I realized I haven’t gamed with arcade-type joysticks for a long time and kind of missed them.
It seems to me gamepads are way more popular than large joysticks nowadays, when joysticks used to be a popular gaming accessory.
Is it because they take up too much space?
Is it because they lack the modern gamepad features (analog sticks / triggers / buttons, side / back buttons)?
Do you still use joysticks for gaming, and what kind of games do you play with them? What do you like about them?
I’d like to hear your thoughts.


Back when I was really into fighting games, I made a set for myself. They were awesome for fighting games, but not usable for any other games. Pretty much every other game at the time (late 90s) wanted the analog functionality from the joysticks, which a fighting game stick doesn’t have (or didn’t anyway, I admit I have not kept current).
I would add, at the time it was possible to find an arcade supply store and buy commercial parts direct. I don’t think those sources exist anymore.
They do still exist! Just a few years ago I built an hitbox buying from a French store. You can also find parts on aliexpress or you can import sanwas from the official store on rakuten.