Densha de Go controller for the Wii: no tilt

With Densha de Go rolling into Wiis with Shinkansen EX: Sanyou Shinkansen Hen, you know Taito had to bring out their train sim controller for the train sim game. Sure, the game’s playable with the Wiimote and its motion-sensing, but using something you hold up in the air doesn’t feel “trainy” enough. Take it from a guy who bought the Ace Combat 5 (PS2) special bundle that came with the Hori Flight Stick, no matter how flat broke he was. Gamepad makes me feel like a gamer, but simulator-quality joysticks make me feel like a dogfight god (and I am, too).

On the other hand, we’d probably be flat broke too if we decided to purchase the Densha controller, as Siliconera reveals. Coming bundled with the game, it would cost Â¥10,479, or about US$ 86. Standalone, the controller would cost Â¥6,090 (US$ 50). The cheapo option is to fall back to the Wiimote that came with the Wii, and the game is still playable that way, Siliconera says. And it’s not like anyone’s going to be pulling 8G high yo-yos and firing Sidewinders with Japanese bullet trains, which makes the need for sim-quality controls less critical.

Still, “shaking the Wiimote to accelerate” still doesn’t feel “trainy” enough. There really is a romantic appeal to controllers that truly emulate the feel of the real thing (just ask any model railroader). But as we’ll all discover this February 14, romance can be pretty pricey, too.

With Densha de Go rolling into Wiis with Shinkansen EX: Sanyou Shinkansen Hen, you know Taito had to bring out their train sim controller for the train sim game. Sure, the game’s playable with the Wiimote and its motion-sensing, but using something you hold up in the air doesn’t feel “trainy” enough. Take it from a guy who bought the Ace Combat 5 (PS2) special bundle that came with the Hori Flight Stick, no matter how flat broke he was. Gamepad makes me feel like a gamer, but simulator-quality joysticks make me feel like a dogfight god (and I am, too).

On the other hand, we’d probably be flat broke too if we decided to purchase the Densha controller, as Siliconera reveals. Coming bundled with the game, it would cost Â¥10,479, or about US$ 86. Standalone, the controller would cost Â¥6,090 (US$ 50). The cheapo option is to fall back to the Wiimote that came with the Wii, and the game is still playable that way, Siliconera says. And it’s not like anyone’s going to be pulling 8G high yo-yos and firing Sidewinders with Japanese bullet trains, which makes the need for sim-quality controls less critical.

Still, “shaking the Wiimote to accelerate” still doesn’t feel “trainy” enough. There really is a romantic appeal to controllers that truly emulate the feel of the real thing (just ask any model railroader). But as we’ll all discover this February 14, romance can be pretty pricey, too.