THE PROBLEM
Buckle up, this is a long update!
We like the start-up approach; “Talk to customers, improve the product.”. We’re also trying to strike a balance on popular games vs. playability vs. manufacturing. What’s all this about then? The Falcon Racing wheels, that’s what.
The availability of the arcade pedals has been a huge challenge in the last 18 months. It was bad enough that we started scooping up used pedals and refurbishing them with new powder coating and new electronics. This is completely untenable in the long term as it’s extremely labor intensive and not a reliable supply source. Our previous source for pedals was Suzo Happ but at times there were lead times exceeding 12 months on resupply of the arcade pedals. Also untenable.
We like the authenticity of the arcade pedals, but continuing on with a product that’s been this difficult to acquire demands change.
So what do we do? Well there’s always simulator pedals. Switching things up means we could do force feedback wheels too. This leaves out your 360 wheel games (think Off Road, Super Sprint, Pole Position etc…) so what do we do about the gamers that love those few precious titles? Some of our customers have expressed a desire for FFB wheels instead, so there’s that to think about too.
SOLUTION
So we’re winding down the arcade pedal hardware in favor of consumer racing sim pedals. We’ve tried these on and off before, but I think we’ve got a setup that we’re happy with now. We’ll keep some refurbished arcade pedals in storage for warranty support and sell through the rest of the stock over the coming months.
As mentioned there are still some 360 games that just don’t quite feel right with a FFB (force feedback) wheel. Well, we’ve got you covered. We’ll have the 360 wheels as an available add-on to the FFB setup. We’ve cooked up a huge spreadsheet showing the various pedals and wheels and what works with what, all that’s coming very soon to the Falcon machines. The FFB setup has a handful of games where both players get full force feedback and stick shift implementation. Very cool stuff!
CHANGES
Look for these changes soon! Pricing has been adjusted already to reflect the changes because if you’re buying today you’ll be getting FFB wheels by default.
With all this we’re revising the product builder section, including a “ground up” option with all variables possible on one product. It’s a huge undertaking but it’ll make things much easier for you at checkout.
After all that, let’s get a look at how the first FFB setups are coming out! Everything is detachable and easy to remove - the wheels and shifters store inside the cabinet, alongside the light guns and keyboard etc…
