Behold, a fantastical apparatus suitable for dapper gentlemen and ladies of virtue in combat simulacra!
One can’t help but wonder what the Victorians would have made of the modern obsession with steampunk. Everything from Star Wars to computer keyboards has been given the 19th-century sci-fi treatment, so why not arcade pads? A custom designer from the Shoryuken community has crafted a steampunk fighting joypad, and it’s a beauty.
b15sdm, a well-known designer from the Shoryuken forums, received an order for a steampunk stick a few weeks ago and set to work right away. The final product features a clear acrylic case, copper and silver wire to keep cables together, LED-lit, copper-plated buttons, genuine clock gears, and full compatibility with both the Xbox 360 and the PC. The crowning achievement? The joystick contains a “real wind up pocket watch,” writes b15sdm. “Sadly, I ruined it when I was drilling the hole for the threaded insert. A little crumb of plastic fell into the gears and stopped it from working.”
Working pocket watch or not, the pad is not only exquisite, but effective. Both ComboFiend and OnlineTony, two mainstays of Marvel vs. Capcom 3 tournaments, have used the stick and gone on to victory. There’s no word on whether b15sdm plans to make another one, but your odds might improve if you put on your very best top hat and goggles, and ask him in a gentlemanly British accent.
Source: Shoryuken
