for people like me the Shark is a godsend.
i own the original wired fragfx, a fragenstein, and a scorch. the shark performs well above all of these.
the mouse movement on the shark is perfect. playing mw2 with the in game sensitivity at 9 and the shark set around 2.
my only problem with it is the size. the mouse is just too big. i need to hold my hand a certain way just to reach all of the buttons..kind of annoying. and we can really do without the rapid fire and macros.
when i wear this one out i'll definitely buy another.
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I play games in bed with my TV at the foot. It gets uncomfortable after awhile with my arms holding a dualshock 3 over my stomach. This controller allows them to rest on either side of me. You can also set this controller to the same input as your dualshock Eg. 1. That way you can have a dualshock in your right hand and the fragchuck in your left. I love the "fragchuck". It fits well in hand and everything for the left hand is there, plus motion sensitivity, macros, rapid fire, and more! Could pack 2-3 more buttons in, though.The mouse feels good, the buttons take a little getting used to, but are intuitive and easy to adapt to. The mous pad is good too. However, it's a little too big for me and I have good sized hands 7 inches from my middle finger to the bottom of my palm. Because of the shape, It actually fits better in my left hand than my right, of course then the buttons are imposable to use. I could have gotton used to the size but didn't want to since it wasen't very compatable with some of my games (See details section below).
There is a lot of disinformation surrounding this product. There are a lot of positive reviews from people playing Calld of Duty (Newer ones) and a lot of bad reviews calling it a "rip off". Aparently compatbility is hit or miss since PS3 was not made for a mouse and the fragfx shark has to emulate a thumb stick. To be fair to Splitfish they made a niche product, great for some of todays most popular games, but it's game manufacturers that are not making their titles compatible with Splitfish controllers. But then, why should they? It is a 3rd party controller. Also, why would Sony make the PS3 compatable with mice when most console gamers like the dualshock 3? I should add that some users don't like to use mice and the only refuge they have from the advantage a mouse gives users is on a console.
Pros:
The Concept is sound
Wireless, no lag
The design looks sweet
The "fragchuck" is almost perfect!
Great Battery life
Works with some F.P.S. games
Cons:
Price!!!
Dosen't work with some F.P.S. games
PS3 Games were ment for Dualshock controllers
3rd parties don't get much support from developers
OK as an optical mouse (Not great, Not laser)
Mouse is a little too big in my opinion
Disinformation about it
THE BOTTOM LINE: DOES IT WORK, AND IS IT WORTH $89?
Yes and no to both points! It works with some games and not with others. It may be worth it if your game is supported, you get past the learning curve, and you really want to take your "hard core" gameing up a level, or if you seriously want to get into PC gaming without the keboard. Otherwise, it's not for you and you will end up unsatisfied. I suggest you keep everything, and thouroughly test out all your games as soon as you get it, then you can get a refund if it does not meet your expectations.
Price I would consider keeping it for (Opinion):
$34.99
Price I would buy the Fragchuck alone (Opinion):
$29.99
DETAILS:
There was no combination of ingame look sensitivity and "dead zone" sensitivity that removed diagonal "staircasing" without making tracking too slow for most of the games I've tested. I saw reviews that mentioned the same thing before I purchased. I decided to give it a try anyway. To their defence, I tried evey combination of dead zone to ingame look sensitivity in the games below with limited success.
Homefront (Demo):
Staircased at dead zones of 0-5 and required too much mouse tracking with 6-9. 6.5 was almost workable except it required me to repeatedly pick up the mouse and reset it to look around. Was less efiecient than the dualshock.
Call of Duty: Classic
Same as aboave, but worse.
Call of Duty: Black Ops (Demo)
Works really well but seems to move up/Down slower than lept/right. No staircasing/jittering with ingame sensitvity at max (Insane) and deadzone = 3. Workable but will take some getting used to. Recommended for this game but it's not perfect.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (Demo)
Same as black ops aboave. Abviously, these are the game it was intended for.
Killzone 2 (Demo):
I was able to resolve staircasing and jittering. Requires maximum ingame sensitivity and a deadzone of 4. Too slow of movement, mouse has to be picked up and drageed all over in this one. Not recomended.
Killzone 3 (Demo):
Better than above but not as good as COD:MW2 or black ops. It is still too slow. too much mouse tracking.
