Beat That (Game) With a Stick: We Examine Hori’s EX2 Controller

When we first played Soul Caliber 4’s Story mode (on ‘normal’
difficulty) we had no problem defeating final boss Algol. Switching to Arcade
mode, things began heating up with the Apprentice’s flurry of punishing combos.
Clearly, using the standard PS3 or 360 controllers presented some serious limitations.
The ‘D’ pad on the 360 is too imprecise to consistently nail the diagonal requirements
of most moves. Although the PS3 has a better digital pad, it is still awkward for
some of the combos required for completing Arcade mode or for serious online
competition.

Luckily, there are several alternatives available for Soul
Caliber fans:

The Hori Fighting Stick EX2: Soul Caliber 4 Limited Edition (360)
For this stick, manufacturer Hori has replaced the rather bland stylings of
their EX2, and added a Soul Caliber 4 graphic within the base. The joystick
itself has a very arcade authentic feel to it, with both a similar throw and
weight to coin-operated counterparts. Successful contact with the directional
contacts is confirmed with a solid ‘click’; which adds a small bit of noise to
the gaming environment.  To decrease both
lag and cost, Hori decided to make this controller wired; in the event of a
person tripping on the cord, a handy quick-release was added. Although this
controller works well with Virtua Fighter 5 and Dead or Alive 4, it lacks the
ability to function as an analog controller, thereby hurting its functionality beyond
SC4.

The Hori Fighting Stick EX2: Soul Caliber Limited Edition (PS3)
While the build quality for Hori’s PS3 version of the stick is similar to the
360, there are a few small differences. Whereas the 360 stick doesn’t add any
functionality, the PS3 stick features the ability to simulate rapid presses of
the buttons in three speeds. We were pleasantly surprised to find the unit
performed perfectly with our PS2 and even PS1 fighting titles, although there
is no analog emulation. Like the 360 model, this stick is wired, so save your
batteries. 

Both of Hori’s sticks are a decently sized and feel solid, with just the right amount of weight to keep the controllers from moving out of our laps.  We tried to pull the joystick on both units with all our might, and found no problems in functionality- it looks like these sticks are built to last. Owners of both next-gen systems could do much worse, than these well-made, relatively inexpensive ($43-$50 street price) units.