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Krikzz Joyzz


derFunkenstein

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So Retro-Bit announced early this year (or was it late last year?) that they were going to partner with Sega to make new Bluetooth controllers for the Genesis, Dreamcast, and Saturn. I was kind of excited but I've been loathe to buy Retro-Bit stuff since their wired Genesis 6-button controllers are just cheap garbage (far outpaced by Hyperkin's GN6, IMO).

 

I was excited when Krikzz announced that the Joyzz is finally available. It's a wireless (not sure about Bluetooth) 6-button Genesis controller with a user-replaceable rechargeable battery. Well now those devices are in production and you can buy them from his shop. Pricing is juuuust a little steep at $65 for a controller and receiver combo, when a similar 8bitdo SNES pair is $30 these days, but when it comes to the Genesis, no price is too steep for me in order to get the best experience. He showed it off on Twitter an eternity ago, before I started haunting AtariAge, so maybe this has been talked to death. But i'm excited - get excited with me.

 

I ordered the translucent gray model, because I am a sucker for such things.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Well it's here. The packaging and appearance of the controller are quite nice. The controller feels very sturdy and feels like a Sega 6-button controller. Compared to my Sega-branded device, the buttons are a LITTLE more stiff, but not nearly as stiff as the Hyperkin GN6. The battery came partly charged but I'm charging it all the way prior to trying it out.

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As far as first impressions go, this thing feels legit. I played around a half hour of Street Fighter and Samurai Shodown at lunch. No problems pulling off moves, never felt like the controller had any lag, and never had any ghost presses or unrecognized input. It doesn't have nearly enough use for me to give it an enthusiastic endorsement yet, but I didn't see anything in my limited time that would prevent it from being very useful to folks like me who game 10 feet away from their TVs.

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interesting...is it line of site IR or RF? In my case the genesis setup sits on a low shelf and obscured by a cocktail arcade table. Currently the long genesis controllers just reach where I sit on the couch and just over that table, but there isn't much slack. if they are work via RF and don't have much lag in them or any...then that could be a win in my case.

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Gotta be honest, I have two GN6 controllers (one for Genesis, the other for PCs) and I wasn't thrilled with them. They just feel stiff, especially compared to a real Sega six button controller. I was thinking about getting an official six button controller and putting the USB controller's circuit board into it, to make it feel more authentic.

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Gotta be honest, I have two GN6 controllers (one for Genesis, the other for PCs) and I wasn't thrilled with them. They just feel stiff, especially compared to a real Sega six button controller. I was thinking about getting an official six button controller and putting the USB controller's circuit board into it, to make it feel more authentic.

 

Stiffness is almost entirely a function of the rubber membrane pads. A cheaper option might be to replace the pads, if you know of a source for something a little softer.

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  • 3 weeks later...

I've been using it for a couple weeks now, so here are a few additional thoughts:

 

- It's more broken-in so I can say confidently that it's stiffer than a Sega 6-button controller, but still miles less so than a Hyperkin GN6

- Occasionally (not often) it drops signal for a half second. I couple presses don't register and then it's fine again. Definitely a v1.0 product

- Mine has developed a creak to it. On the left side, the body doesn't come together exactly right, and if you grip it solidly (not at all tightly) it squishes

+ Generally it still performs very well, and it's wireless.

+ Battery life is great.

 

So my feelings initially were positive, but over time the sheen has faded and it's just OK. I mean, it's wireless and it's pretty good, but the build issue in particular gives me pause. For the price I expected flawless. Out of the box it seemed flawless and therefore worth every penny. Now it's not-quite flawless and not so great.

 

There's a firmware updater on Krikzz's FTP site, though no new firmware yet. I'm hopeful that if he can find why a signal might drop that he can update it.

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  • 2 weeks later...

It is cool that this was made, I found out about it initially doing a google search, to see if I could find any new info about the licensed version of the wireless Genesis controller.

 

I was disappointed that it is out of stock on Krikzz's website.

 

Anyone hear any updates on the licensed version, or if Krikzz's is going to have more in stock?

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There is a manufacturing defect that is being corrected. The d-pad was slightly turned. Once that is corrected, stock will be opened back up.

 

Yep, it's turned slightly clockwise, but I didn't even notice it until a couple days ago. Interested folks can see it in my post here: http://atariage.com/forums/topic/251167-show-me-your-genesis/?p=4045514

 

It hasn't bothered me a bit. The creakiness in the case is a bigger problem, and even that doesn't affect operation.

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