Pre-order now: the new and improved PS3 controller SplitFish FragFX v.2 The new version has another command FragFX v.2 the mouse controller and detachable left hand right hand and is ideal for experiencing the traditional PC mouse, keyboard and style gaming console action games in an environment now with more functions and improve its fit. V.2 FragFX controller for PS3 has been designed for the entire game with gameplay that is ideal for first person action games and the third person, especially if you want to use a mouse during the game on PlayStation 3 . v.2: Improved optical mouse v.2: Improved Frag button v.2: Improved mouse sensitivity v.2: Improved motion sensitivity v.2: Improved mouse buttons v.2: Improved d-pad v.2: Improved support for games
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Customer Reviews
Good but over-priced
Basics: This is a controller, made by Splitfish, specifically for the PS3. It only works on the PS3. You can checkout [...] for one of the most bare bones websites you ever saw. The basic premise of this controller is to have the right analog stick replaced by a mouse. Obviously, this is to bring PC controls to the PS3. While the mouse could be used for anything, it is clearly an FPS device.
The Fragfx v.2 hooks to the PS3 by a 10 foot USB cord. No Bluetooth here, my friends. The PS3 powers the controller, so the Fragfx v.2 cannot turn on the PS3. The 10ft cord goes into the back of the left-handed "Fragchuck" (I did not invent this term). Also emerging from the back of the Fragchuck, is the cord going to the mouse. You also receive a pretty good mouse pad with your Fragfx V.2, although I ended preferring my lap desk. Anybody hardcore is going to end up on a desk or table.
The mouse is right-handed and optical. R1, R2, and R3 are represented by the left, right and center mouse buttons; with the "start" button behind the center R3 button. The triangle, square, circle, and X buttons are on the left side of the mouse, under your thumb.
The Fragchuck is left-handed. It has an analog stick on top, used most often to represent the left analog stick on the PS3 controller. Think Wii nunchuck with a bunch of extra controls. The D-pad is behind the stick. Also on top of the Fragchuck are the Select and PS buttons. The Fragchuck has 3 front "triggers". The uppermost trigger is the "Frag" button. Under that are L1 and L2. L3 is the top of the analog stick, same as a PS3 controller. On the right side is a sensitivity dial. Finally, the Fragchuck is your sixaxis controller in this setup.
Bells and Whistles: This controller comes with many extra options. The first is the "Frag" button. When you hold this, the sensitivity on the mouse drops and your sight moves only a little with large moves of the mouse. This is to allow you to make sniper shots more easily. The second extra control is the sensitivity dial on the side of the Fragchuck. This was my favorite feature. By adjusting game sensitivity and then the sensitivity dial, you can fine tune exactly how much action you get on the mouse. You can even change it on the fly.
Additionally, the controller will let you set buttons to rapid fire. You can adjust the sensitivity of the motion controls, and their calibration. You can "switch" the mouse to represent the left PS3 stick on the fly (the Fragchuck analog stick will represent the right PS3 stick in "switch" mode.) You can flip it to "mouse" mode and use it with the web browser. Finally, you can program the motion control to double as any button except, Frag, PS, Select, and Start.
Functionality: Plugging the Fragfx V.2 in for the first time, I immediately saw how easy it would be to drop the darn thing. Not quite as nice as flopping down on the couch and punching the PS button on a dualshock. The 10ft cord was just about right length, I have to sit pretty far from my sports-bar-obscenity-only-an-American-would-own TV. USB extension cords are cheap, so I do not see this as a problem regardless.
I am a freak because the PS3 is my first console. Mouse and keyboard is what most of you learned FPS on; I was coming at this backwards. It was a bit like learning to drive stick after automatic. Initially a mess, but ultimately a more responsive set up. I noodled around with the browser and a couple of other games, but Killzone 2 was the central game in testing. At first I had the sensitivity way too high and got nauseous when one large mouse move executed a 360. Within 30 minutes, my aim was better with the mouse than it had been with 30 hours on the dualshock. I could now weave about while keeping my sight on a moving target. My firing in general had less of a sweeping quality and stayed on enemy heads more of the time. My effectiveness with the starting assault rifles improved. Keep in mind that improvement for me is NOT Barry Bonds using steroids. This is much more like HIV patients using steroids to maintain muscle mass. I am moving from hopeless to decent, not good to Lazlo-quality sniper. During my initial "plug and go" sessions, it was hard to get the sensitivity to the point where I could turn quickly, yet maintain control of my aim. One or the other would suffer, yet it was still better than a dualshock.
