LazyGameReviews

LGR Oddware - Mad Catz Panther XL (Patreon)

Published:

2023-10-05 19:02:05

Imported:

2023-10

Content

https://youtu.be/Fak431cxRxU

Ahh, it is nice to be back to some of the usual LGR fare! As much as I enjoy the late summer convention season, getting back into my groove always makes me appreciate my day-to-day routine of researching, testing, filming, and editing. And at this point, Oddware is just about as comfy as it gets.

So, this right here is the Panther XL by none other than Mad Catz! While they were primarily known for their somewhat goofy third party console controllers, they also made goofy PC hardware here and there. And the Panther XL is easily one of their more fascinating oddities. It's one I picked up shortly after researching Mad Catz for my Tech Tales episode about them years ago, because as soon as I was reminded of its oddness and those radical '90s John Romero ads, I simply had to track one down.

If you saw my latest LGR Wrap Up video, then you'll also know that this was NOT the plan for this week. Another Oddware episode was in the works but it rapidly fell apart during the testing and troubleshooting stage, so this ended up taking a few days longer than it would have otherwise. Still, I'm just glad to have it finished and that the thing actually still fully functioned, unlike the other device. I truly was not ready to face another failure this week, heh.

Anyway, hope you enjoy this episode and lemme know if you notice any mistakes or audiovisual weirdness as always. It's back to the grindstone for me, I'm on a roll with a few fun projects and feeling energized to work now that I'm recovered from sickness!

Files

Mad Catz Tried Making the Ultimate FPS Controller: Panther XL from 1997

Checking out the odd Panther XL by Mad Catz! While they largely made goofy third party game console controllers, they also made goofy PC hardware. Like this trackball and flight stick fused together supposedly creating the ultimate FPS input device, backed up by radical 1990s John Romero magazine ads. Prime LGR Oddware indeed! ● LGR links: https://www.patreon.com/LazyGameReviews https://www.twitter.com/LazyGameReviews https://www.facebook.com/LazyGameReviews ● An archive of the Panther XL CD-ROM here: https://archive.org/details/panther-xl-drivers ● All background music licensed from: http://www.epidemicsound.com 00:00 An Oddware Introduction 00:38 The Panther XL 02:56 FPgaming 'Assassin 3D' stuff 03:40 Mad Catz sure was a company 04:47 Advertising and John Romero 05:39 The cult following is real 06:38 Unboxing the device 08:41 Plugged in and setting it up 11:01 Jedi Knight Dark Forces II 13:59 Turok Dinosaur Hunter 15:54 Unreal Tournament 1999 18:27 Control Center and Quake II 20:12 Microsoft Combat Flight Simulator 21:48 A3D Mouse Emulation mode 22:21 Solitaire and SimCity 2000 23:28 DOS support, Commander Keen 4 24:31 Duke Nukem 3D of course 27:54 Y'know, I almost like it! Almost. #LGR #retro #gaming #controller #oddware