Hori Fight Stick Alpha Review
Fight like a...brave? (Best I can do okay...)
If you've followed anything here, one thing is certain: I'm a bit of a fighting game enthusiast. I play a lot of them, and for years, I've been collecting fight sticks for the various consoles I own. I think that since I had a Dreamcast, I’ve mainly been using Hori fighting sticks. I had some from other brands, but they often could not just hold up to the wear and tear of normal use, I’m looking at you, Mad Catz…
So, the last time I bought one was, I think, around the start of the PlayStation 4 era; it was a Real Arcade Pro variant of this line. There is a pic below, and this thing was MASSIVE. So, I just nicknamed it tiny as it felt hefty, and also just was a massive unit. As time has gone on, I’ve been noticing it is disconnecting slowly, and the thing is pretty solid and a pain to open, considering it has survived well into the PS5 era. I figured it was time to update, so that brings me to what we are looking at today.
The Stats:
Bought: Got it from Amazon (seemingly a direct distributor of Hori equipment)
Paid: 183 with tax (retail is 200)
Used on: PlayStation 5
Games tested: Street Fighter 6, Street Fighter Anniversary Collection, SVC Chaos
TL:DR A very solid controller, and improves on a lot of the past versions’ flaws, just be careful when wrapping the USB cable
Big package, biggish controller…
So, when you get this thing, the box is...big. When you open it up, though, it is smaller than the box would have you believe.
Compare it to another stick, though, and you find the size is wider than this one’s more rectangular base.
In your hands, it feels very light, almost deceivingly light, like you’re missing something. Unlocking the lock and tilting it back, however, you see why it’s so light…
So, part of the charm of this deck is that it is a lot more accessible to get to the parts if you need to change them. They are Sanwa parts, and also the booklet enclosed has a guide to what wires are going where. So if you ever wanted to try out swapping out your parts, this would be a good way to learn, or if you already know how to. You can make the custom deck of your dreams. You can even swap out the artwork on the face, so the shell is there to just go nuts on.
That is one of the issues I have, the USB cable is right next to the wires, and if you move it too quickly, you may mess up or rip out wires, thus it becomes a headache. But so far as it goes, it has not been an issue, but I felt it needed to be said.
To test the game out, I ran three games to give it a test run. What I was looking for was consistent performance and no disconnect from my console, as that is what my old deck was starting to do. There were no issues when using it. The only problem was learning the layout of the stick and adjusting my movement. The buttons have a tactile feel, not smooth, so you do know you are hitting something. Another improvement I like is that the PS Button, L3 and R3 buttons, and touch pad are on the face where whereas the other unit had them on the side. It’s a comfort thing, but I don’t go fumbling on the side for buttons when I don’t need them.
You can make profiles with the unit., I don't know if this is for some people or not but I just roll with the default. Maybe it’s more suited to PC use as this unit can be used on a PS4, PS5, and PC. Xbox users will have to buy their variant. Also, no Switch version exists.
Final Thoughts
For those who need a new stick and don’t use leverless (sorry, it is cheating to me). This is a good and affordable stick, I’ve seen some go for north of 200, but for what I need and the brand as a whole, this works perfectly for me. My only concern is the exposed wires and proximity to the USB cable. However, for those who want to learn how to swap out parts, customize to their desire, or simply swap out artwork. This is a good buy and continues my loyalty to Hori as a whole.
-The Chaos Director
Nice review. I made the switch to stick last year a few months after Tekken 8 launch and I don't regret it, those Sanwa switches are the most responsive buttons I've ever used, almost too much even, I've dropped a few F-bombs accidentally nudging the buttons and then getting launched for it.