Third-party hardware accessory manufacturer Mad Catz is back in the game

Mad Catz, the infamous third-party hardware manufacturer of R.A.T. mice and arcade sticks is back from the dead. The company filed for bankruptcy back in March of last year after having laid off most of its staff in 2016. After liquidation, the company officially close up shop, but apparently, some former employees on the manufacturing side (in China) decided to pick up the pieces and keep on trucking as Mad Catz Global Limited and will be based out of Kowloon, Hong Kong.

Just in time for CES, the biggest electronics show in the world, Mad Catz will be making a return to the show floor to flaunt new hardware with familiar licenses like the R.A.T. line of gaming mice, now with a wireless model called R.A.T.AIR, STRIKE keyboards, and GLIDE gaming surfaces. The big difference, according to the new management team, is that this time around the “new” Mad Catz will focus on “quality first.” All the new hardware will be developed and designed in-house.

The new R.A.T.AIR unlike the wireless R.A.T.9 (which I own) no longer requires the user to swap out short-life batteries, but instead draws power from the new wireless activation gaming surface, included in the pack. We assume pricing and availability will be announced during CES.

In the company’s latest press release, Selena Chang, director of sales and operations says:

“We couldn’t be more excited than to begin 2018 by announcing the return of Mad Catz to the global gaming arena. Mad Catz has been a permanent fixture in gaming for almost three decades and we firmly believe it’s best days lie ahead. Through listening to gamers worldwide, we plan to once again forge a path of innovation in the gaming hardware community, and we’re already working on delivering products which we believe will enhance gamers’ abilities and do justice to the Mad Catz name. We can’t wait to unveil a little more at CES 2018 and in the months to come.”

Mad Catz has been a fixture in the gaming industry for nearly three decades, so it’s good to see the company is back and with it’s commitment to quality, maybe we’ll see a return to form … and awesome arcade sticks.