I've played with a pad all my life and had no idea how clunky it was for me till I switched to a stick. I always keep dropping inputs with a pad due to my big hands. It was like night and day when I finally tried out a stick. It took a couple of days to get used to, but now I have no intentions of going back to a pad.
Dude same. My hands are fucking massive and using the pad is almost impossible because of my big ass thumbs so I use the analog stick on the controller and drop moves all the time. I want a fight stick to actually put in half circle and quarter circles without dropping them.
Playing on pad would destroy my thumbs, I could only play for an hour at a time at most. Switching to stick relieved the thumb abuse, and was able to play for 2 to 3 hours at a time without any issues.
@@fiveromannumerals it is not a difference that is just people not being used to pad and pressing to hard. You want to avoid pressing hard at all costs because it either damages your thumb like in this case or wrist if you press to hard on punch buttons since you are grabbing pad to hard and twisting your wrist. Pad is hard to get used to for sure I'm new to fighting games and pad so I can attest to that but that has nothing to do with pad and more with me not being used to device. People that grew up with pad don't have issue with this since they are so accustomed to it and hold it naturally.
I also love smashing the stick buttons when things get hype. When you mash on pad your gripping the controller even harder to keep it in place. A tip that helped my on pad was to focus on lifting my fingers for inputs, instead of sliding you thumbs on the face buttons, That’s a recipe for sloppy inputs.
Speaking of the community aspect, I had this one beautiful moment that happened when I went to a USFIV tournament at a convention. Since I was volunteering for a free pass to the tournament I couldn't safely bring my stick to the venue, but there were a handful of people who brought their sticks to the tournament. They all were more than cool to share their sticks for anyone who wanted to play with them, so it was great that everyone got a chance to play with the controllers most comfortable for them.
I play all games (that support it) on stick - Mega Drive, SNES, Saturn, PlayStation, everything. Sticks are so accurate, but also so much more enjoyable.
I switched for two reasons, the most important being nostalgia, I love that feeling of playing at an arcade. Bit also I spent alot of years mashing the wrong stuff on a pad never actually looking up how to play these nor having anyone around that knew properly, switching to stick allowed me to bypass the already worked in bad muscle memory and just start fresh:)
I bought a stick when I realized they existed mostly because I'm old enough that I first learned to play fighting games in arcades and it enhanced the childhood nostalgia aspect of playing games. I had spent a good chunk of time playing Tekken on PS pad in the middle decades and when I briefly picked up Tekken 7 on stick I found relearning movement took some work despite having been playing 2D fighters on stick beforehand. But one competitive advantage not really touched on was how much easier 2 button inputs are on stick. 3+4 for example on pad either requires playing with a claw grip which is absolute hell on my hand or has a high level of input error trying to hit them both at the same time with my thumb. Stick lets you hit both buttons with separate fingers with an ergonomic grip.
Lil majin is my fav pad user, top 8 first american on tekken. Which is dominated by koreans, and hes a very entertaining player. Every round is different for him and he actually uses all the characters kit instead of being safe and just trying to win a game
Look up battle beaver controllers. You can buy a kit that turns your dpad into 4 directional buttons rather than one large button that is used in ps4 and xbox controllers. The kit only costs $20 and if you want a controller that can be used for multiple genres, they have a custom controller builder and you can basically customize everything. Affordable too
Lol I'm struggling a lot playing GG on stick mostly because of the dashes and movement generally quicker to do on pad But maybe that's just lack of practice.
@@miguelodeon4978 To clarify a little more, my stick is a Hitbox. I don't know if it counts as a separate thing. Dashes and IAD's are way easier to execute.
Yeah I guess its like playing on a keyboard, I'd say they're two different things for me. However I'll practice some more with regular stick on those kinda games before calling the stick not as good for them on the long run.
Four buttons I can play on pad, but six-button Capcom games I basically need a stick. Tried for years but never got used to using the shoulder buttons.
