Product: Microsoft Sidewinder Dual Strike
Company: Microsoft
Website: http://www.microsoft.com/hardware
Estimated Street Price: $49.95
Review By: Byron Hinson

The Dual Strike Design

To say the the look of the Dual Strike is weird is an understatement. At a first glance it just looks like a gamepad with an upwards extension in the two handles, but the one on the right actually moves around. The feel of the gamepad is great, as usual with Microsoft Hardware the ergonomic design is second to none.

How It Works

Your left hand controls your character’s feet. You press the movement pad's direction points to go forward, backward, and side-to-side.

Your right hand controls your character’s head and eyes. Move the perspective control forward, backward, left, and right to control what your character sees. Tilt the perspective control all the way in any direction to spin in that direction, as though your character is standing on a turntable.

Use the movement pad and perspective control together to spin out of the way of enemy fire. You'll be moving so quickly that you'll still have time to circle-strafe the room, firing at your enemies and picking up valuable health, ammunition, and other necessities.

The perspective control works differently depending on the mode you choose on the Settings tab:

• In Dual Strike FX Mode, the perspective control’s behavior changes as you move between two different zones: the aiming zone (center zone) and the spin zone (outer zone). Dual Strike FX Mode is the default mode. It is ideal for games that traditionally require a mouse.
• In Joystick Mode, the perspective control behaves as a joystick. The further you move the perspective control from center, the greater the game's response. Try Joystick Mode for flight games and other games that typically work with a joystick.

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