360/PS3 Brawlpads for $20 in store at Gamestop

TheGuardianWolf

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TL;DR Version - These sticks may look ugly, but seem to get the job done well, though I question their longevity because they are made by Mad Catz. This is probably cheaper than you'll find them online, and seems like a good offer, particularly for 360 players that want to play fighting games but don't want to invest a lot of cash on a fight stick. I've used mine and it seems to work well so far. You might want to call ahead and make sure they are in stock.

Long version:
Perhaps nobody cares about this, and if that's the case I apologize, but I personally wish I had found a thread on it earlier. I really enjoy fighting games, but having recently sold my PS3 the genre was made somewhat unavailable to me, because I know how bad the standard 360 controller would be for playing them. But I finally found a solid solution that I could afford, Gamestop has what's left of their Brawlpad's for $20 bucks, which seems to be a good bit cheaper than you will find them anywhere online.

These controllers may have some unattractive art to some, but seem to get the job done quite well. From my understanding they are designed pretty much exactly like the Street Fighter Fightpads made previously, except the D Pad may be slightly more elevated. The critic reviews I've seen so far seem overall positive, particularly for 360 buyers.

For those 360 players that play too seriously to cope with the standard 360 controller for a fighting game, yet too play casually to justify spending $75 or more to buy a Fight Stick, these controllers may be a worthwhile solution for games like the upcoming UMVC3. I've used mine already for MVC3 and it feels great so far. As long as it holds up I think I'll be well pleased, and it feels like it will... The only thing that worries me is that it is made by Mad Catz, and in the past I've had issues with their products breaking over time.

However, these controllers have several features, fit comfortably, and probably even work on PC, as they are indeed wired controllers. They may even be worth checking into for PS3 players, or those looking for a more 'classic' style controller for XBLA/PSN arcade games. 20 bucks for a controller like this doesn't seem too shabby, to me.

But if you're interested in buying one, you may want to check ahead, I got the very last one from my store. It's also worth noting that more serious tournaments possibly won't allow this controller to be used, as it does have a turbo mode. Not sure what the ruling is on that, as such things are never in my area. :cry:

Anyway, I had a 10 dollar off coupon from Power Up Rewards, so this was a real steal for me, and I hope someone else will find this useful as well. :) Also feel free to leave feedback if you've had these controllers. I already have mine, but other potential buyers may be swayed by positive or negative feedback.

Thanks!
 
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These look like the street fighter pads and I really like mine. Madcatz actually started making good products so I would definitely recommend these if you need a fight pad.
 
[quote name='Xtrminatr']These have been $20 for about 2 months[/QUOTE]

Yep. I got one a while ago and haven't used it much, but it seems nice.
 
they may have changed the build quality but I have one of the original SF4 versions of these pads and I find them impossible to use.

Hitting any kind of diagonal direction is a complete tossup. Trying to hit down-forward, for example usually results in a mashup of down and forward directions appearing in training mode. Utterly useless for anything but the most casual play.
 
If you are building your own, or dual modding a stick. These are the best boards to use for 360 support. I picked up two SFIV ones to use in a project with the TvC Wii sticks that were going for $50 for two of them. I used a MC Cthulu and two of the brawl pads. I have two sticks that support 360, PS3, PS2/1, PC, and Gamecube. It will also support other consoles like the Dreamcast if I want to make cables for them.
 
[quote name='SScorpio']If you are building your own, or dual modding a stick. These are the best boards to use for 360 support. I picked up two SFIV ones to use in a project with the TvC Wii sticks that were going for $50 for two of them. I used a MC Cthulu and two of the brawl pads. I have two sticks that support 360, PS3, PS2/1, PC, and Gamecube. It will also support other consoles like the Dreamcast if I want to make cables for them.[/QUOTE]

Nice, have any pics?
 
Having the SFIV pad, it's great for casual use. The D-pad is kind of wobbly, but you can get used to it. There aren't really any comparable options out there if you're getting a pad anyway, so for this price you may as well go for it - vastly superior to the default Xbox pad in any case. PS3 dual shock, more of a toss up.
 
I actually think that the d-pads on these (the one I have anyway) are worse than the original 360 pad. Both the new transforming and the original disc rocker one.

They're actually designed almost exactly the same as the original 360 d-pad, it's a big disc that rocks back and forth in a circle.
 
Huh - I'll have to disagree on that one. The height and range of movement of the pad itself (as in how far you could push the pad to the left, right, up, down) is much wider on the fightpad - almost too much so, hence the "soft wobbly" feeling. You don't have to press down as hard as the original xbox pad, and the extra freedom is easier to work with for doing controller motions and 360s. It does have the similar "floating rocking disc" design, though. I can see how you might prefer the original xbox design if you like the sticky/clicky feel of it. IMO the best is inbetween those, like the original SNES or Saturn pads.

It's served me well for several hundred hours of gameplay. Saving up for a TE these days.
 
