According to SD Tekken, Hori's direct response to the Mad Catz TE FightStick, the Real Arcade Pro Premium VLX, will be brought to the US via Hori USA. More details are expected at E3.

For years, Hori pretty much dominated the Japanese-style arcade stick market with its Real Arcade Pro line. While Sega's Virtua Stick High Grade was a nice alternative, it wasn't until Mad Catz unleashed its FightStick that the company had any real competition in the US. Before then, those who were hardcore enough to buy sticks with real arcade parts either got themselves a custom or paid a high premium to import a Hori. Now, thanks to Mad Catz, an arguably higher-quality stick with more customization options can be had quickly and for a lot less. So, at TGS last year, I was pretty sure that Hori would have something up its sleeve, which is why its booth was the first place that I visited when I got onto the show floor. As soon as I saw the prototype for the VLX, I knew that the stick manufacturer had its answer to the TE. What better way to counter a stick with a layout that closely follows that of a Viewlix panel then to strait up mimic the look and feel of one? Hori's new stick even went so far as to have Taito's logo prominently displayed for all to see. Granted, it was obvious that the stick would be cost prohibitive to import for anyone but the hardest of the hardcore. But now, if Hori USA is able to make the sticks available in the US, it could cut out the two biggest problems facing those in the US who want this alternative to the TE - locating one and the insane shipping costs.

On a related note, I posted the pictures that I took of the VLX prototype at Shoryuken.com (my screen name is darthJones) last year and there was a fairly healthy discussion about it for a little while. Check out the link down below.