I got this controller after having issues playing Lego Harry Potter on my PC (windows 7-64). the installation was simple and the controller is excellent. I am very happy with this purchase and am starting to use it for other games now also.. certain games are definitely more enjoyable with a console style controller.. driving games and anything that's 3rd person can be played with one of these..
NOTE: be sure you install the driver before you plug the device in for the first time! there is a warning about this on the USB cable but just wanted to reinforce that.. Microsoft Xbox 360 Wireless Controller for Windows - Black
Works good as a 360 and PC controller. On PC the rumble is a lot weaker than when you play on 360 for some reason. Using Windows 7 64 bit the drivers automatically installed for the USB device and was good to go.
The built quality of this controller is excellent, over-all I prefer it to the other options, although they can be more programmable the Xbox controller typically requires no setup at all which can be nice. One thing to note, which is why the product lost one star, is that the wireless receiver pulls a lot of power and it simply would not work properly until I bought a powered USB hub to plug it into. This also affected my other USB devices to some extent, but since I was running out of ports anyhow I went ahead and made the hub purchase, and now everything works flawlessly.
I bought this mainly for playing mini-ninjas on a PC. Since the game is designed for console it works so-so with a keyboard. So I decided to invest in this controller as it was recommended on the game boards. I am not an avid gamer, not even a regular one.
The controller is comfortable, feels sturdy (we shall see how long it lasts) and the buttons are laid out well, all controls are easy to reach. Since this game was designed for this controller the functions are laid out nicely. (That is though about the game, not the controller.)
I have a logitech wireless rumblepad and there is a config file available for mini-ninjas from a third party, but even with that, it is just not right. Sad. The logitech controller is a bit smaller, I prefer the MS, but that is personal preference.
I am running XP, so I downloaded the newest drivers from MS and installed BEFORE plugging in the receiver. Worked w/o any issues. (Did not even request a reboot.)
I (accidentally, I multiboot the machine and I forgot to unplug the receiver) tried it under Win7 and Win7 could not find the drivers automatically. I assume it would work if I downloaded the drivers manually, but still, it is a shame that MS HW can not get this work. Tons of other HW makers publish their drivers via MS and so those work under Win7 w/o manual download. Anyhow, according to my (limited) experience in the past, MS HW is not very good at supporting their older gears under newer OS-es. Again, shame.
I did not try to connect it directly, based on the advice here, I connected it via a powered(!) USB hub - it works fine.
According to the reviews the (separately available) chat-board does not have drivers for Windows at all. As I said - shame.
But as a straight game controller to play XNA based (which I think mini-ninjas is) games, this is a solid and very well designed controller.
I bought it for $40 when it was on sale. Since the controller alone sells around $35 that sounds reasonable, but honestly, the controller and the receiver are both overpriced. The controller should be $25 when sold alone and the receiver $10. The regular price for this gear is simply highway robbery.
I used to have a Genius gamepad and couple of Logitechs and I really have to say that this Xbox controller is the best one I ever had.
Pros:
-Very comfortable
-100% compatible with all the games I tried so far
-Fair price. This better than buying the windows adapter by itself
Cons:
-It seems that the only way to turn it off is to take the batteries out
Other thoughts:
-Still need to do some more research to see if there's another way to turn it off
-It can't beat the mouse when playing shooters
I purchased a Logitech gamepad last year in order to play games on my PC. The gamepad was not compatible with any game I had (Batman: Arkham Asylum for instance). It was very frustrating. The instructions that came with the pad might as well have been in Aramaic, because I couldn't understand what it was that I had to do to make it work with my games. So, I said the heck with it, and purchased this Microsoft XBox 360 controller. The controller works out of the box, and I am now happily playing B.A.A., as well as Fallout: New Vegas.
This not only makes the PC experience better but it also makes it easier. This is just like playing a game on a game system. Except you can use this controller on PC too. This makes PC games a lot easier to play because you don't have to memorize the keys you have to press on the keyboard. The weight of the controller is also superb. I would recommend this to anyone who likes gaming and wants a better gaming experience on the PC. I am so happy that I got this. This is definitely a good product and is pretty well crafted. - Xbox 360 - Game Controller - Wireless - Pc Controller'
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