Official Street Fighter Anniversary Edition Controller - Ken

I got this pad because I needed another arcade stick for my PS2 and I wasn't willing to shell out the insanely high prices they are being sold at. As a long time gamer that came up with the Sega Genesis family of consoles, I was not at all adverse to using a disc-style D-pad controller for fighting games. Frankly, the Sega Genesis 6-button controller is the best pack-in controller I've ever used for any game system, and I was pleased with the idea of going back to it. I now concede the possibility that this review might be biased.Overall, the controller does the job. The "animated" bit of art in the center of the controller entirely superfluous; you really should never be looking at the controller, particularly while you're playing, and unlike skins and artwork for arcade sticks, no one else can really enjoy it while it's in your hands.The controls are on point for Sony standards, no worries there. The controller itself is slightly larger than the Sega 6-button controller I'm used to, and your hands will definitely cramp after an hour of intense playing due to it being less ergonomic than, say, holding a rock in your hand and smashing your thumbs into it, but it performs well. I recommend taking time in between bouts to stretch your fingers out.It took me about 2 solid hours of play to memorize the positions of the buttons; they are spaced fairly far apart. A joy for people with large thumbs, but my hands are small and I kept missing buttons during my first sessions.Once I did transfer the button layout to my subconscious mind, the controller was a dream during actual matches. Special moves, supers and short-hops were all executed flawlessly. I found it responded very well to even the slightest movement, yet I never felt like I ever lost control of my characters.The instructions warn that this is NOT intended for normal Playstation game use, and I will reiterate that here; this is meant for 2D Fighting games ONLY, such as anything in the Street Fighter or King of Fighters series. I do not recommend this for Soul Caliber, Virtua Fighter or Tekken, as hitting the two-button combinations required in those games will require a high enough mastery of thumb yoga as to make Dhalsim jealous.Also worth noting; as it says in the manual, the controller is not pre-programmed for the ideal button layout. You'll have to go into the game's settings to assign the buttons properly to really take advantage.If you have a PS2 and love 2D fighting games and are looking to either replace a fighting stick or else supplement it for 2-player action, I recommend this controller as a cost-effective stand in for shelling out megabucks for another arcade stick.One additional sidenote; this was designed as a collector's item. The packaging is VERY pretty. I kept the box and proudly display it in my living room as a monument to my fighting-game geequitude.

Not just Ken Masters model, but overall all the Playstation 2 controllers are really not top quality condition to play true hard Street Fighting coming from my gaming experience when playing with arcade fight stick and many gaming controllers, this series is mainly for display and collectible purposes only.It is strongly recommended for actually playing on, are the the Xbox 360 models of this same series, which are built with better quality parts and specifically designed to handle hardcore street fighting with hands on tournaments and online gaming, whereas the Playstation 2 series do not. As far as durability, this Ken Masters model only lasted 5 days of usage before I was getting non response buttons and d-pad failure, which was just not meant to be played on, however as far as presentation and from a collector's perspective, its an excellent series for that specific reason.The most eye catching of all is the outer box presentation it provides as you first open these bad boys, I have almost all the PS2 versions of this series and love them to death for display purposes only. Hardcore gamers who play Street Fighter online and in tournaments will highly be disappointed to buy this product, however a true collector of PS2 accessories, would love this product, its very reasonable in price and looks great for DISPLAY ONLY.I am actually very disappointed in Sony Playstation for designing such a horrible quality gaming controller that really cannot be used for Street Fighter. These PS2 models are excellent for modding purposes to customize and replace the parts it originally needs to make it a worthy controller to be played on for hard play, and when it comes to playing Street Fighter games, you need a great quality controller.

I was looking for a controller to do some retro sega pc gaming, so something with a 6 button layout. I already had a ps2 to usb adapter, so this was a perfect fit there. I'm actually not a huge fan of fighting games... and have actually never played a street fighter game as I was a Mortal Kombat fan growing up and had sega products. This pad was bought mainly for the price and fact that i already had a ps2 adapter. It plays reasonable well, however it is larger in both width, and fatter when gripping than i'd prefer. It looks and feels bulky/plastic-y like a kid's toy. The controls are responsive though, and I didn't really find it uncomfortable to sit for a few hours of use. I have since replaced this in everyday use with some original sega saturn pads and an adapter that i picked up for cheap, and i definitely prefer the size and overall feel of the saturn pads to this. However for 15 dollars when i purchased it, i have no regrets.

The good:* Reminds me of a Saturn pad.* The d-pad feels pretty nice. Better than* It's well built.* It's a PlayStation controller, so you can get a converter to plug it into almost everything.* The button layout is great.* The art on it is nice.The bad:* Some games may yell at you to plug in a DualShock. Mind you, you probably shouldn't be using this pad for games that expect a DualShock, but still.* It feels a little unshapely in my hands, unlike a Saturn pad.* The L/R buttons feel too soft when you press them.

Great for collecting as described retro feel when holding semi comfortable

There's better d pads out there to be honest, I expected this to be comparable to the Saturn d pad. It's not, however it's not complete trash either. Save your money and get a stick instead, unless you're a hardcore street fighter collector.