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SideWinder Game Pad Pro
Page 2
The SideWinder Game Pad Pro
The game pad itself has a stylish silver colour with black buttons. It's amazingly light and fits very good into my hands.
There are 8 buttons but with the addition of a shift-button there are a total of 16 programmable buttons (if the game supports shift-buttons).
Six of them are on the front of the pad, while the other two are at the back like triggers.
Here are some images of this extremely comfortable game pad:
 
The design is not dissimilar to a PlayStation game pad. The directional button can be configured in two modes :- proportional mode gives you joystick-like controls, with high accuracy. The harder you push in a particular direction the faster the response will be.
- Standard mode is more for action or racing games, giving you the advantage of quicker directional movements.
Control Software 4.0
Included in the package is the 'SideWinder Control Software 4.0', acting as a stand-alone programming environment for the device.
With this you can create game-specific schemes, record macros to execute different actions with the push of one button ( good for fighting games) and you can choose between the two modes and eventually adjust the sensitivity and dead-zone of the pad.
  
Gaming Time
Enough talking ! Let's put this baby to work !
Keep in mind though that not every game is playable with a game pad. I have tested many games with the SideWinder Game Pad PRO and found out that action and sport games practically scream for a pad. Once you have played them with this you will not want to trade again.
Anyway I made a little gamelist and indicated what you should expect :
- Final Fantasy 7 & 8 : Essential ! Nothing beats a game pad in this type of game !
- Rayman 2 : a platform game. Need I say more ? Thought so.
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Metal Gear Solid : a game pad is a recommended system requirement and it shows.
- Crimson Skies : plays very well with a game pad, but this type of game is better off with a joystick.
- FIFA 2000 : a mix of action and sports : perfect for a pad ! Awesome gameplay with this device because of the better controls and ball handling !
- GTA 2 : console-type gameplay means the need for console-type controls. Essential !
- Half-Life : unplayable if you're familiar with a traditional keyboard-mouse setup.
- Rally Masters : keyboard or steering wheel are more precise.
Conclusion
The SideWinder Game Pad Pro from Microsoft is an exceptional device, offering you true Plug-and-Play gameplay, fast responses and a minimum of 9 buttons.
USB is certainly an advantage over the standard gameport, like the ones found on soundcards as those only support 4 buttons. With USB you are certain that every feature of your game control device will work as it was intended.
Moreover, the pleasure you can get out of this is very high.
After a soundcard and a 3D card this is an essential purchase for every true gamer !
-Jochen
Overall Rating: 9/10
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