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Company Background & Information

Play your favourite arcade games the way they were MEANT to be.

^Thanks to game emulators such as MAME, it is now possible to play your favourite Arcade Games on a PC!

Just imagine playing the old classics like Space Invaders, Pac Man and Galaga in the comfort of your own home. Now imagine having to play them on your keyboard or gamepad! That's where we step in.

OzStick is the only company in Australia to specialise in solutions, components and advice for Home Arcade Gaming. We use and sell only the best quality components to ensure they stand up to the pounding usually handed out when playing arcade games.

We have a broad range of products, so whether you're after a replacement microswitch, single player desktop joystick or even a cocktail cabinet, we should have something to satisfy your requirements. In addition, we don't list all of our stock on this website, so if you can't find a specific item drop us a line to see if we have what you're after.

About Us

Location

Trading Hours

^ Please note that information presented above is for your information only, sourced direct from the companies brochures, websites, manuals and promotion/advertising material.

Introduction

When I first discovered MAME, I was excited to know that I could play my childhood favourite arcade games on my home computer. Not long after this I discovered that other people around the world were building arcade game cabinets (like the ones from the early 80's), to house MAME. Needless to say from that moment on I dreamt of building one. I can also report that since that time, the dream has become my reality for a good many years now.

If space is a premium in your home, and the thought of having a full size arcade game cabinet in it is out of the question, the next best thing in my opinion is a desktop arcade game controller. After some research I located a local named Chris Wigg, who heads OzStick Pty Ltd. Ozstick has been trading since 2001 which coincides with my discovery MAME. I got to the 'emailing stage' where I shot Chris some specification on what I wanted, but in the end I decided to build my own with great results at first, (which was fun and worked for a while but was not a 'polished/professional job' or finish by any standard).

As the old controller was not cutting it anymore, I put the call out to Chris a year or 2 later as Ozstick was my preferred manufacturer. Why? 
Firstly (and most importantly), Trust.
Secondly: local, (Australia)
Thirdly: good reputation

After a few phone calls and emails, (Chris is very easy to do business and communicate with), the controller design was set. It is going to be a "Super Single" - (no longer is production), with a slight customization added to suit my requirements: Twin joysticks and four fire buttons, (pictures to follow).

The main criteria was that the controller has to be capable of playing Robotron 2084. Robotron 2084 is a game I never saw in the arcades when I was young in the early eighties, and have only known of it through MAME. Once I found this game it have become one of my all time favourites as the gameplay is so intense and fast pace. . I whole-heartedly recommend that if you have never played it, that you give it a play sometime; you'll be sweating at the intensity.

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Package arrives:

Contents are well packed and thoroughly protected against scratches by industrial cling film, and padded throughout with last weeks newspaper. (good recycling).

Contents:

1 x OzStick Super Single (Plus)*<--[Customised to my specifications; model no longer available].
1 x USB cable
2 x Sanwa ball-tops
Receipt

As you can clearly see, the unit came with the ball-tops removed from the Sanwa Joysticks and were protected from top intrusion by some cardboard. Screwing them on was easy. One thing I was disappointed in was the lack of instructions, (Chris assures me he usually ships products with instructions but at the time was experiencing printer issues).

Inside the Super Single (Plus)*:

Inside the wiring is neat and tidy with little wiring slack. As you can see, the brain in the Ozstick Arcade Game Controller is the GroovyGameGear GP-Wiz. In addition, Ozstick also uses high quality Sanwa Denshi joysticks as well. The unit is manufactured with MDF and feels solid in construction and feel. T-molding adds a nice touch to the sides of the unit and comes with rubber feet for non-slipping during intense gameplay. The photos above show the USB interface which comes care of the GP-Wiz. All appears great.

Upon closer inspection I see some wire clips have not been fastened properly which could have possibly lead to some inputs not registering. I quickly and painlessly rectified the small issue and all is great. There is a very tiny blemish on the finish which I have highlighted in the last photo below, not much but worth mentioning.

Testing and Usage:

Plug in the USB cable and away I go, (insert record scratch) - it didn't go that smoothly.
I will state right here that it was NOT a fault of the unit and was 100%, MY FAULT. When I plugged in the Ozstick Arcade Game Super Single Controller, I went straight to the 'Game Controller' properties in Control Panel under Windows XP. It shows the GP-Wiz right away. It also lists my existing Saitek joystick as well.

I start my current MAME distro (MAME32 - now MAMEUI), and set the joystick controller in 'Default Game Options'. I coin up 1942, and nothing happens... argh! I then tried manually mapping the inputs via TAB button and nothing. After some playing around in 'Game Controller' properties in Windows XP Control Panel, I discovered the 'Advanced' button. Listed here is the option of 'preferred device' and this was set to my old USB joystick, preventing the Ozstick Arcade Game Super Single Controller from working correctly. I simply changed the preferred device and presto... all works. After some simple button mapping in MAME I had quickly configured to my preferred settings. Then it was time to play some games. Robotron 2084 plays fantastically on the Ozstick.

The Sanwa joystick has a short throw compared to the usual Australian MCA style joysticks many arcade operators in Australia use. There is one main reason why the throw is short on the Sanwa, and that is because Ozstick has chosen to bottom-mount the joysticks rather than route the wood deck a little. Routing would raise the joystick closer to the user, but at the cost of a thinner control panal. Bottom mounting the joystick robs the joystick shaft of about 1cm or more of length, (depending on what size wood has been used). I am still getting used to them, but do like them. The buttons are super quick and responsive.

Conclusion:

I am impressed with the Ozstick Super Single Arcade Game Controller, OzStick's unit is very well constructed and feels and looks qualitly. I would have no qualms about recommending OzStick products to anyone in the market for a desktop arcade game controller. Ozstick now creates and has for sales many types of controllers, joysticks, buttons and other arcade parts, along with PC interface equipment and full size arcade game cabinets. OzStick is also the sole Australasian distributor of Ultimarc products.

* (PLUS) is not a product name from OzStick, just a name given by me for my customisation/variation of the Super Single.

Chris Wigg from OzStick can be contacted via email: info@ozstick.com.au
or by visiting the web site: http://www.ozstick.com.au

Pictures:

* (Plus) is not a product name from OzStick, just a name given by me for my customisation/variation of the Super Single.

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