Someone has worked out how to play Armored Core VI with a Steel Battalion controller

by Lewis Packwood |
Armored Core VI being played with a Steel Battalion controller
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With a few mods and a special cable, itā€™s possible to get Armored Core VI working with Capcomā€™s giant Steel Battalion Xbox controller.

 

Capcomā€™s Steel Battalion controller has become the stuff of legend. Released in 2002, it was one of the most ostentatious video game controllers ever conceived, featuring twin joysticks, three foot pedals, a throttle handle, a radio dial, myriad buttons and switches, and even a flashing emergency eject button under a plastic safety flap. For mech-based games, it was the ultimate playing accessory, even though only two titles ā€“ Steel Battalion and its 2004 sequel ā€“ officially supported it.

But the controllerā€™s sheer extravagance has seen it win the hearts of many fans down the years, as evidenced by the excitement around ten of these joystick behemoths being gathered together for a LAN party at PAX West last week.

Down the years, folks have gradually worked out ways to use the massive Steel Battalion controller with other games ā€“ and on Saturday, Japanese Twitter (aka X) user @tukasakotobuki posted a video showing how it could be used to play From Softwareā€™s latest mech shooter, Armored Core VI.

Connecting the giant controller to a PC involves buying a special cable that converts the original Xbox connector to a USB connector, then installing fan-made drivers that enable it to be recognised by the PC. After that, itā€™s a case of assigning all the many controller inputs to different functions. In the video, @tukasakotobuki also uses a mod for Armored Core VI that switches the game to a first-person view.

The Steel Battalion controller seems like the ideal fit for Armored Core VI, and anyone whoā€™s lucky enough to own one will undoubtedly be watching this video and idly wondering whether itā€™s worth heading into the loft to bring it down. Although if youā€™re thinking of buying one for yourself, be warned that complete controllers can sell for well over £300 these days.

Or you might consider using your prized Steel Battalion controller to play a game that it definitely wasnā€™t designed for, simply for the LOLs. Like Dark Souls, for example.

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