Neogeo x Arcade Stick

If you were a young gamer in the early 90's like me, you will remember how Neo-Geo AES and MVS systems featured prominently at your local Babbages retail store and arcades. Nothing did at the time what SNK had accomplished with the Neo-Geo. And yet despite the AES delivering a most desirable product, a 1:1 recreation of the arcade experience for the consumer, it was ultimately financially unattainable to own for nearly an entire generation of gamers due to the price tag of both the console and its games. With this memory and latest ability to emulate all my favorite Neo-Geo games through Retroarch on my Mac, I decided to purchase the controller. I never owned an AES and so I can't compare but am happy knowing that this is a fairly faithful recreation of the device complete with the fabled micro-switches on the joy-stick that I've heard so much about. I am also happy that it can work on a computer environment via an emulator front-end app. The configuration process was quite easy in Retroarch. I bought this controller specifically to beat Samurai Showdown V Special, as Retrobit's Sega Genesis 6 button controller was proving difficult for executing the Zetsumei Ougi (overkill/fatality move) the game requires in order to actually finish it. With this controller I was successful, as the layout makes it incredibly easy to accomplish moves requiring complex button synchronization. Even if you are not impressed with the controller and its old-school design principles, I'd highly recommend it regardless since its a 4 button with a sequential lay out, which is few and far between for USB controllers and quite nice in my opinion. I have never been too keen on more modern controller designs like the N64's and the PS's with their geometrically positioned buttons and if you're not either, particularly for your 16-24 retro-bit gaming, then you should definitely check this one out. Finally, the Neo-GeoX arcade stick has allowed me to actually own something that is SNK Neo-Geo branded and nearly the same quality and design as the original. It may not be the actual AES with original controller I'm playing these days, but given the circumstances, this product, from where I stand, has delivered by bringing what was just a wish 30 years ago to this nostalgic retro-gamer: the Neo-Geo home AES experience, complete with (nearly) original joystick.

I'm using this controller for retro gaming using Batocera Linux. I've also tried it on a Raspberry Pi using Retropie. It works perfectly in both of these applications. Some Windows games also support it, but not all of them. It depends how the game is implemented. Overall, it's a really well performing arcade controller. The butttons and control stick are responsive, and the USB encoder is high quality. It comes stock with a 4-way restrictor installed though, which means it is optimized for moving 4 directions rather than 8. Also, on free flowing games like Shmups, it has some dead spots, where if you move it a certain direction somewhere between up and sideways, it won't contact any switches. So, I greatly prefer an 8-way hexagonal restrictor, and installed one into it to replace the 4-way. This improves the performance significantly IMO. (You can get 8-way restrictors specifically for this stick on some arcade sellers, and also on Etsy.) Also, having only 4 buttons is a limitation for many games. Even Super Nintendo had a total of 6 buttons. Most consoles later than Playstation have at least 8 butons. But for arcade games, requiring more than 4 buttons is rare, and it does play the entire NeoGeo library great, which is the primary reason for choosing this. So, overall 4 stars. 5 stars for performance, but knocking a star for the 4-way gate, only 4 buttons, and limited Windows game support. Also, manufacturer retail price on this controller is forty dollars. If you paid a lot more than that, it may not be worth it. Cheers.

First off let me start by saying I did not buy this for use with a NEOGEO X system. I bought it for use with the Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator on PC. It works perfectly for this purpose. My PC found the stick right away, and I didn't need to download any drivers. The stick is a pleasure to use with a very satisfying click at each of the 8 directions. The stick itself feels high quality. Cracked balls are one of the most common defects you will find on original sticks for the NEOGEO AES, and apparently this is a complete 1:1 copy using the same parts. To help solve this issue, they super-glued the ball to the stick so you cannot over-tighten it and crack it. The buttons are also faithful to the original. Those used to modern sticks may find the buttons small, but they are in a pleasing configuration and I personally found them to be a fine size, even with my basketball palming sized hands. Again, no issues at all with MAME. Apparently, the stick also will function connected to a PS3. I did not test the PS3 functionality yet, but will update this review when I do.

