One of the reasons I chose to name this community Arcade Sticks rather than Fightsticks is because these controllers are great for more than just fighting games. Any game that has roots in arcades or otherwise features arcade-inspired gameplay can benefit from the precision and snappiness of a nice arcade stick (including modern leverless variants).
Personally, I tend to use mine a lot when playing bullet hell shmups on my PC. Pictured in this post is my beloved Qanba Q4RAF, which is IMO the best stick that Qanba ever put out. Hell, I’d argue it’s the best commercially released stick ever, but that’s probably worthy of another thread sometime in the near-future…
I played Joe and Mac Returns (the remake) on stick the other day, and it’s like I was transported to another time and place. It felt so right.
The smell of a carpet stained with month old soda, random bits of popcorn littering the floor when there isn’t a popcorn machine for half a mile, the apathetic arcade attendant reading a magazine at the prize counter, and me with a bunch of quarters and a dream.
Don’t forget the neon lights, the cacophony of booming arcade cabinet speakers echoing throughout the room, and body odor and cigarette smoke swirling together and filling the air with their combined, intoxicating scent.
If you’re too young to have experienced arcades in the 80’s/90’s and think I’m describing heaven on Earth, it’s because I am. That’s exactly what it was.