Customer Reviews

Xbox 360 Real Arcade Pro. EX-SE

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I own two MadCatz Tournament Edition Fight Sticks with Sanwa parts for the PlayStation 3. I bought this stick for 2 reasons: it's easier to dual mod when you start with 360 and go to PlayStation and because I had no experience with Seimitsu controls before. At first I was very underwhelmed. Don't get me wrong, the construction of the HRAP is top notch, and always has been. The Seimitsu buttons looked cheap and seemed weird. However, playing is believing.

The Seimitsu joystick is much tighter than a Sanwa, as it has less movement in any direction. I actually prefer this, especially for quick and difficult movements in Street Fighter IV. The buttons also turned out to be quite a pleasant surprise. Sanwa buttons register very quickly, but continue to travel downward, which always seemed a little mushy to me - especially after growing up playing American arcade cabinets with clicky concave Cherry micro-switches. The Seimitsu buttons are a nice middle ground between the Sanwa and the American-style buttons: they're a little clicky and don't seem to travel as far, resulting in a much firmer, precise feeling.

All of this is just personal preference. The Hori Real Arcade Pros are very well built, and I prefer the overall case construction to the MadCatz Tournament Edition. If you're going to end up swapping out a "lesser" HRAP with Seimitsu buttons, this version sames you time, and definitely money. Even if you're thinking of replacing with Sanwa, give this a try if you've never touched Seimitsu before (and are curious): it's more cost effective in the long run.

I've even toyed with the idea of replacing the Sanwa parts in my MadCatz TE. I have been converted.

I've been playing video games for almost all of my 30 years of existence. This obsession started in arcades, and even now, I spend a significant amount of time both playing and creating arcade-style games for my Xbox 360. Street Fighter 4, Tekken 6: Bloodline Rebellion, Mushihime-sama Futari, Raiden Fighters Aces, BlazBlue, etc. Can't wait for Espgaluda II. All of these games have something in common (besides being awesome): they suck on the 360 controller's terrible D-Pad, and they demand the precision of digital control.

I'd been using the Hori Fighting Stick EX2 for two years to play these sorts of games (even Pac-Man was terrible without a joystick!). But when one of the buttons busted during Marvel vs. Capcom 2, I learned that while adequate for the job, that stick was just not built to last. When a friend attempted to repair the EX2, the way that stick was put together made the repair extremely difficult, and he wasn't able to pull it off.

I took the plunge on the HRAP EX-SE and I will never look back. Playing Futari with this stick is one of the most intense, engrossing and unforgettable experiences I will ever have while video gaming. For fighters, the stick almost felt too sensitive as first, because I was used to lesser products. I gave it a few hours and a lighter touch, and now it feels perfect.

Playing with this stick is the most natural thing imaginable; it feels like an extension of yourself. There is nothing between you and your character, nothing holding you back. You will be able to play shmups to the best of your abilities. Need to quickly move one or two pixels diagonally to avoid something? Piece of cake...if you think it, it happens. In fighting games, once you learn a move or combo properly, you'll be able to pull it off every time, unless YOU mess it up (or online lag does). You won't ever blame your controller for a botched combo again.

The stick is heavy and sturdy, so you won't have to worry about it moving around. It works with PCs and Macs just as well as it does with the 360. And, if at some point the stick or a button dies, you will be able to easily replace the dead part because that's the way this stick was constructed.

To sum up: if you play these kinds of games seriously, and you own an Xbox 360, and you are willing to spend the money, you should buy this stick. Amazon's got the best price on it that I know of, as well. Are there better sticks out there? Is the SFIV TE stick better? Now that I own this, I honestly don't know, but it makes no difference to me. I got better than what I wanted--or even imagined--with the HRAP EX-SE. If you take the plunge also, you will not be disappointed.

I've not used a fighting stick in may be 8-9 years and that was in the arcades playing Tekken Tag Tournament, a very different experience than a console stick, so I'd consider myself a complete arcade stick noob. I've always liked fighting games but they are extremely difficult to play with the Xbox 360 controller. I tried the XFPS with a PS2 controller and didn't like it at all, so I sold it off and bought a new Hori Real Arcade Pro EX-SE.

I'll start with opening the box, the unit is heavy. Not bad heavy, but "solidly built" heavy, a big plus. I don't want some little chincy toy that's going to slide all over the place or break with use. There is nothing in the box except the stick, no instructions, no warranty info, just a stick. The stick is wired and the cord is maybe 6 feet long, plenty long for me.

I fired up Tekken 6 and the game instantly recognized that I was using an arcade stick and modified the controls accordingly. I don't know if it's because it's a Hori product (Hori also makes the official Tekken 6 stick) or if this would be true for a Mad Catz stick as well. You can modify the layout of the buttons or map the other 4 buttons not needed for Tekken, I left it stock though.

