EagleMax Score: 92% Developer: Act Labs Device Type: Controller

Function: The Act Labs EagleMax is an excellent stick for use with actual flight games. The locations of the buttons on the stick are very convenient, although the button assignment seems awkward. This is a minor point, however, since the programmability allows you to easily change the assignments of the buttons as necessary. The bad news is that for games that are similar in nature to a true flight game, but require more commands with shoulder buttons, etc., it is very hard to quickly hit these extra buttons. This is partially due to the location of eight of these buttons on the base of the joystick. While they?re in plain view, they are not easily located in the heat of battle. That leaves you with ten programmable buttons which are easily located and can be practically used in tight spots without glancing down. If this is enough for the game you wish to use it with, great. If not, the EagleMax may prove awkward to use. The EagleMax also has a switch to map the joystick to the left or right analog stick input, a macro switch that allows you to choose between four macro memory settings, a ?setup? switch, and a mode button which allows you to switch between ?Analog,? ?Wheel,? and ?Digital? modes. Finally, there are trim controls for the x-axis and the y-axis. While this is fairly common on PC flight sticks, it is rare on PlayStation joysticks. In addition to allowing you to ?dial-in? exactly where the dead zone should be, this also allows you to shorten response time by setting the stick to bias to a certain pitch or turn and ?fighting? against it. In case of an emergency, simply letting the stick center will start your evasive maneuver.

Performance: If you?re playing a flight game and you?re familiar with flight games, you?ll have no problems. If, however, you use the EagleMax with a game that?s not a flight game, then you?re not likely to do very well. Also, taking a little time to learn how to program the buttons won?t take long and will greatly increase the performance you?ll get out of it. This flight stick is a one-genre controller. I tried it with games other than flight sims, but the sensitivity was too lax. I tried it with Sled Storm, but wasn?t enthused. Racing games (R4, Driver, Need for Speed) were also a no go, even when on the ?Wheel? setting. Again, it was very hard to maintain control. Also, games such as Wing Commander that require lots of complex commands aren?t easy (read ?possible?) to play with the EagleMax. It works very well with flight games and even helicopter games such as R/C Stunt Copter, but don?t buy the EagleMax and intend to use it with all of your games. It?s good at what it does, but it only does ONE thing.

Features: Three modes: ?Analog,? ?Wheel,? and ?Digital? Really nicely designed flight-style grip Programmability x-axis and y-axis ?trim? controls Joystick works as left or right analog stick Four additional programmable buttons 6?7? cord

Drawbacks & Problems:: The EagleMax is the flight stick that is only a flight stick. This is only a bad thing if you don?t expect it. If you KNOW that it will be usable only for your flight games, and you have honest to goodness flight games, then the EagleMax is a blast. But it is definitely NOT a multi-use controller. Also, the placement of the eight buttons at the base of the controller makes for awkward fumbling when you need to use them. These would probably have been much easier to reach on the main part of the controller, within a hands reach of the P1 and P2 programmable buttons.

-Geck0, GameVortex Communications AKA Robert Perkins