Battlefield 1943:
No staircasing. I needed a dead zone of about 3 to get rid of the jittery/jumping when trying to "pixle point" at an object. Although better, I found tracking was still too slow/difficult to play with. Would take some getting used to. It makes driving vehicals or flying extreemly difficult, if not imposable.
Infamous:
Works well enough to play. Better feel than the dualshock but jittery/staircasing not completly gone.
PC USERS:
When set as a mouse it is fine, sweet to have four extra buttons! Not as good as my logetech MX 5000 laser mouse but it tracks as well as an optical (A cheap one). Also, since I was a console gamer before PC, I tried this on a game I have always dreamed of having a "fragchuck" for...The Descent series. Although windows 7 x64 recognizes it as a gamepad and all of the buttons/analog stick work, it would not recognize the anolog or mouse movement in Descent 1. In Descent 2 this problem is fixed but the mouse has dead zone issues, and when that is ajusted it's too slow, requires too much movement, and is'nt as accurate as my MX5000 laser (Not even close). So, it was esentially useless. Too bad! Fine, I can just use the MX5000 instead by choosing the mouse and joystick option. Worked perfect, very addicting. I set drop bombs to the motion sensative melee and afterburners to the joystick button (L3)! That is sweet and there are 10 buttons on the fragchuck, if you count L3 and the D-Pad, to assign functions to. They could have packed 2-3 more buttons in though. I also, tested a few other FPS games (Older School) that did not work to my satisfaction. Bottom line: if your game supports joystick and mouse operation in tandom (and gives you complete control over button reassignments) then it "might" work like you want it to, otherwise it's a crap shoot. Don't know about newer games like far cry, fallout, and etc.
Note:
I really wanted it to work for me and to give it a fair review. I even pulled it back out of the return box to test it agian on a few titles I forgot about, just to make sure I wanted to return it. No go. Given the range of experiance I got out of it and the problems I was able to almost resolve, I would say my unit was not defective. It just almost works. Maybe it will work better for the games you want it for. Good Luck.
PS:
that guy on youtube (zDD) is displayed prominantly on the packaging and endorsed by Splitfish. Not to say his videos are fake, but his incentive is to paint the product in a positive light. Therefore he's not going to post a video showing what games it doesn't work in! A one sided story is at best a half-truth. So, don't be supprised if your experiance is different form his.
Best Deals for Frag FX Shark Controller for PS3, PC and Mac
After several hours of researching the Frag FX Shark, AIMON PS, EagleEye, and XIM3, I finally settled on purchasing the Frag FX Shark controller. Here's the lowdown:The Frag FX Shark does work as promised, depending on the game being played (based on what I've read). I have only tried it on COD MW3. The best thing about the Frag FX specifically is the sensitivity dial on the controller. This makes it as plug and play as can be with this type of setup. No need to download game specific firmware or any other garbage. The controller is fully customizable as well (remap buttons, macros, blah blah). Basically, you plug in the wireless stick into a USB slot, turn on the mouse and controller, and presto -it works. It is recommended to set in game sensitivity to max and then adjust using the dial on the controller. I've found slightly past 2 to work best for me.
Yes, there is some staircasing with the Frag FX. It won't affect gameplay much for the average gamer and it might even get sorted out with a firmware update later on.
The wireless works well and I had 0 problems with interference. I have a wifi TV, 2 routers, cellphone, cordless house phone, iPad, and the ps3 all in the same area. Did not have any problems at all.
My biggest issue with the product is the ridiculous size of the mouse. I can get over the cheap feel of the plastic, but the size of the mouse is as if it was designed for Captain Banana-hands. This isn't enough to make me return the product.. it is, however, the MAIN reason I knocked the Shark down to 4 stars. The only other issue is more of an annoyance than anything else... even when the controller and mouse are turned off, if the USB stick is plugged in, the ps3 will assign it to controller 1-4. This is annoying in 2-player games if you want to use the dual shock controller and play by yourself as the game will ask player 2 to hit X to join (or automatically add player 2 into the game).
If you are a typical gamer, this is a great product at a great price. It's not as great as a PC mouse in terms of accuracy or quality, but it does do the job.
If you are a hard-core FPS gamer looking to dominate everyone just get the XIM3. This is one area where you definitely get what you pay for.