I started off in practice mode knowing that I was going to be bad. The stick certainly takes some getting used to. Thankfully there is not a wide range of motion, something you don't want when trying to pull off quick move inputs. Circular motions are actually the most difficult thing for me to pull off, I think it's because of the square gate. Arcade sticks use either square or octagonal gates to limit the range of motion of the stick. With an octagonal gate you have a stop at your NW, NE, SW, SE directions that makes the range of motion more of a circle. With a square those directions are open so it takes some getting used to.

After practicing and starting to get the hang of it (or so I thought) I decided to take it online and try the stick against other people. While I didn't to overly fantastic (granted, I'd only been using a stick for 30 minutes) it is an absolute blast to use. You've got the mic hookup so you can talk to people, the buttons are well laid out, it was just alot of fun and playing in a public lobby on Tekken felt like being back in an arcade again.

To wrap up my first evening with the stick I threw on the XBLA game Frogger (which I won for free in a contest) and played it with the stick. Even it's alot more fun with the stick...as much fun as Frogger can be.

I only have a few hours of experience with the stick and I will update my review as I go, but thus far I am very happy with my purchase. It adds alot to the whole gaming experience, like playing a racing game with a steering wheel or a flight game with a joystick.

If you are a serious fighting game lover or just want a fun way to play the games give this a whirl.

*Update 1/29 - Street Fighter IV*
I ordered Street Fighter IV off of Amazon after getting the stick. Technically this is the second time I purchased the game...I bought it right after it was released but the controls were so awful with the Xbox 360 pad that I gave up and sold it soon after. It arrived today and I anxiously threw it in the 360 so I could try it with the Hori stick.

Let me start off by saying there is night and day difference between the control schemes. Controlling your character is easy and quick movements are a snap. I think that as a whole Street Fighter is much more forgiving with move inputs because half circle motions didn't give me any issues at all. Button layout is good although it still takes alot of getting used to (with Tekken you've only go 4 buttons to worry about which you can cover at all times, with SFIV you have 6 buttons and have to move your fingers to hit 'em all).

Once again the enjoyment factor of using the stick is there, it feels like I'm in an arcade. I went from having bad memories of a mediocre game to really enjoying my experience (although I'll always be a Tekken fan first and foremost).

My solid recommendation of this stick stands firm, a fantastic product.

I pretty much agree with Donovan Myers's review. It comes down to personal preference, but I do prefer the Seimitsu buttons on this Hori stick, even though the curved layout does take getting used to.

Here is some other information not covered by the the other reviews thus far.

1) The Madcatz Tournament Fighting Stick is a little heavier than this Hori stick, but the Hori stick is sufficiently heavy to be placed on a tabletop or lap.

2) The Hori stick does not have a built-in storage space for the cord, but it does come with two small cable guides with adhesives that can be placed anywhere on the stick to secure the cable. The guides are in a small bag taped to the big wrapping bag that covers the joystick, so be sure to find the guides before you throw out the box materials.

3) The square gate in this Hori stick appears to have slightly rounded corners, so I had an easier time doing quarter-circle motions. With the Madcatz stick, I often rammed the stick into the corner of the square gate when trying to do quarter-circle motions.

This stick is the truth! Although the Madcats TE stick is nice, it doesn't compare with the fit and finish of this bad boy. The stick and the buttons are a little firmer than the Madcatz stick, since it uses Seimitsu arcade components instead Sanwa, but which one is best is all personal preference. Buttons and stick aside, the quality of the casing is also superb. Since it lacks the gimmicky cord storage door and cheap plastic end-caps of the Madcatz stick, it's a much more SOLID feeling stick than the TE stick. Also, the control panel has a very fine hammered texture to it and isn't prone to scratches like the Madcatz stick.

This is the best Xbox360 stick on the market.

Okay, so I was torn between getting this or the Madcatz SF4 stick. I ended up going with this one and i'm glad i did. It uses all seimitsu parts for the buttons and joystick. This is an excellent stick if you are into shoot em ups. it's pretty good for fighting games too, although I've heard most fighting fans prefer sanwa sticks. It also works on a windows pc so you can use it in MAME and other emulators.

This is a fantastic stick. I have played the Madcatz TE and some others, this and the TE are obviously my favorites. I like the size and layout of this one, and like the Seimitsu parts a lot. Has a pretty good length of USB cable (8' maybe?) but unlike the TE it doesn't have a hidden compartment to store it. I kind of like that feature, but at the price I got this I couldn't justify an extra $40 just for tidyness.

The black EX version of this doesn't have the Seimitsu buttons, it has cheap knock-offs made by Hori. Why this one is currently cheaper by a significant margin is beyond me, but I'm thankful it was. If the EX had been cheaper I probably would have gone with that for the black color, and just added Seimitsu buttons afterward.

I will probably be modding a few things (colors, etc) mostly for aesthetics, but I will say that the black top is NOT plexiglass like all the others (I was expecting it to be) - it is glossy black painted metal or plastic, that shows fingerprints like CRAZY. That will be the first thing to go. I'll be getting a plexi top from tek-innovations dot com so I can put some custom artwork underneath (to distract from the fingerprints hopefully) and some colored buttons to replace the stock ones (stock are good quality buttons, but I'm not big on the multicolors.)

