Technical characteristics
Compatibility: PC
Number of axes: 7
The number of buttons and switches: 86
Interface: USB (wired)
Cable length: 1.9 m
Backlight: Green
Built -in memory: No
Additionally: Removable helm; All buttons are reprogrammed
Weight: 10 Slotonights sister sites kg
Price for June 2011: 16,000 rubles
There are such devices on the box with which a large whore with the inscription: "For fans". In the case of Thrustmaster Hotas Warthog – for fans of air systems.
Hotas Warthog is a direct heir to the Jaoist Hotas Cougar, who will soon hit ten years. Despite the venerable age, Cougar is still popular among lovers of flying in a virtual sky. At the same time, it cannot be said that he is deprived of the shortcomings. Vice versa! Over time, a backlash appears in it, hinges and buttons break with enviable regularity, but a monumental steel structure that imitates a real storm of the F-16 fighter, charges the pilots with such positive energy that no force can make them abandon the joystick. On the computer market there is even a tiny niche with the conditional name “Spare parts and improvements for Hotas Cougar” – fans themselves, do better device with their own hands.
Hotas Warthog is a replica of the control elements of the American fighter Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II, nicknamed Warthog (“Wotter”. All the shortcomings of the previous model are fixed here, everything that the virtual pilot can dream of: Warthog is far from Cougar as the sky from the ground.
Without compromises
The fact that Warthog is a really worthwhile thing, and not a stupid plastic toy, you are convinced even before opening the box. She weighs about ten kilograms! At first, you even somehow get lost-where does such a severity come from? But everything falls into place, as soon as the joystick itself and the control panel control with the engine control handles are extracted from the bowls of the box. All this is good (except for the handles of traction and some buttons) is almost completely made of steel, and the remote control is also additionally weighted.
Such an impressive weight is needed not so much to create the very sensation of a “standing thing” as for practical purposes. The fact is that both the joystick and the engine control handles are an exact copy of similar elements of the control of a real aircraft. This applies not only to the appearance and size, but also to the sensations from pressing the buttons, switching levers and pulling the handles. They are not very tight, but require a little effort to displacement, so the large weight of the base is simply necessary, otherwise it would have to be screwed to the WARTHOG to the table tightly.
The joystick consists of three components: a steel plate to which a cylinder with a hinge and electronic filling is attached, and a helm of the helm, screwed to the cylinder. The plate provides holes for screws, but they are not needed by those who want to attach the joystick to the table (it is already lies like a tightly glued), but to those who create an imitation of the cabin of the aircraft at home. For this, you can unscrew the joystick from the plate and screw it up where you need. The helm is connected to a computer using a conventional USB-sharing.
The flight control panel is an impressive and very heavy steel box with a bunch of all kinds of switches, tolerance, buttons and wheels. Divine engine control handle, its halves are fastened together with a magnetic lock. If you open it, then one handle will turn into two independent ones – for accurate control over each of the airplane engines. All this miracle is connected to the computer with a second USB cable. Additional power from a conventional Hotas Warthog power supply does not require.
The best characteristic
Both the joystick and the handle move with a small, one might say, pleasant effort and move so smoothly and clearly that the first time it was completely impossible to pass by and not touch them – just for the sake of pleasure. No backlash, by the way, is – the quality of hinges is simply amazing.
This was achieved thanks to the use of not mechanical, but magnetic sensors based on the Hall effect. Their advantage is not only in the mentioned clarity and smoothness mentioned above, but also in the absence of friction, so over time the joystick does not shatter and theoretically must last much longer than conventional mechanical assholes.
In general, the word "quality" is the best characteristic of Hotas Warthog. Do not convey in words the delight with which the first time you touch the joystick, to the handles, to amazing steel switches, which can only be found in professional equipment. You experience another mini-shock when you connect the remote control to the computer-and all the inscriptions are suddenly illuminated by bright, but very soft green light, as in a real plane.
In a word, there are no complaints about the appearance and quality of the assembly Hotas Warthog at all. Apparently, Thrustmaster is well aware of how much the monumental thing they created: to emphasize the uniqueness of the kit, every joystick has even a small sticker with an individual number.
It is not good that there is no disk with drivers in the kit – they need to be downloaded from the website Thrustmaster. In addition, the user's management is translated very poorly: it seems to be written in Russian, but it is very difficult to understand what it is about. On the diagram of the name of actions assigned to the buttons and default switches, they are completely left in English. Trifle, but unpleasant, especially considering the price of the joystick.
