Xbox 360 Controller for Windows ($44.99)
Call em “sour grapes,” but I’m still pissed at Microsoft for not hooking me up with an Xbox 360. Sure, I could have waited in line like everyone else when the thing came out but I figured that years of dedication to the company’s original Xbox (in addition to being a not-so-big-time television personality) would have catapulted me far beyond having to do that. I was wrong. With that in mind I decided to throw an editorial-sized tantrum and boycott the device altogether. The problem though, is that there were a few Xbox 360 titles that I was interested in playing: most notably, Madden 2006. What’s a gamer to do?
Thankfully, Microsoft foresaw this situation and realized that a few of us hardcore PC gamer-types could benefit from the use of the Xbox 360’s controller and made it available for Windows. It’s the same as the wired controller that comes with the console and makes the experience of playing games like EA Sports’ Madden 2006 and THQ’s MotoGP3 Ultimate Racing Technology if not identical to, but in many ways, better than the Xbox 360 experience. For one, the graphics are better, and since I do my PC gaming on a Dell XPS laptop, I’m not tethered to my living room.
posted by William O'Neal @ 10:53 AM
4 comments
4 Comments:
I was very excited when MS announced that their new controller would have a standard USB port on it. I wonder if the PS3 controller will follow suit?
Anyway...I think the extreme lack of good PC gamepads is why almost every PC game is either an RTS, FPS, or MMORPG... these are pretty much the only games worth a damn to play with a keyboard and a mouse. We really need more PC gamepads out there, so hopefully this will help.
PS. The Xbox360 pad works with Linux now too ;)
The only downside is that you need a shareware app in order to map the keyboard commands for older games to the controller.
Things will get better once Vista drops and the games will take advantage of the controller but still then we have to cobble.
BTW, don't by the one for 'Windows' in the red pack, get the one for the 360. The only difference is that don't get the disc and you'll save $10.
The disc in the Windows pack just has a driver, the same drive that Windows Update will slam on your PC for free the first time you plug it in.
That's a great point re: getting the original Xbox controller. I hadn't even thought of that.
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