Video Command Joystick

C&VG (Computer & Video Games)

WHICH STICK? WE PRESENT THE RESULTS OF OUR JOYSTICK SURVEY A computer without a joystick is like a canoe without a paddle. No self respecting games player would want to be without a decent stick for his machine. Opinions vary as to the best stick and video games players are like seasoned tennis pro's, when it comes to choosing their favourite. At C&VG over the last few weeks we've tested just about every stick on the market to bring you this comprehensive guide to the best sticks around. We have tested the sticks for responsiveness, ease of grip and fire, robust construction of casing, attractiveness, and value for money. ARCADE PROFESSIONAL The Arcade Professional has a real arcade look and feel to it. Based on the controllers from an actual arcade game, the Professional comes in a shiny black metal case. It sits on a hard surface or on your lap with a foam base to protect your parents' best coffee table. Just like an arcade machine there are two fire buttons - useful in games like Scramble where you have to bomb as well as fire. The Arcade Pro is as responsive as any of the other sticks tested. The fire buttons are true arcade style alien blasters - as large as five pence pieces and dish shaped to avoid "finger-slip" - that dreaded affliction known to all vid kids! The Arcade Professional can be opened up to alter the stick's movement - four directions for maze games and eight directions for shoot-'em-ups. THE VERDICT Robust stick which can actually be repaired unlike some of the plastic throw-away sticks on sale. This advantage, however, makes the Arcade Pro dearer at £38.50. Nice design - will make your friends go green with envy! QUICKSHOT The Quickshot range of joysticks are the slickest, most futuristic sticks on offer. The original Quickshot stick with its long helicopter-style grip keys makes it easy to hold. Rubber suction pads on the base of the stick also make it easier to use - particularly with maze games where you can benefit from the stick being firmly secured to a solid base. Two fire buttons - one at the top of the shaft for thumb firing and another at the base of the stick - for you to choose your most comfortable fire position. THE VERDICT Good sturdy construction and comfortable grip. The stick scores best on shoot-'em-up type games where the shaft-mounted button is a real bonus. The bulkiness of the shaft makes the playing of maze games a little more difficult. One of the better sticks - retailing at £11.95. Compatible with Atari 400, 800, 600XL and VCS - will also work with Spectrum through the Sinclair interface. QUICKSHOT II Spectravideo's Quickshot II must be one of the best arcade-style sticks around for video gamesters. Its solid design promises hours of trouble tree playing. And you can use it with the Atari VCS, or Atari home computers, the Vic-20, CBM 64 and many others. The Quickshot II has a number of interesting features. Starting from the top of the aircraft style stick grip, you'll find the primary shooting button - for those games players who like to blast away using their thumbs. Below this is a trigger style fire button which lets those weary thumbs take a rest! Spectravideo say that the moulded stick grip is "ultra-ergonomic" - and who are we to contradict them. Suffice it to say that the slick is comfortable - even after an extended session of River Raid! The base at the stick is very sturdy and has a neat little innovation built in - an Auto-Fire switch. This allows you to unleash a continuous stream of bullets by simply locking the shooting mechanism. To make the stick stable, there are four powerful suction cups on the bottom of the base - this allows you to play one-handed. And the stick won't come unstuck even during the most exciting space battle! The Quickshot II is available from Spectravideo stockists and costs £12.95. THE VERDICT A winner from top to toe. The C&VG joystick jury voted the Quickshot II the best stick to come into the office for same time. RED BALL America's favourite deluxe controller (or, as they call them in the US, "gourmet stick'!) is the Wico range of sticks. It's easy to see why these sticks have been such a success across the water. They are sturdy, responsive, and built to last. The top of the Wico range is the Red Ball controller at £27.95. This is one of the most responsive sticks we tested - with a steel shaft, and fire buttons mounted on the base and the ball at the top of the shaft. Slightly cheaper than the Red Ball is the Wico Extended Lever stick, This has an extremely long control shaft, though unlike the Red Ball it only has a fire button on the base. The cheapest of the Wico sticks is the £16.00 Boss. It has a moulded grip which makes it comfortable to use. A well sprung fire button is mounted at the top of the shaft. THE VERDICT Wico sticks are generally regarded as the "Rolls-Royce" of video game controllers. If you can afford to fork out £27.95, you'll get no finer stick than the Red Ball - the Extended Lever and Boss are also excellent sticks at a slightly more affordable price. TRAK BALL Trak Ball controllers introduce a new specialist element to video-gaming. Like a professional goiter carefully selecting a certain iron to match the conditions of the green, so a true video games superstar will reach for a Trak Ball to play in certain games - such as Centipede, or Missile Command. The Trak Ball otters precision control in games where you need to move your character all over the screen as quickly and accurately as possible. It is a sleek black box with triangular-shaped "fire buttons" in both top right and left hand corners. Trak Ball-style controllers were first used in arcade games, but are now also available for home use and the latest version is Atari's controller far the VCS, 400 and 800. THE VERDICT I tested the Trak Ball on Centipede and Missile Command and found that it added the real feel of the arcade to these games. Something of a luxury add-on - but if you really lake your gaming seriously, the Trak Ball is a must at £39.99. STARFIGHTER Suncom's Starfighter is described by its makers as the ultimate joystick. Short and stubby and difficult to get a good grip on, I did not find the Starfighter very easy to use. Although the stick was reasonably responsive, I found the shaft a little stiff. THE VERDICT I was not happy with the fire button - it was sluggish and let too many nasty aliens slip through the net for my liking. Starfighter is a little overpriced at £13.95. LE STICK Another baseless stick is Datasoft's mercury-controlled Le Stick. What's really unique about Le Stick is that to move an object on screen you simply point the stick in the direction in which you wish the object to move. Mercury inside the stick makes the connections to make the objects move. THE VERDICT A nice idea - but one that doesn't come off - and we cannot recommend Le Stick. Priced at £24.95. VIDEO COMMAND Video Command is a baseless stick with a control grip secured to the top of the shaft. The fire button is mounted half way down the shaft so that you fire with the same hand as you hold the stick. The stick is good on shoot-'em-ups, but the lack of a firm base makes it difficult to handle the tight cornering required in maze games. Manufactured by Imagic - the makers of the Imagic range of video games - the stick is in the shops at £12.99. THE VERDICT Design of the stick means that it is extremely lightweight and easy to use. Fire response was adequate. The only drawback is that the short knob controller may make the stick difficult to use in games where a large amount of manoeuvring is required. TAC II TAC stands for totally accurate controller. The stick's extra responsiveness is due to a set of mini sensors built on to the shaft at the stick itself. The TAC's construction is amongst the most robust of the sticks we tested. On maze games, the joystick performed excellently. It also proved to be a good alien stomper. THE VERDICT This is my work-a-day stick. The one I reach for first when I sit down to review a game for C&VG. Its no-nonsense design with two large well positioned fire buttons makes the TAC II a joy to use. Available from Sumcom of Manchester at £18.95.