NES Advantage and NES Max, Love? Hate?

[aeon]

I picked up an NES Advantage at a thrift store for 5 bucks the other day, and I had never used one before so I was pumped. I am surprised at how sturdy the thing is, and at how small it is compared to the 16bit joysticks. I plugged it in with games I thought made sense, ex: Star Soldier, Legendary Wings, Solar Jetman etc... and was surprised at how awesome the controller, well, controlled them.



The Advantage should not be used for smb3 though. That fact should be obvious but you are never truly convinced until you try it yourself.

Now I just have to get my hands on Donkey Kong and Pacman for the NES and I will have my complete opinion, but for now, the Advantage is great for the type of games that make sense for it.

Then you have the NES Max...



I found this one at a retro stand in the mall, and picked it up because I had never used one before. It looks like the love child of the Nes Advantage and a boomerang.

The slider disc takes a bit of getting used to (probably about 20min) but I found it surprisingly responsive. But be warned- the first game I popped in was 1942, which sucked, because the controller has poor diagonal response. But when I slapped in Ninja Gaiden AWWW SNAP! I got to stage 5 in no time, thanks mostly to the excellent turbo buttons. The same holds true for Mega Man as well.

The Advantage is classic, and the NES Max will always have mixed reviews- but whats your opinions? Also, what games have you found that best suit either of these controllers?

[slowslow325]

I still need to get an NES Max, but I love the advantage. How could you not love a controller with two knobs?

[gtmtnbiker]

I picked up an NES Advantage at a thrift store for 5 bucks the other day, and I had never used one before so I was pumped.

$5 is a good deal. I paid $15 for mine.

[Breetai]

I really like the Max, to be honest. I prefer it over the original controllers for the most part.

[fastbilly1]

I love the Advantage, Ive got three or four of them. They are not for platformers, but for arcade ports. Bubble Bobble and Joust are my two most played games with them now, in the past it was Double Dragon. Bubble Bobble with an arcade stick is butter, simply butter.

The max on the otherhand I have never liked. It just doesnt click with me. I only own one since sometimes people ask to use one. I do like the design, the dias dpad is just neat.

[samsonlonghair]

I think nearly any NES game plays better with the advantage, including platformers. It's not just for arcade ports.

[gtmtnbiker]

I love the Advantage, Ive got three or four of them. They are not for platformers, but for arcade ports.

Now why do you think they're not good for platformers?

[fastbilly1]

I just never found the stick responsive enough for platformers, but ofcourse that is just my opinion. Which platformers do yall like on it? I am willing to give it another go.

Edit:
On rereading my original post I see I worded it incorrectly. It should read that I use them mostly for arcade ports, not for platformers. They work for platformers, but I prefer a dpad for that genre since they feel more precise to me.

[Limewater]

I used to play Mega Man with an Advantage. That and Dragon Warrior III are the only games I can remember really playing a lot with it. I eventually got a second advantage so that I could play dual-stick Smash TV on my NES, but I've never actually done it.

I also have several NES Max's, but I never really used them that much. I think I used it to play Guerrilla War once. I actually liked it, but for some reason I just stick with the original, rectangular controller. I actually like it better than the later wishbone controller, which I also have a few of.

I have an old issue of Nintendo Power where some kid or his mom wrote in about him messing up his right hand and then playing Super Mario Bros. 3 by using an advantage and controlling the joystick with his left hand while pushing the buttons with his toes. Apparently, he could beat the game that way.

[ieatramen]

I love them both. I was just a kid when I first got to try them. I remember my brother had just beaten The Goonies 2 and he ran to get a camera to take a picture of the ending. I wanted to see how the advantage felt so i picked it up, messed around with it...and accidentally pushed the RESET button on the controller! Man, my brother was pissed!

I ended up getting the quickshot for Christmas, but i secretly wanted the the advantage.