Full control
In the description of the appearance, it was not without reason that we did not unravel each switch and each button. As you have already noticed, there are a lot of them. There are seven buttons at the helm alone (the trigger under the index finger is two -position), as well as one four -position and three (!) eight -position switches. In total, on the joystick and the remote control you will find 86 switches and 5 handles responsible for seven analog axes, which is enough to control the aircraft in any air system.
Although the switches are signed and combined into blocks (engine control, autopilot, trimmer, and so on), absolutely all of them are programmable – they can be reassigned in the program T.A.R.G.E.T. And here lies the peculiarity of such a sophisticated joystick as Hotas Warthog: just get it out of the box and start playing quite problematic – you need to spend time setting up and subtle fitting everything and all for yourself.
The task is simple, but quite laborious, and it will have to be repeated under each specific game. Interface at t.A.R.G.E.T. simple and understandable (however, keep in mind that it is not translated from English). You choose which device you want to configure (the program supports several joysticks Thrustmaster), and its three -dimensional model appears on the left side of the window. Find the desired switch to the model, drag it to the right side and set any key combination from the keyboard. Particular attention is paid to setting up the axes: for each of them, sensitivity and dead zone are regulated, and the result is shown on an understandable graphics. It remains to tie the created configuration to the executable game file – and the point is in the hat. Advanced players who are not alien to real programming will even be able to write scripts for the joystick manually. By the way, the profiles can be created without connecting the device to the computer.
After all these manipulations, we, frankly, subconsciously waited for some unpleasant surprise directly in games (well, everything is not so good!). But, fortunately, fears were not confirmed: everything works perfectly. Office accuracy, sensations from piloting – indescribable. It seems that they can only be in the present, and not a virtual aircraft.
It is easy to guess who, first of all, to think about acquiring Hotas Warthog – serious virtual pilots. Those who play exclusively in aviation arcades like Tom Clancy’s H.A.W.X. or " Winged predators ", It is unlikely that a tenth of the potential laid down in the joystick is.
If you are a hardcore pilot, well versed in airplanes, or you want to become, there can only be a considerable price of Hotas Warthog – 16,000 rubles. But this is precisely the rare case when the device is really a stroke of its money: a steel design, an excellent assembly quality, a huge number of functions for all occasions and fantastic sensations from air management are unlikely to make you regret the purchase.
Pros:
Steel structure
impeccable appearance and assembly quality
A huge number of buttons and switches
indescribable sensations from flight
simplicity and thoughtfulness of software
Cons:
There is no disk with drivers in the kit
bad translation of instructions into Russian
The setting program is not translated into Russian
Step into the sky
A few words about how the joystick behaves in games. We tried it in serious air systems (series " Il-2 attack aircraft " And Lockon ), and in arcade ("" Winged predators ", Tom Clancy’s H.A.W.X. 2 And Apache: Air Assault ). In all cases, the sensation after the game was as if we really had just climbed the sky on a combat plane or helicopter.
Management accuracy in all games is beyond praise. The helm does not hang out, as in cheap joysticks, so in the settings we indicated the minimum dead zones so that even the slightest conscious movement of the handle leads to a change of course. As a result – a fantastic feeling of complete control over a flying machine. This did not give serious advantages in the arcades, but playing in hardcore aircraft systems became much more interesting, because it is important there not only to get on the enemy’s plane, but to damage vital nodes – engine, tail plumage, fuel tank. With Hotas Warthog it turned out to be easier and more pleasant, the game became more conscious and gave new impressions.
A remote control with an engine control handles – this is generally a special conversation. We already wrote that these same handles are simply nicely pleasant to move back and forth, and when you see and hear the results of these craving (a strained growl of engines, a whistle of air, which streamlines the plane)-you generally forget that you are sitting in front of the monitor , not in the cabin of the airplane.
Another advantage of the remote control – thanks to the large number of buttons, you can completely forget about the keyboard during the flight, which is very important for immersion in the game. This, again, is critical primarily for serious air systems, where you need to monitor the engine, use the autopilot, and set the trimmer, and produce the chassis, and adjust, and make another million small, but important for successful piloting of things.
And, of course, the quality with which Hotas Warthog is made plays an important role. What do you think is more pleasant: open the bombing with pressing on a regular plastic button or slightly clicking with a tight metal toumbler? The answer seems obvious to us.