| Price | Walmart |
| Compatibility | XSX / XB1 / NS / PS4 / PC |
| Dimensions | 15.5″ x 14.1″ x 3.8″ |
| Cable | 1 m |
| Weight | 8.58 lbs |
Introduction
At CES 2022, Mad Catz announced its new innovation, the T.E.3 Arcade Fight Stick, which stands for Tournament Edition 3. It is an arcade stick with a Sanwa octagonal-gate joystick and Sanwa buttons in the Vewlix layout. There are two additional buttons as programmable hotkeys.
Here is a list of the secondary buttons:
- Default
- Share view
- PS4
- Up arrow
- L3
- R3
- Key lock
- Profile
Performance
The Sanwa joystick and buttons of the TE3 mean that the performance is on point. Sanwa joysticks are known for their responsivity and durability.
The buttons should not activate on accident when you rest your fingers on them, but when you mean to press them, the travel distance is positively short. Regardless, when tested, the TE3 does not have the best input latency, but it is unlikely that it will affect your gameplay.
The key lock disables the pause button, serving as a tournament mode. There is also a touchpad and a 3.5 mm audio jack to listen to in-game audio.
Listening to audio closely can help you pull off combos with more precision as well as react to your opponent faster, well, depending on the game. For turbo fans, there are two optional turbo speeds as well as a toggle for D-pad, left stick, and right stick.
The Mad Catz arcade stick was designed with placing it on the player’s lap in mind, but it should be able to sit on a table or desk as well.
There is also a handle and attachable shoulder ring for easy carriage. So, the TE3 does a good job of being versatile when it comes to playing positions and carriage despite its goliath size.
Hardware
The TE3’s plastic is hit or miss. It gets the job done, but if you pay too much attention to it, your impression will likely be that it is not the highest of quality, and you should handle it with care when modding. On the bright side, you are a button press away from cracking the TE3 open.
Inside the TE3, you can store the detachable cables & repair tool, and the chassis allows access to the inner components for replacement & so on.
Regarding moddability, it is not the TE3’s strong suit. You may struggle to swap the joystick, buttons, or even the layout, so the best advice is to grab a TE3 only if you like its stock build.
The PCB and passthrough are tough to mod as well. The cable for PlayStation is USB-C, and the cable for PC is USB-A. Unless you are playing on the Nintendo Switch, you need a native controller on consoles to make the arcade stick work.
Appearance
The TE3 has an interesting design and sleek look in general. The faceplate of the arcade stick is swappable, meaning the artwork is customizable, but that can be a meticulous process.
In any case, we at The Arcade Stick have a custom artwork service. Check out the artwork of our Carlos Martinez for the TE3 of his client here:
Conclusion
More was expected from this long awaited sequel to a line of legendary arcade sticks.
- Sanwa parts
- Tournament mode
- Turbo mode
- Detachable cable
- Audio jack
- Lap & desk play
- Carrying methods
- Easy to open
- Customizable art
- Plastic build
- Tough to mod
- Piggyback connectivity
- Slight latency
Rating
⭐⭐⭐