Of course all of that is cosmetic. If you're still playing with a gamepad, get this. I immediately was able to pull off moves more consistently, and can play longer without getting raw thumbs.

This thing is on sale for a ridiculous price. Get it while it's hot!

While I am by no means a competitive or Pro gamer, I have played with an awful lot of controllers and fighting sticks in my time. I currently have an X-Arcade Tankstick connected to a PC for emulated games, an Ascii Arcade Joystick for my Dreamcast, the Wii Fighting Stick and now this product, the Hori Real Arcade Pro EX-SE. It's among the best and best built joysticks I've ever had.

First thing to note is that to its credit, the joystick's base weighs roughly the same as my car - it's really, really really heavy! It is not going to wiggle around on your lap and mess up your game; it's not going anywhere, no matter how wildly you're clicking the joystick and mashing the buttons. The stick and buttons, similarly, are clearly made of heavy, professional, Real Arcade parts. The plastic parts feel thick and strong, the joystick has a good weight to it.

I would report that though the PC detects the stick, you have to go through a fairly convoluted process to get the joystick to work for any games on a computer(it keeps thinking the joystick is an analog stick, I guess?). I hopped around on the net and found some blogs that tell you how to mess with the settings and get it to work, but for the time being right out of the box, it's not a PC joystick. It's an Xbox 360 joystick, and a great one at that, and possibly a PC joystick if you're willing to spend some effort getting it to work.

I use mine for some obvious games and some not so obvious ones on the 360: Street Fighter IV, Marvel vs Capcom 2, Tekken 6, Castle Crashers, Golden Axe, Root Beer Tapper, Soulcaster (a great retro indie game), R-Type Dimensions and Rush 'n Attack. I enjoy it particularly on SFIV and Castle Crashers, it seems to enhance those games a particular amount for some reason.

In all, well worth it, a great product. And a small happy note as well - I idiotically squished the tip of the USB connector under the foot of a couch and ruined it, and Hori was absolutely awesome about getting me a replacement part. Huge thumbs up on this stick and on Hori as a company!

Let me start off by saying that this is my second HRAP from Hori, because they make such great products I had to come back for more. I never thought I would go as crazy for arcade sticks until I bought my first one which was a Hori Real Arcade Pro for Xbox 360. They just make a very solid and well built arcade stick. As fighting game fanatic there is just no other way to go!

First off, the stick has a very solid feel to it and it's pretty heavy which is a GOOD thing. It gives you the sense that you could mash buttons all day and pretty much abuse the thing and it's not going to affect it in a negative way. You can tell that it has excellent craftmanship and a great finish that doesn't scratch easily.

Then there are the controls/buttons. Authentic top of the shelf semeitsu buttons are extremely crisp to the touch, which provides for great sensitivity. The stick is smooth and the gate feels more round as opposed to the square gate from the previous HRAP. It is also easy to mod, I put on a clear bubble top for a personal touch in less than 5 minutes. Although, it looks great stock as well.

The Hori Real Arcade Pro EX-SE is one of my favorite sticks right there along side the Street Fighter 4 TE if not my absolute favorite.

I made a post recently about the Madcatz TE stick and have had a positive experience with it. Having some experience with arcade sticks, I had some idea of what I wanted. I have several others stick, which aren't good enough to get into detail to mention here, like the X-Arcade or Pelican sticks. They're decent but they're tiers below the Real Arcade Pro EX-SE.
As I needed a second stick, I wondered if I should give another brand a shot and how it would compare to what I already like. After quite a bit of reading and review watching (some other great comments by other people on the RAP EX-SE), out of all the Real Arcade Pros, this one seemed to fit the bill - I wanted to try out the Seimitsu setup instead of the Hori or Sanwa buttons and stick.
Here are my thoughts after some play-time with it:

Pros:
+ pleasantly weighted
+ size is almost perfect (not as wide as the Madcatz TE but just enough)
+ buttons are fantastic (ever-so-slightly heavier than Sanwa)
+ square gate & stick were solid
+ construction and design were solid as well
+ price around ~$100 is reasonable

Cons:
- headphone jack protrudes from the control panel

Other:
~ some artwork would have been cool (yes, there are a lot of other Hori setups with lots of artwork)
~ no button lock was no big deal
~ select/start buttons on face with other buttons were not a problem
~ no compartment for cords was nothing to worry about
~ the uniform color buttons on the other models was cooler
~ square-gate a concern? Practice, practice, practice! (I'm right there with you).

The one negative for me isn't enough to take a star away. I'm still going to give it 5 stars as it was a fantastic arcade setup all-around. Even though the headphone jack wasn't what I wanted, everything else made it top-notch. Those buttons were awesome.
The only other item I would change is if it was a tad wider, like the Madcatz TE. It may be perfect for everyone else.
The price may be higher than what one would expect to spend but it's completely worth it.

Would I buy another Real Arcade Pro EX-SE? Absolutely. Do not settle for anything less than the Real Arcade Pro EX-SE or the Madcatz TE. You'll be disappointed!