PC GAMES Assassin 3D Review May/June 1998

FPgaming Assassin 3D

Although mouse traditionalists can't see the beauty in the Assassin 3D trackball (510-494-2033; www.fpgaming.com; $49.95), there's a growing number of action-gamers who do. They even have their own clan (www.clana3d.com).
The Assassin is a major redesign of an existing trackball, turning it into a digital device with greater sensitivity than most normal trackballs. Used in tandem with a joystick, the Assassin is used for mouse-look duties, while the joystick handles forward and backward movement, plus strafing left and right. Configured correctly, this setup gives you access to three buttons on the Assassin, as well as four buttons and the hat-switch on the stick. Another highlight: circle-strafing is easier to master for some people when they're adjusting the view axis with the Assassin trackball instead of a mouse.

But Mark Johnson says there's more to love: "I used the keyboard-and-mouse combo at first when I was just learning to play Quake. I could only place third, at best. It was eating me alive!!! I saw the Assassin 3D logo on Stomped and checked it out. It looked so cool, I had to get one. Within two to three weeks I started placing first and second regularly on the servers. The more I use it, the more I learn, and the smoother it becomes. I've had the Assassin for a year now, and there are some advantages: full 3D movement, and more precision when used with a joystick like the SideWinder 3D Pro. I can outstrafe a mouser or Orber with more precision, given that my hands are on all the major controls like jump, spin, and weapons. While mousers are picking lint, I'll be kicking ass."

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