For reference: (based on my e-findings)
FRAG FX SHARK $60 (when I purchased) $90 now
See above for review
pros (no setup, sensitivity dial, includes lap board, great fragchuck design, 'snipe' button which slows mouse movement)
cons (cost, mouse size, staircasing, works better on some games than others)
AIMON PS ELITE $80
pros (better mouse, less staircasing, better 'quality')
cons (complicated setup, firmware flashing required for each game, no MAC support to do said flashing, possible wireless signal issues, cost, no sensitivity dial)
EAGLE EYE $55
pros (real keyboard and mouse, cost)
cons (complicated setup, need PC to set up the hardware, game specific settings required)
XIM3 $150
pros (unsurpassed accuracy and quality, real mouse and keyboard, LCD screen to assist setup, 1:1 conversion)
cons (requires an xbox controller to be plugged in, can make a mess with all the cables necessary to use product, very high cost, no mac support for updating firmware, made for xbox and requires adapters to use on ps3)
note: $300 on amazon market. It costs $150 at the maker's website (google xim3)
SUMMARY:
Average gamer who wants a plug and play solution? Get the FRAG FX SHARK
Want a higher quality product and don't mind tweaking settings and tinkering? Get the AIMON PS ELITE (then head to their forums and read up)
Want to use a real keyboard and mouse at low cost? Get the EAGLE EYE (then head to their forums and read up)
Insist on the absolute best, regardless of price (hardcore gamer)? Get the XIM3 (then head to their forums and read up)
You can't really go wrong with any of the 4 options.. I got the Frag FX because there's no setup and amazon prime shipping was offered.
I will update this review after testing the Frag FX on Battlefield 3.. I've held off because I doubt it will work very well as the game itself currently has lag issues.
Honest reviews on Frag FX Shark Controller for PS3, PC and Mac
I was scared when ordering the shark. I thought it may not be worth the money. but i am glad i did get it. It works great in call of duty and battlefield bad company 2. i also tried it in fall out 3 and new vegas. I works ok but it does smoothly go diagonally in these games. ALso in the fallouts you can not get the sensitivity high enough to make it seem like you are playing on computer i have to constantly pick up the mouse. In call of duty is where it shines it gives me pixel by pixel aiming i can turn quickly up down side to side diagonally it all works really good.i mostly play call of duty black ops so the controller was worth it to me if you play games other than fps it might not work good but for fps it is alot of fun. It makes target acquisition much easier as well as following moving targets.
the build feels sturdy doesnt feel cheap. It is really easy to set up
comes with a mouse pad that is pretty good
Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Frag FX Shark Controller for PS3, PC and Mac
I just picked up the new fragfx shark... I have never used a mouse for gaming before, as I never game on a pc. Been gaming on consoles since Atari, but wanted to try this out based on all the hype about mouse being better than analog sticks for aiming and all. The thing cst $90 plus shipping, but I took the plunge to try it out with black ops. Got it in thursday after playing black ops for a few days with my dualshock 3. The first day I thought i had wasted over $100 on something that I could never learn. My first 3 matches I went roughly 1 kill and 23 deaths average. Considering I had been going 21-16 K/D with the dualshock it wasn't very promising. I decided to stick it out for a week before putting it on craigslist and ebay.. I am sooooo glad i did that, because after only 2 or 3 days I finally got used to using the mouse to aim, and now I feel quicker and better in game. Played a round of Battlefield and went 36-9 K/D playing conquest on white pass, No camping , moving from flag to flag the whole time. On Black Ops had my first ever 7 kill streak and did it twice with a k/d of 21-9 in one game. granted the game is new and I undoubtedly got better as I learned the maps, but I have been playing BFBC2 since launch and this was my best round ever.. I got the Shark which is wireless, and I have noticed no lag, but the price is steep. I have no experience with any of the other models, but this one works great for me and I will probably never go back to using the dualshock for an fps.A few side notes. I have heard reviews say the mousepad isn't good. I am hoping to buy a better mousepad to compare but the one it comes with does seem a little smaller than I would like.
I bought a 4 pack of pre charged duracell 2000 MaH rechargeable batteries with the charger at walmart for $13 and still haven't ran the first 2 batteries dead. The battery life is very good, and with rechargeable batteries cost should be minimal.
UPDATE...... I bought a rocketfish gaming mousepad from best buy and would highly recommend it. A little bigger, way more responsive, and has a speed and control side. I prefer the speed side but both are better than the one provided by splitfish.
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