What really made the difference for Killzone 2 was the firmware update from the Splitfish website. It really made the sight less jittery and gave me a smooth feel with the game sensitivity at max and the Fragchuck dial at about 4. I could turn like an F18 in the alleys, yet pull up the sight and plonk off a pretty good burst at somebody's favorite head. Now, it is good that Splitfish has game specific firmware and knows why I bought the darn thing. However, installing the update was a very ghetto experience. You can read the instructions off of their website. They literally tell you that the install is going to seize up the first time and you will have to do it again. Granted the process unfolded as they described and the device works better now, but honestly, you can't fix the firmware to work the first time? Really really weird for an eighty dollar luxury item. A little competition would do wonders.
To get back to the game, Fragfx v.2 good. The Frag button works but did not magically make me a sniper god. I am not a General in the game, so sniping was limited to single player and skirmish modes. The dial was my favorite feature, allowing me to adjust to circumstances. I could turn it up when on a fixed gun and cover the area nicely. I could turn it down when engaging via the M82 rifle sight. When I tried going back to the dualshock, I went right back to captain-sweepy-shot. The Fragfx v.2 really let me stay on the target better.
Other Options: I tried the Fragfx V.2 on mouse mode, and it works OK. Honestly, I prefer the regular PS3 controller with a keyboard attached (I like the keyboard, but I do not use the touchpad "feature" on the keyboard, that "feature" is a Goddamned nightmare, I freaking well dare you to get the cursor down from the top of the screen, I freaking well dare you).
I do not really have a game to test "switch" mode. This swaps the mouse and joystick. It looks like it is geared for GTA4 and the like, allowing you to use the mouse for the steering wheel or the gun. I don't think switch mode can fully compensate for left-handed people. Even if you switch, the buttons remain the same. You can't use the mouse left handed, the "shape" buttons are no longer under your thumb.
Reassigning motion control is fun. You can make shaking the Fragchuck do almost anything. After programming, shaking the Fragchuck can throw a grenade, reload, swing a rifle butt, etc. It does not work well for any continuous function, like running. The manual states that you should be able to remap the buttons any way you like. I called them and they have not finished the tweak utility for v.2 yet, though they expect to have it out in a couple of weeks. I look forward to remapping, starting with putting "run" almost anywhere else and having the left stick just be movement. I have always disliked R3 and L3 on the standard controller. R3 is already in a better spot, now I just have to make L3 less annoying.
Limitations: I have not owned this device long enough to say anything as to its durability. It looks like a pretty cheap optical mouse. I don't know if it would live through a serious drop. Then again, would any mouse? For that matter, all controllers wear out. My dualshock already has a bit too much play on R2, anybody know how to replace R2 and L2 springs without breaking the thing? It is an optical mouse, so with care it should last long time. The Fragchuck looks tougher. The analog stick and D-pad work well. The action on all the buttons seems good and Splitfish is devoted to nothing if they are not devoted to making you able to adjust every little thing on this device.
A mouse has a wide number of advantages over a stick. I certainly did not explore all of them. It looks great for level design in LBP, for instance. However, while a big fan of LBP, I have zero interest in level design. Perhaps map navigation in an RTS would be nice with a mouse, but again, not my thing. I can assure you this would make the ancient art of camera fighting even tougher in Ninja Gaiden.
Another limitation of this review is my skill with FPS's in general. I can tell you it makes bad people better. I have no idea if it helps good people get great.
Summary: Thumbs up for me, but thumbs down in general at this price point. What I mean by that is that while I really do like this device, I cannot, in good conscience, recommend it to the average teenager with a limited gaming budget. The number of things I would sink eighty dollars into before this is a long list. Any AAA game you lust for is a better value. A Roku player is a helluva lot more bang for your buck. If you are not renting all you wish, pump up the rental budget before buying this. At fifty bucks I would recommend this. Fragfx version one is about that, but I have no idea if that device works as well. It would not take much to screw playability completely. The XFPS system is even more expensive, and without game specific firmware, I would have my doubts, but would be interested in any review. I live in a two income household with no children. I have no other vices. I am not a car guy. This is my luxury item. If you have always hated console controls for FPS, this is a Godsend. If you are left-handed, stay far far away. It is a fun toy, but think about whether the difference is worth eighty dollars. YOW!
fragfx v.2
The Splitfish Fragfx v.2 allows you to play like a pc gamer on the PS3. However, the lack of quality of the product will only slightly improve your overall accuracy if you're already good with the dual shock 3 controller made by Sony.