UPDATE June 2020: It will work on the new Neo Geo units - with an ACTIVE converter (ex.: Brook), since they are essentially little processors that can map any input to any output. However since they cost as much or more than the MSRP of this stick, you might as well get a nicer stick, which as a bonus are usually much less limited in connectivity out of the box. --- Original Review --- This digital stick is OK, especially if you are into the nostalgia of the original Neo Geo home experience... at least for the MSRP of $39.99 I paid (or less if you find it) Anything more, you REALLY would have to be an avid collector. It has extremely basic USB-A connectivity, it does not even have a switch between X-input and D-input - so the usage is equally limited: either the "Neogeo x Station" this was designed for, or a generic computer ONLY (PC, Mac, Raspberry Pi) where you can configure the input manually. In particular I have personally tested it on ALL ports & with ALL adapters on the Neogeo Arcade Stick Pro: It DOES NOT work! (as of April 2020) Any claims otherwise are made by trolls who think it is funny to make false claims to make people buy a product that does not meet their actual needs.

This controller feels very clunky and very noisy. It will need aftermarket upgrades to be anything decent.

Low quality product with a "extremely" high price. Cost $200. but is worth $60 at most. Not worth the price.

Take it from an avid collector and a MAME junkie (yes, you can be both!), this is a quality replica of the original AES controller. I say replica because it is obviously not an exact reproduction, but it does a darn good job of imitating the original. If you are in your 30s like me, the NeoGeo AES is one of the holy grails of gaming. I own one for posterity and prefer to put as little wear and tear on it as possible. Pair the NeoGeo X controller with MAME or any dedicated Neo emulator and you will swear you are playing on the original system. I believe the negative reviews for this controller come from two sources: 1) hating collectors who refuse to acknowledge anything but the original, and 2) people who actually played the system back in the day and forget the controller they were playing with was probably already well worn and broken in by the owner. From new you have to break a new joystick in, give it a beating. And believe me, this thing will take a serious pounding! Right out of the box I was 1cc-ing old favorites like Metal Slug and Blazing Star with no problem. Does this joystick match up head to head with the $200 behemoths on the market today? Probably not. But look at the price. What you are getting is a great USB repro of the original and a darn good controller on its own merits to boot. Not to mention a heavy dose of nostalgia. Snap one up before they're gone!

I love this controller. I use it for the Neo Geo emulator on my Raspberry Pi and it is by far the best controller I have. I have purchased a lot of replicas for each system I play but this one is my favorite. It takes a little bit of set up and is not plug & play with the Pi (and takes more work than just configuring the buttons in the Pi menu) but if you set up your Raspberry Pi with Emulationstation I'm sure you can get it working with a little Googling. I never used the original except for the arcade so I can't compare them but this one is very sturdy and it feels like it's worth the higher price tag. If you're looking for an authentic gaming experience like I was when I purchased all my original controller replicas you can do no wrong here. Highly recommended. Only one thing of note, and this might actually be an issue with the emulator or the Pi itself, but after about 30 minutes of play time joystick and button presses that weren't actually made begin to occur. I thought at first it was the controller but the more I thought about it I think it's actually the emulator or the Pi itself. It's worth taking into consideration if that's what you're going to use it for though It's pretty infrequent but does happen and it can mess up your game. That issue aside, this controller is SOLID and worth the price.

Just love the overall look and feel of this joystick brings back all the good memories of the great times I had in the heyday of SNK NEO GEO Arcade gaming GREAT STUFF! This item also works on a PS4 just plug in go to controller setting then using your original PS4 controller adjust them for your Neo Geo X arcade stick and bingo play tested on Ultra Street Fighter works BRILLIANT!

Très belle article , Comme celle de l'époque mais avec USB.....pour le prix , vraiment aucune hésitation à avoir !!

If you are into retro gaming you should definitely get one of these, if you find one. If you play games that are joystick compatible like Raiden or other SHUMPs there is no better controller. This is truly plug and play regardless of your version of Windows. The joystick is 8 way not 4 like a gamepad. Fighting games are much easier with this as well as those specail moves are easier to pull off. It is totally compatible with MAME for some retro goodness and MAME games like Double Dragon, Bezerk and Wizards of Wor or even Ms Pacman are a delight. The build quality of this is in the joystick. The enclosure itself is plastic and not that light, It does slide around some if you want it on a surface but some nice cheap suction cups would alleviate that problem. The only caveat to this is avaialblity. The price when I paid was $60.which is pretty good but it is very difficult to find one of these now.

Todo perfecto, no hay mucho mas que decir. Se corresponde fielmente a lo presentado en la oferta y el funcionamiento es correcto.

The tool was delivered to me very quickly! Great efficiency and great product too! Not only the joystick but the whole Neo Geo X Gold is a great and unique console that should be a "Must" for all the fighting-games' lovers! Highly highly recommended