Mad Catz Marvel Vs. Capcom 3 Special Edition Fight Stick review

Just a few years ago, Mad Catz used to be synonymous with cheap third party peripherals, but the brand is now a hallmark for quality. One of the main reasons for this is the Tournament Edition range of arcade fight sticks for the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360. Incredibly popular with fans of fighting games such as Street Fighter, the sticks have become a staple feature of tournaments the world over because of their excellent construction and authentic arcade parts.

It’s unsurprising then that Mad Catz is hoping to capitalise on the increased popularity of fighting games with a new product; teaming up with comic book giant Marvel, the company has designed a limited edition version of its most popular stick in time for the release of Marvel Vs. Capcom 3.

Could this be one of the best looking controller boxes ever?

Based on the Tournament Edition Round II design, this new stick keeps the same eight button layout but swaps out the Street Fighter-themed artwork for some Marvel-based appreciation. Even before you take the stick out of the box, it’s clear that a lot of work has gone into the design; official artwork adorns every surface of the box and the front panels fold outwards to display the stick inside. It’s strong enough to use as a carry case in case you want to take it to a friend’s or a tournament.

The stick looks great even before removing it from the box

The stick itself is huge, giving you ample room to rest your hands while playing. Four rubber feet stop it from slipping on a desk or floor, so you don’t have to worry about readjusting your playing position mid-fight. The entire face is adorned with character artwork, which will certainly stand out from more generic sticks from other manufacturers.

Both the joystick and the eight face buttons are authentic Sanwa Denshi parts, used by all major Japanese arcade cabinet manufacturers. Response times from each button were super-fast, taking almost no pressure to activate a move. The joystick has a Japanese style ball-top rather than an American bat-top and a square gate micro-switch system, but every part can be switched should you want to.

Each button clicks just like the ones in an arcade cabinet

We looked at the Xbox 360 version of the stick, which has an Xbox guide button in the top-left corner next to the turbo buttons; if you buy the PS3 version this will be replaced with a Home button. Turbo functions can be applied to any of the eight face buttons using a toggle, with each one represented by a red light.

Serious gamers prefer wired controllers over wireless as there’s no possibility of signal delay or drained batteries; it’s therefore unsurprising that the stick has a cable. Three meters should be long enough for almost any setup, but you don’t need to worry about storage. A compartment in the back of the case keeps the cable tidy when the sick isn’t being used.

We aren’t professional fighting game players by any stretch of the imagination, but after just a few short hours our ability to pull off special moves in Street Fighter IV was much improved. Marvel vs. Capcom is a much faster game than Street Fighter, so the large buttons and quick response times helped make a massive difference to how well we played. Charge moves in particular are far easier on a joystick than on a control pad, so if you struggle with certain characters then upgrading to a stick makes a lot of sense.

You can easily replace each part by removing a few screws

You have to be a pretty serious fan of fighting games to buy one of these sticks; at £150 they certainly aren’t cheap. Production is also limited to just 5,000 units, so you’ll have to move fast if you want to snap one up. Mad Catz is the only manufacturer to receive the backing of both Marvel and Capcom for its controllers, so they are a must for anyone looking for authenticity. There are other fight sticks available for less, but none can match the quality of this one. With its authentic arcade parts, official artwork and quality construction, this is definitely the stick for fighting game connoisseurs.