft I - Miscroswitches

SCORES 1 - Eeek! 2 - Poor 3 - Average 4 - Good 5 - Excellent

TOP TEN TIPS WHEN BUYING A STICK 1. Don't be taken in by sales blurb. Disregard phrases like "the greatest ever joystick " or "the most responsive on the market" plastered on the packaging. Stay in touch with the real world. 2. Consult a guide (ie, this one). 3. Decide beforehand how much you are prepared to pay. There are two sides to the market: budget (five to seven pounds) and the not so budget (ten to twenty pounds). 4. Keep in mind the type of games you'll be playing. If you're a shoot 'em up addict you'll want a stick with good manoeuvrability and a well-placed fire button: if you're a flight sim man you won't want a tiny effort. 5. Check for +2/+3 compatibility. More often than not, if a stick is compatible it will be supplied with two leads or an adaptor. Otherwise search around for a suitable interface. 6. When buying an interface, stick to names you know. 7. Search through mail order firms (like DATEL) for good prices and special offers. Often you can buy an interface and a joystick in a combined cheap package. 8. If possible, ask to test the joystick. Not necessarily with a game, but just move it around and get a feel for it. Test the tension, consider the looks, examine the quality. 9. Check out the guarantee. Don't accept under a year for any joystick. 10. Keep in mind, the amount of desk space you have. Buy a hand held model if you have no space.

WARNING Before you rush out and buy a brand new joystick, remember you'll need a joystick interface too. Rubber keyboard owners have always needed one and although Amstrad included a joystick port on the Plus 2 and 3, it's only compatible with Amstrad joysticks, so you'll still need an interface for Kempston and Cursor sticks. Got that?

Sinclair User

POWER PLAY CRUISER RANGE Model: Cruiser Price: £9.99 for the blue and black joysticks. And £12.99 for the transparent versions. Supplier: Power Play, [redacted] We have not one, not two but three spanking new joysticks from Power Play this month. The sticks are all from the new Cruiser range. They are all in the Competition Pro mould with their stylish fire buttons and general all round feel. Each stick has slightly different features, though they are largely identical. The transparency of the, er, transparent cruiser is a tiny bit naff - this sort of thing works as a 'design concept' on watches, but the inner works of a joystick don't make especially interesting viewing. This model has an auto-fire option, obtainable by keeping your thumb on the fire key. This is supposed to bring out the rip roaring, blasting, terminating, killing effect of your stick. When I played Cybernoid though, it seemed not to give the effect at all. I am told by numerous people that this is a common problem with auto-fire sticks. The main problem, I'm led to believe, is that programmers include blocking codes to defeat auto-fire. The difference between the other two sticks (the blue and black ones) is that the black has a flat top and the blue has a round one. All the joysticks have this rather new and spiffy gimmick. This gimmick is in the shape of what they call a 3-way variable tension control ring. This gives you a choice between: 1) For extra sensitivity (Pah! - JD), 2) For normal uses, and 3) For firm control. This choice is made by turning the cap at the end of the stick around to the desired position. I found that the extra sensitivity option was best used for shoot-'em-ups, like Cybernoid for instance. The normal mode I thought worked best for the Combat School type of game. The firm control works at its best when it's used in your famous Outrun car chase jobbie.

SPECIFICATION Two micro-switched fire buttons, 8 way micro-switches. 8mm steel shaft. Four suction pads. New variable tension control ring.