I've been a sanwa user even before the TE was released so maybe I just can't stand the lack of precision on these. I had high hopes, but it has sat in a drawer almost since I bought it. I'd rather use the transforming D-Pad for games like Virtua Fighter, MK and Tekken where I prefer d-pad play.
 
I can understand why it's being called 'wobbly', but it seems to be the intended design, and works great for me personally so far. The way I use the controller may be different from others though, so results really could vary there.

It's interesting that they can be used for custom controller design, I've never considered that.
 
I have a TE stick and occasionally use the SFIV Pad when I'm modding my TE stick (slowly modding it piece by piece) and although I prefer the TE stick, I am able to play on the SFIV Pad with most of my characters without much issues...unlike my ability to do the same with a regular 360 pad.

I can't play on the 360 pad at all. It's really all in my head though, I can grasp the 6 face buttons on the SFIV Pad and the wider range of motion on the D-Pad while on the 360 Pad I fail to use the bumpers, triggers, and the stiff D-Pad.
 
[quote name='jer7583']I actually think that the d-pads on these (the one I have anyway) are worse than the original 360 pad. Both the new transforming and the original disc rocker one.

They're actually designed almost exactly the same as the original 360 d-pad, it's a big disc that rocks back and forth in a circle.[/QUOTE]

really? I have an old Ken one. I think its the first redesign they did for the original street fighter pads (there were 2 different sets) And the d pad is WAY better than the 360 pad. The 360 pads pretty much unusable, i have no idea wtf they were thinking with that thing. The one i have is kinda like the old genesis pad which was decent.

Anyone know if these are like those later ones? If so 20 bucks is an ok price for one i guess. Certainly beats the unusable 360 pad i guess
 
[quote name='SScorpio']If you are building your own, or dual modding a stick. These are the best boards to use for 360 support. I picked up two SFIV ones to use in a project with the TvC Wii sticks that were going for $50 for two of them. I used a MC Cthulu and two of the brawl pads. I have two sticks that support 360, PS3, PS2/1, PC, and Gamecube. It will also support other consoles like the Dreamcast if I want to make cables for them.[/QUOTE]
There wouldn't happen to be a guide out there that you used showing how to mod the TvC stick, would there? I did a quick Google search, but nothing seems to be coming up. This is something that I'm really interested in!
 
[quote name='MechaGojira']There wouldn't happen to be a guide out there that you used showing how to mod the TvC stick, would there? I did a quick Google search, but nothing seems to be coming up. This is something that I'm really interested in![/QUOTE]

I haven't seen a guide for the TvC stick, but a general guide will work. Note that if you mod it like I did you will lose the ability for it to work as a Wii classic controller, it will be supported as a Gamecube controller though.

I used an MC Cthulu with an RJ45 port. This allowed me to make detachable cables to easily switch between system. You can find a guide on using a MC Cthulu in this setup at the Shoruken forum's which are apparently down today.

http://shoryuken.com/forum/index.ph...e-cthulhu-arcade-stick-tutorial-ver-2.100475/

I used a 360 Brawlpad along with an IMP v2 to allow a single USB cable that auto switches between 360 and PS3/PC mode.

There are a few limitations when you do this, you will lose turbo functionality along with the LS/DP/RS functionality unless you wire these directly to the brawlpad. These functions will not work with anything besides the 360.

You will be required to solder some wires to the brawlpad along with MC Cthulu and the IMP. If you aren't up to the task of Solder I would locate someone who is able to, none of the points are that tricky, but they aren't for a first time solderer.

Finally, if you don't already have a TvC stick, I don't recommend modding one. For the price of the TvC stick and a brawlpad you'll be close to the price of a 360 stick. This will allow you to more easily perform the mod as you'll cut out half of the work. If you have a 360 TE stick, there is a mod called the Kitty that is a literal drop in mod that require no solder. If want to go 360/PS3 it's only about five minutes worth of work. The Kitty also supports the RJ45 connector for all the additional console support, but it's a little more work since you'll have to mod the case a little to add the RJ45 connector.

Here is a picture of the inside of the stick:
Fightstick-Guts.jpg


And here is a picture of the cables I made, ignore the PS2->Wii cables in the background. I tried them and they don't work with this mod:
Fightstick-Cables.jpg
 
[quote name='SScorpio']
Finally, if you don't already have a TvC stick, I don't recommend modding one. For the price of the TvC stick and a brawlpad you'll be close to the price of a 360 stick. This will allow you to more easily perform the mod as you'll cut out half of the work. If you have a 360 TE stick, there is a mod called the Kitty that is a literal drop in mod that require no solder. If want to go 360/PS3 it's only about five minutes worth of work. The Kitty also supports the RJ45 connector for all the additional console support, but it's a little more work since you'll have to mod the case a little to add the RJ45 connector.
[/QUOTE]
Ah, gotcha. I'll look into some 360 sticks then, but I haven't found any for a good price. I've been looking every once and awhile, but maybe I might just have bad timing or something and never find anything.
 
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