Nacon Daija Arcade Stick Review – Your Fighting Game Sparring Partner

Meet the Nacon Daija arcade stick, an elegant and refined beast for fighting game enthusiasts looking to take their hobby to the next level. When it comes to the realm of fighting games, whether you start Power Crushing your opponents in TEKKEN or having the time of your life Drive Rushing in Street Fighter 6 – one question always plagues players and that is the notion of playing with an arcade stick. After all, a lot of pro players rock their chonky arcade sticks in tournaments.

Here, we have the Nacon Daija, an arcade stick officially licensed for PlayStation and compatible with the PS5, PS4, and PC. This bad boy is developed in collaboration with professional players in the fighting game community (FGC) and is designed to strike a balance of style and function.

Fight in Style

Immediately, Nacon Daija boasts a design that stands out, spotting a simplistic, modern, yet at the same time having a sophisticated aesthetic that gives it a classy look. Its case comes in a white paired with black color scheme with texture patterned to it to give it a more swanky premium appearance. Its minimalistic color choice makes it pair well with any gaming setup, especially with the PS5 with the notable PlayStation logo on the case.

Its build quality also matches its refined design, with sturdy construction and high-quality material that screams durability and reliability. Not to mention its ergonomic design, with a texture palm rest to ensure comfort and reduce hand fatigue on extended play sessions.

Embrace Satsui no Hadō

For its price, which is $300 USD (RM 1,439) – this arcade stick comes with what you would expect, a premium and highly customizable machine for your optimized fighting game experience. It feels great to play on this thing, no doubt about it. First thing first, the buttons and stick are smooth to the touch and the surface area is large, giving you ample space to flex your muscles.

If you are someone new to arcade sticks, fret not, as I am also a novice, but I could say that the Nacon Daija is quite user-friendly and it’s easy to get into the flow of using it. The stick and action buttons are made by SANWA, a top brand in the professional fighting game space, known for their superb quality and durability. Buttons are easily and fully configurable through software on both Windows and Mac.

The arcade stick also comes with a 3.5mm audio jack for your wired headset or earphones, so you could game at events without the loss of audio. For notable differences compared to the older iteration that was manufactured for the PS4, this newer version moves its PlayStation and profile buttons from the sides to the middle top part, allowing more space for players to easily lock and change profiles from the right side.

Another big change is the USB cable, which is now a detachable USB-A to USB-C cable, rather than integrated. It also features a cleverly designed storage compartment inside the case for its 3-meter cable, making it tidy and free of entanglement.

Customize for Your Combo Needs 

For customizations, the Nacon Daija offers an array of possibilities, whether in-game or outside the game. Right from the box, it offers 3 faceplate options, or you can even create your own. Not only that, pressing the side button will open up the arcade stick, giving you access to its internals. There you can find 2 options for stick heads, a teardrop-shaped and a round-shaped, and tools for quick and easy customization of your stick.

In addition to the physical customization options, you can also tweak your gameplay experience via software, which offers a user-friendly and intuitive interface to map out and create custom profiles. You can create up to 4 profiles, and you can also lock them to avoid accidental presses during gaming. The profiles are easily switchable and shared with friends.

A Tool for Victory

There is a lot to praise the Nacon Daija. It is a top-notch arcade stick for fighting game enthusiasts, built with function and quality, with well-thought-out storage compartments to store all the accessories that come included.

For fighting game greenhorns questioning if it is worth grabbing a set of Nacon Daija, there are always things to consider. Yes, the Nacon Daija is an exceptional arcade stick, but you will be paying for a premium price and its size may not be suited for those with limited space or who travel a lot. It is quite a heavy beast as well.

It is no doubt a great piece of device to up your game, but for its price, unless you are already used to using an arcade stick, I wouldn’t recommend shelling out that much case. That said, if you are looking for an arcade stick, the customizability, personalization, and overall build of Nacon Daija make it an absolute recommendation as a premium device for long-term use.

Priced at RM 1,439, the Nacon Daija PlayStation arcade stick is available for purchase online from Tiny Robot or UnityGame.

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