Product: Ultimate Game Chair website: www.ultimategamechair.com
by bushman
The Ultimate Game Chair. That’s a bold statement, and in this case, an actual product. This leather cushioned ride is truly the Cadillac of gaming chairs in the relatively new market of high end peripherals.
Featuring 14 vibration motors throughout the chair, mounted controllers and surround sound Logitech Z-640 satellite speakers, the average gaming experience is most definitely raised.
While the chair design is plush and comfortable (leather foot rest included), it’s the ‘split’ controller that is the most noticeable design application. A regular Xbox type controller is cut in two so the buttons, right stick, white/black buttons are on the right hand and d-pad, left stick and start/pause buttons are on the left hand. It’s takes a few seconds to adjust, but everyone who tried the chair had no problem picking it up quickly. It’s an ergonomic design and allows for longer sessions of continual play without the strain.
But the trick to this unit is definitely the vibrations. Depending on the game, it can get cranking. First person shooters in general seem to shine, and Doom3 in particular was amazing. Every shot you take, and every time you are hit, the chair vibrates accordingly. It’s even somewhat directional. I could tell a hit from behind from a frontal strike. Some rooms would rumble with machinery and the whole chair would take on a gentle buzz.
The speakers are adequate. Their positioning allows for a more immersive game experience, but the lack of true bass frequencies begs for a chair/home stereo combo to fill out the range. But even as is, their close proximity to your ear allows for minimal volumes to have maximum effect. All background atmospheric noises came through crisp, again, increasing the overall game experience.
The bad news. This sucker will set you back about $789.00. Which makes one ask, “As cool as it is… is it $789.00 worth of cool?” The answer is, yes. If you can even remotely think about paying $789.00 for anything. As a hardcore gamer, having your own control center that gives you this much immersion in the game is worth some serious cash. And since the quality of the chair itself is top notch, the cost is fairly justifiable.
But Ultimate Game Chair hears you poor people. I was informed they are development of a trimmed down version for under $200.00. It will be just the vibro-chair, no controllers, no speakers. Since the vibro-feature is the coolest part of the Ultimate Game Chair, it should be an appealing buy for those on a more realistic budget.
A feature that must be noted is the compatibility of the Ultimate Game Chair. It comes ready to port to Xbox, PS2, Gamecube or your PC/Mac with a clever universal adapter. They are also ready for the PS3 and Xbox 360 releases. The whole setup out of the box took about 15 minutes. And for you apartment dwellers with downstairs neighbors, the chair comes with a vibration control in case the rumbling gets out of hand. The unit does truly quake.
Bottom line: If you are a hardcore gamer and want to have the coolest toy on the block and make Stan and Kyle super-jealous, The Ultimate Game Chair makes for the ultimate game experience.
