Review on 🕹️ HORI Real Arcade Pro 4 Kai - PS4, PS3, PC Compatible by Herthoel Yanda

I've had this joystick for about 4 months now and use it almost every day to play SFV on PS4. I also have an original PS3 SFIV TE stick that I used from 2012 to 2017, so that's sort of my basis for comparison. Overall, the HORI RAP 4 has performed admirably over the past 4 months. I play online competitions and made it to the Ultra Bronze category. The stick is very smooth, but the spring tension is a bit looser than the SFIV TE stick I'm used to. I didn't like the looser tension at first, but over time I prefer it to the tighter SFIV TE stick. In my opinion, a little lighter tension is more effective in every way. The buttons are very responsive, but not so much that you accidentally press them. The matte finish is excellent as it allows you to double tap more efficiently than SANWA keys. It's like a matte finish offers less contact surface for your fingertips, so there's less friction. When you double-tap, it feels like your fingers are flying over the keys. On the contrary, since the SANWA keys have a smooth surface, more skin on the fingertips comes into contact with them, resulting in more friction and a slower double click. Overall I prefer these matte buttons over the SANWA buttons. The base of the stick is nice and wide so it sits comfortably on your lap. The only uncomfortable thing about the button placement on the side of the base is that I feel like there are too many buttons and it's difficult to tell them apart by touch. For example, the PS, L3, R3, Turbo, and Share buttons are on the right side of the base, and they all look the same unless you look at them. While these buttons aren't really used during a game, I think the design could be improved if they moved some of these buttons up and to the left of the base instead. In training mode I use the L3 and R3 buttons to reset the dummy and sometimes I get them mixed up. The cable is ok, although I would have liked it to be a bit longer. The only real issue here is the storage compartment. It's unnecessarily HUGE. You could fit almost an entire meal in it, like a hot dog, fries, and a Twix bar if you wanted to. Also, the door feels a little flimsy for the size of the storage space. I'm afraid that opening the storage compartment frequently will break the door at some point. To reduce this possibility, I don't even open the compartment door. When I'm done playing I just wrap the cable around the base itself. All in all a good buy for basic functions. Move some of those extra knobs, make the storage door less flimsy, and this is the perfect stick.