Main > Reviews
Ultrastik 360 Octagonal Restrictor / Happs Concave vs. Convex Review
fjl:
Dont you have to tell the U360 software that it has the octogonal restrictor so it can compensate for it analog and non analog games?
SailorSat:
I'm using UltraStiks myself (actually 4 of them) and I guess the problem is you don't let the joystick go "center" again.
As they don't "click" when they switch, you can move them from 100% right to 50% right to 100% right, without the joystick registering a "center" move at all.
Thats the only problem I had with them, but I think you'll just need to get used to them.
Stub:
You could use a custom map with a large center. Only put the directionals on the farthest out rows. That might give the emulation you are looking for.
Zobeid:
I've been wanting to try these for a while. At first I ordered the stiffer springs and the octagon restrictors, but was sent the 4/8-way and circular restrictors kit instead. So. . . I went ahead and put in the springs, and sent back the restrictors for a swap.
The stiffer springs were 100% good, I was surprised. These are not the old super-heavy springs, these are the ones that used to be called "medium". The super-heavy springs were discontinued because they were too stiff for just about everyone, so now we have only the stock springs (very light) and the medium-heavy springs which many people find are just about perfect.
I figured the heavy springs would be good for 4 and 8-way games, bad for analog games like Star Wars. After trying them, I found Star Wars actually felt better to me. There is no down side, everything feels better. They were also pretty easy to install.
So, this morning I installed an octagon restrictor on stick 1, while leaving stick 2 without any restrictor for comparison. The installation was a lot harder than I expected. The big problem was the four aluminum posts that screw into the base of the stick. The bushings they screw into were canted, they didn't point all the posts exactly straight up -- which means they didn't want to go into the holes in the PCB. After tinkering a while, I finally had to use some muscle to get all the pieces to go together.
I expected this restrictor to be a big improvement for 4 and 8-way games, and a big detriment to analog games. The results I got were more ambiguous than that. The octagon reduces the throw length of the stick a lot, and it definitely makes the stick feel a lot different, but in terms of actually being better or worse it's not so clear.
For Star Wars the octagon restrictor didn't feel as good, it made aiming slightly harder, but the damage wasn't as bad as I expected. It was still playable. Similar story for trackball games: they work but are less precise.
For some 4/8-way games, the octagon may have made things slightly easier -- but the U360 with the heavy spring and no restrictor was already working very well for me with most of those games, so it's really hard to pin down any improvement.
I think the short throw is most useful for what I might call "tappity-tap" games, where you are just entering a bunch of discrete nudges into the stick. Frogger would be a good example. It's great for Frogger. . . But most of us are not crying out for the perfect Frogger stick, and that game was already controlling pretty well before I put the restrictor in. So it's not something to get excited over.
It felt pretty good when playing Bosconian, this was one game where the eight "notches" may have helped me a little -- but again I have to note I wasn't doing badly at all with that game before putting in the octagon. It's hard to pin down an actual improvement.
I suspect it might be really good for fighting games. . . but I'm not into fighting games, so that means nothing to me.
This is one of those things where there is no definite right or wrong answer, it's a question of what you're used to and your personal preferences. My suggestion would be. . . If you are already a fan of short-throw sticks, or if you already know you like octagon restrictors, then go for it. If you aren't, and you don't, then don't sweat over what you're missing. It's not a Big Deal. I thought it would be a Big Deal, but it just isn't.
If it were possible to get a wider octagon restrictor that reduces the throw much less, but still provides the "notches" in all 8 directions, that might be the perfect compromise for me. But you know, I think I'll probably take it off and go back to no restrictor. I've been playing that way for a couple of weeks now and I've gotten used to it, it feels smooth and good. The U360 with heavy spring and no restrictor reminds me a bit of the old-fashioned Wico leaf-based sticks, so there's nothing to complain about.
Ginsu Victim:
I had no trouble installing the restrictors whatsoever. They lined up great. I just had to screw the posts into each PCB hole before I installed them to widen the holes a little. (Do this a few times until the holes are widened enough for you to slide the screws in and out before installing.)
I love the circular restrictor. I felt the throw was too long without it.
And, yes, the stiffer spring is a must. Feels perfect with it.
Navigation
[0] Message Index
[#] Next page
[*] Previous page
Go to full version