Ken most people don't have sims and need a controller for there new toy. the controller is configured especially for the G-3 as you know the idea of a sim for practice is catching on big time .FYI the controller is a cheap Futaba body with some circuits the majority of your $ is for the software and profit "for the man" not the controller, its allot easier to produce a new set of software and matching hardware than to produce new advanced software for a old outdated piece of hardware .with that said I have the G-2 NEXTAR version it uses the transmitter and a USB cable and is a basic sim at best the G-3 is much more advanced and will be around for a long time my tech savvy buds tell me .I would never tell you how to spend your hard earned cash but without a doubt this simulator is far superior to the G-2 .falcon 32 for more information on all the diferent sims go to the sim thread where you can read till your eyes pop out about which one is best and all the bla bla bla , there is alot of useful information in all the threads thats how I made my choice.