the same with me, i was using the mortal kombat original 8 way sticks, and when playing pacman or donkey kong, it was to easy to get stuck. I just bought the magstick plus, you can switch from 4 to 8 way from the top of the panel, and they have a nice short throw. Some dont like the magnetic cetering, but so far i really like them. and not having to open the panel to switch is sweet.