Logitech's Saitek purchase is all about flight sticks

Logitech has been expanding its product line in several directions, moving up to pro-gamer gear and down to basic, yet robust, mice and keyboards. But it's also been moving beyond the desktop computer market, like buying wearables and sport headphone maker Jaybird back in April. Today the company acquired Saitek, maker of high-end simulation hardware, presumably to supply peripherals for the driving and flight genres. You know, the kinds of games you'll really want a specialty controller to play in VR. Whether this means the end for the custom controller Saitek was building for the upcoming Star Citizen is uncertain, as its new parent company wouldn't comment when asked by Polygon.

Logitech paid $13 million to wrest them from Mad Catz, which purchased Saitek back in 2007. Its catalog includes a range of simulation gear, from space-age joysticks to flight yokes and instrument panels. Why the company wants to invest in higher-end peripherals isn't difficult to guess -- a statement confirms it's to swell product ranks for the coming VR landscape. Saitek's gear already has a high reputation, so it should feel at home integrating with Logitech's performance gaming G line.