The product works as advertised (no software necessary) and feels very close to using a mouse for FPS games on the PS3. The mouse and the left grip controller are very light weight and made of very cheap plastic. The mouse is optical, not laser. I cannot even compare this product to a real gaming mouse like the Logitech G5 or the Copperhead, they're in completely different leagues. However, the Fragfx will definitely feel more comfortable to use for gamers coming from the pc gaming platform over to the world of playstation.
Splitfish claims that you can have the DS3 controller and the Fragfx plugged in simultaneously. However, I found that if the original controller is connected, plugging in the Fragfx will not automatically work; it will only recognize the left grip controller and not the mouse. You must first turn off the Sony controller completely (not just unplug it) and then connect the Fragfx, and push the ps button on the Fragfx: THEN the mouse will be recognized and you're good to go.
The Fragfx v.2 can be programmed as advertised, and now has a rapid fire feature (usually called a turbo) that allows you to fire a single shot weapon as if it were a machine gun. However, please note that COD4 and COD5 have disabled this feature in the game, so don't be shocked if your G3 only fires one shot per second with the turbo/rapid fire turned on. Besides, we don't want to be cheating now do we?
Overall, I'm very pleased with the concept of combining a mouse with a controller. It's a brilliant idea! I just wish it was made better and used laser instead of optical technology in the mouse. If you're frustrated with the DS3 sony controller and hate using joysticks, this is a great alternative until something better comes out.
Update Aug 9th 2009: Disappointing
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They claim that the tweak utility works in Windows Vista...
I've been playing around with the "tweak utility" program available on the Splitfish website. Splitfish claims that this utility allows the user to remap the buttons and adjust the button pressure...
Well no matter what I did, I could not get it to save the new button arrangements to the fragfx. Not only that, but every time I click on the tab for the button pressure adjustment feature, my entire computer becomes unresponsive, and I have to force a reboot. I tested this on Windows Vista Ultimate 64 bit, and Windows Vista Ultimate 32 bit: it just doesn't appear to work at all.
Unfortunately, it doesn't look like Splitfish has released any updates for this product since my first review: The tweak utility is still in beta, and the firmware hasn't changed either. I'm very disappointed as I desperately need to change the buttons for certain games.
Pc gaming style for the PS3
I currently own the v1. and have used the v2. I noticed the same problem on both for a pc gamer like myself the mouse buttons are sometimes un responsive. Yes you can adjust the sensitivity and that will help. For the average user just looking to play easy this will most likely not be a problem. However if you are a hardcore gamer (i myself am in between.) you will need to fix this issue. However i have the solution. The basics of the mouse are simple all the buttons are pressure sensitive. This is where the issue lies. If you pull apart the mouse (5 screws) the board you see for the main mouse buttons (l-click r -click) have 3 terminals with a black band. this band is the pressure sensitive interface. To fix your problem you have 2 options the easy and the expert methods.
The easy method
use a fine screw driver and gently and slowely scrape the black substance from the terminals making sure not to remove the underlying contact. Re assemble and adjust your sensitivity to 5 - 10 for active. Now every time you hit the button your sensitivity is full and you wont have any issues however you loose pressure sensitivity on that button (i only preformed this on my left button because of some games utilizing pressure sensitivity and left is shoot)
The expert method (which i prefer because i like tacticle click of a mouse)
after removing the black band proceed to your electornic supply store (most likely not a radioshack) and purchase a surface mount momentary tac switch. (lowest ms recovery possible) all you need is a two terminal no need for a third ground. also make sure the base is non conductive. all you want is two conductive leads. This switch should match the general size of the rubber push button piece minus the little nub that goes in the button post. if you go too small you will need to rig up something to extend the post too big and you wont be able to re assemble the mouse. Solder this to the terminals (going from left of the buttons 3 terminals) 2 & 3 . Re assemble the mouse and now you have a clicking button where you put the switch. This will work on all buttons in the mouse however you will loose pressure sensitivity.
You will need to adjust the minimum pressure because now it will have residual conductivity and will show pressure. Just adjust for the 5 - 10 range and you will be set.
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