INTRODUCTION

   Flight and space simulator fans have many reasons to be happy nowadays and more specifically the vast number of available games in the market like Star Citizen, Flight Simulator 2020, Elite Dangerous, DCS (Digital Combat Simulator), No Man's Sky and many more (not to mention some upcoming ones like StarField and X-Plane 12). As I’ve pointed out in past reviews i grew up with simulator games like the Wing Commander Saga, Star Wars (X-Wing, Tie Fighter) and countless others and so i was somewhat disappointed when at the turn of the century this game genre was all but abandoned by all the leading studios. However, this all belongs in the past now so lately I've been doing my best to keep up with most available space and flight simulator titles, not just because I'm excited to see what they bring to the table in terms of immersion and graphics but also because i can test certain peripherals with them, peripherals like the award winning HOTAS Warthog Dual-Throttle Joystick by Thrustmaster.

   A designer and manufacturer of interactive entertainment equipment and accessories, listed on the stock market since 1998 and a major player in the market since 1984, Guillemot Corporation (€60.9 million in 2019) focuses its activities on its two flagship brands: Hercules for the digital hardware and peripherals segment and Thrustmaster for PC and console gaming accessories. The Group is currently present in eleven countries, including France, Germany, Great Britain, Spain, the United States, Canada, Italy, Belgium, China, Hong Kong and Romania, and distributes its products in more than one hundred countries worldwide, with the aim of offering high-performance and user-friendly products to maximize user satisfaction with interactive digital entertainment.

   Thrustmaster released the HOTAS Warthog back in 2010 and even though it's undergone numerous upgrades (both hardware and software related) over the years it's still roughly 12 years old. This however is far from your average HOTAS, Thrustmaster actually got approval from the U.S Airforce to copy the one used in their A-10 Thunderbolt II (AKA Warthog, created by Fairchild Republic Co. and released back in 1975 - A10C version was introduced in 2007) low-altitude close air support aircraft. So just what exactly does the HOTA Warthog bring to the table? Well aside the solid metal construction (which applies for over 90% of the entire unit) and of course its 100% realistic design the HOTAS Warthog sports a stick (5 coil spring system) complete with a dual throttle (two motors - can be used together or independent of one another) and a grand total of 55 buttons and switches (19 on the stick and 36 on the throttle - 51 programmable ones). In terms of technologies used Thrustmaster uses a 16-bit resolution (65536 x 65536 values) 3D magnetic sensor technology called H.E.A.R.T (Hall Effect AccuRate Technology - US Patent: US08471815) for both the stick (which always according to them ensures surgical precision that won’t decrease over time since it doesn't use gimbals/cardan joints) and the dual-throttle (14-bit resolution - 16384 values on each throttle). Finally with the help of their T.A.R.G.E.T (Thrustmaster Advanced pRogramming Graphical EdiTor) software suite end users can easily configure their HOTAS Warthog for use in simulators (either via new presets or Thrustmaster provided ones). Well, it's taken me almost 12 years to get my hands on the HOTAS Warthog so let's see what it's capable of.