Street Fighter IV is my favourite fighting game of the generation, but up to now I haven’t had the pleasure of playing it in the arcades or with an arcade-quality controller. Enter the Official Tournament FightStick for Street Fighter IV. This is a brilliant piece of equipment – the minute you start playing with it everything feels comfortable. The buttons and stick are exactly like what you’d get in the arcade, but for the stick being a little clicky (which might be how arcade sticks are now, I wouldn’t know because we never get new arcade games where I live). Because of that arcade familiarity the controller doesn’t blow you away immediately, but the experience of using it grows with every hour. Soon enough I was much better at the game than I ever was using a normal controller – with fluid motions I can pull off moves every time that proved troublesome with keys or a Sixaxis controller (especially Zangief’s Super and Ultra combos). It creates a whole new level of enjoyment in the game itself, and for that I would highly recommend it, assuming you’re going to put in enough hours to justify its price.

The controller comes in a big box with Street Fighter IV logos emblazoned all over it. Inside the box is the controller which consists of a base that ensures that things don’t move around while playing. On the base is a Sanwa-made control stick and 8 big arcade buttons, 6 white and 2 black. The buttons map on to buttons on the Sixaxis, which means the controller is 100% compatible with other fighters assuming you can configure your controls in detail. Of course, when you play Street Fighter IV the default mappings are already correct. The black buttons on the right hand side are configured to be the equivalent of pressing all three punch buttons (or all three kick buttons for the other) at once. I also tried the stick with Blaz Blue and found it just as fantastic. Doing quarter circles, half circles, full circles and combos is so easy with this stick, everything just feels right.

On the front of the base is Start and Select buttons – nicely tucked away so you don’t hit them by mistake while you’re bashing away at the punch and kick buttons. The controller is connected to the PS3 via a USB cable which some might find a little annoying, but I personally find the process of buying or recharging batteries far more annoying and I don’t need this thing to be portable – the wire doesn’t ever get in the way like it does on a normal controller. The feel of the stick is really solid with a nice big knob on the top and just the right resistance and travel. The buttons too feel wonderful to press and seem to be perfectly placed. I really can’t imagine going back to using any other form of controller for a console fighter – if you’re a fan of fighting games I would recommend this stick wholeheartedly. Even at the pretty significant cost (R2042) the value you will get is huge because of the longevity it adds to just Street Fighter IV alone. If you’re in the market for a stick, this is the one to get if you can afford it. The only thing I need now is another one so we can have versus matches on a level playing field.

Thanks to wantitall.co.za for improving our Street Fighter IV experience.