Mad Catz Cyborg Gaming Lights

The unimaginatively named Cyborg Gaming Lights are quite different to the keyboards and mice that Saitek usually make, though the product has the same slick, angular design as previous Cyborg peripherals.

It uses technology from a company called amBX, which "creates sensory surround effects". In practice this means that if you shine them on the wall they colour the whole room to suit what's on the screen.

The lights require two free USB sockets as well as a mains socket, which may be a problem for users with lots of other pieces of kit requiring sockets.

At first try, the lights were underwhelming. They are small and the colour they projected wasn't enormously exciting. That improved when we moved to a smaller room and dimmed the lights – after that, the lights were much more effective.

They were plasticky and not very sturdy, although they certainly look the part, like something out of a science fiction film. They folded out smoothly and were easily adjustable.

The packaging says the Gaming Lights will work with all games. We tested them first on Counter Strike: Source, and although the lights did turn on as the game launched, they did not flash or change colour at all during the game, which was disappointing, and meant they were little more than a distraction.

However, upon playing Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway, which is fully compatible with the Gaming Lights, the results were much more impressive.

It's therefore best used with compatible games – (fully compatible games are listed as ‘Embedded amBX').

The lights coordinate with both in-game action and cut scenes: for example the room was bathed in red when our character was badly injured and flashed yellow when we shot.

We were also impressed by the way the lights changed colour to match the game environment, for instance dimming when the game character entered a dark room. The light even changed to match the colour of the game menus.

An amBX Control Panel program is used to configured the lights, but it was difficult to use and seemed to have little real effect. One pleasing feature is that the lights can be set to flash when things happen in Windows, for example when a button is pressed or new email arrives. Uses can also create their own colour patterns.

The Gaming Lights really worked well in a darkened, relatively small room. Partnered with a decent surround sound system, they do help create an immersive experience.

Unfortunately they are rather expensive, especially considering that only a few games work properly with them.