@@Puffle573 no it definitely is cause the first guy quoted the vid and the guy put a genuine answer to the problem that was a joke meaning that shit went straight over his head making it a whoosh
PSA: I'm like six months in and still practicing the basics every day... it can take some people a WHILE. However, with that said I can see the benefits and say it is worth it. I'm not ashamed to admit I've hit a brick wall with dragon punch motions but seeing small improvements as I've stuck with it; up to 25 consecutive without a mistake 1P side and 16 consecutive 2P side with no mistakes. All the other motions on Ryu in SSF2 Turbo I have down no question (and yeah, I'm that insane person who wants to work up to Hawk). If you are looking at something like Tekken (or something that has a lot of fast dashing) you might want to go with Korean style lever, if something like Street Fighter (lots of quarter circle and 360 type motions) Japanese style is best suited for that. Also, don't forget about something like Hitbox, it does make some things possible that you can't on stick and can be an easier transition from keyboard. The comparison to learning a musical instrument is 100% correct. What you are practicing is proper technique and trying to develop good habits instead of bad ones. It means doing a lot of very basic things over and over, but if you want to be a wall to your opponent you have to start with a solid foundation. Also, just like an instrument you are looking for ergonomics; everything is as relaxed and natural as possible, NOTHING should hurt. If something hurts you are doing it wrong. You are developing muscle memory, which means you want to do at least a little EVERY DAY. Practicing 8 hours one day a week does almost nothing, while taking 10 minutes every day in that week will yield progress; just like learning an instrument. Your practice should be very focused and not just going through the motions on autopilot; think about what you are doing. Visualize the motion in your head, then execute, rinse and repeat. Looking down at your hands as you do it can help at first. When starting out, take as much time in between each action as you need to visualize it. Slow the motion down if you have to; you are attempting to have EVERY time you do it be correct, no matter how long it takes to do... speed comes with time. If you are going on autopilot and missing half of your inputs you are NOT building muscle memory as fast as you could if you slow down, do half as many are you currently are, but they are all correct inputs. Think of muscle memory like an XP bar; every time you do it right, you gain a little bit of XP... but every time you do it wrong you lose even more XP. THAT is how you need to approach it, you will gain more XP taking your time and getting it right. If you are just going at it trying and miss, miss, miss... stop for a second. Take your hand off the controller and take a relaxing deep breath. Place your hands back in position and visualize the motion. Then, very slowly practice what the motion is, being completely relaxed (don't worry that it isn't fast enough to come out). Do that a few times and gradually speed it up, visualizing the motion between each time, until you work it up to speed. I know that sounds like a pain in the ass, but you will be a fucking execution MONSTER when you are done. I went to college for music and spent a LOT of years teaching people how to play various instruments. It will take you years to master something difficult, and there is always room for improvement. So I know the best way to approach it; It is a marathon, not a race... and try not to be hard on yourself, stay positive and know that getting frustrated is actively working against you. Know that you will get there eventually if you put in the work.
i know this is a year old, but you’ve reinspired me to learn a stick. controller has always felt much more comfortable and i’ve been using a stick this past week that i just bought and it’s been nothing but painful. i’ve been looking at a ton of videos to see if you really need to play on stick to be good, and this comment is what really got me to understand the process. i’ll try my best to learn how a stick works, thank u for your wisdom
The keybox gives a very small distinct advantage when it comes to very precise inputs and speed. I was only able to pull off certain combos with them thanks to the wasd format.
I actually just bought one just for the hell of it, I still use the pad but I've been wanting to learn stick for a hot minute. Plus I love using it on MAME games! I think I'm starting to get into collecting them just for fun.
The only time I played stick was when we need an extra controller to play overcooked and I was happy to use the stick, It was almost instant that I new the joystick felt better and bought one. It really is as simple as trying one out, even if that means going to a local arcade and checking how the stick feels. It's hard to know with button placement but it you are using an analog, it's easy to compare it to the feel of a stick
I switched to stick because of ergonomics, I have Arthritis due to playing alot of precision games and had to start wearing a hand brace, plus the longer stick felt better and less cramped
After years of this debate, I came to the conclusion that the best thing is to try everything you can. Your never going to know whats better for you if you haven't really tested out each option. I own or have tried almost every pad out there, all of the Hori fightpads (PS1 to the recent PS3/4 commander), the various madcatz, to the og sega saturn 6 button controller (& several "retro" saturn clones) etc. I plan on eventually purchasing a fight stick and hitbox to see if either one is better for me. Dont be afraid to experiment with different options, it can be a fun process and could end up making you a better player too.
Switch to fight stick around two years ago for third strike and now I find most fighting games not easier but easier if that makes sense. It feels really good and The ergonomics of it really are a selling point. Especially if you play a lot of fighting games or game’s in general I’m the long run I recommend it 100%
Plot twist: The only reason he says that switching to stick won’t help you become a better player is because he doesn’t want other people to become better.
My honest answer is if you grew up in the arcades, then stick with an arcade stick controller or if you grew up playing with regular pad controllers all your life, then stick with a regular pad controller.
For a fairly short answer for anyone who plays on PC: Keyboard is borderline broken For decent examples, you can have multiple binds for moving in a certain direction. So if you struggle with a shoryuken motion on the four directional arrows, you could use something like a numpad, or if you think that a normal 3x2 button layout for your attacks is uncomfortable, you could have the attacks on a 2x3, or you could bind your most used attacks closer to where your fingers usually sit, stuff like that. Another example, for Tekken fans, Korean Backdashing is complicated to do. For a backdash that works on characters with sways, you need to tap back once, go to neutral, tap back, go to down back, then back again, go to neutral, and do the back, down back, back, neutral cycle. This takes weeks, if not months to get fast and consistent with. In a keyboard though, you can hold back and tap forward and down repeatedly and you'll get a fast backdash. And for the last example, it's just easy to grasp. Doing a consistent Akuma combo in 3rd Strike (low mk, short tatsu, heavy shoryuken, optional cancel into super art 1, then light shoryuken) was very hard when I used a controller, but then I decided to use my keyboard and I started hitting it consistently within a few minutes of practice. Understanding motions in a controller is easy but handling them is a different chore. But personally I picked the keyboard because the under side of my left thumb started blistering when I tried to do fast execution in Tekken, so there's that.
1 huge advantage I've learned on controller is when someone tries to cross you up you can literally block both ways at once by using the d pad and the stick at the same time hold back on the d pad and forward on the stick it will block both ways
Really dig your content, as someone who's always been interested in fighting games but not necessarily had my heart in it, been getting more passionate about new and old series that caught my attention, (mk, dbfz, blazblue) and you are really a wealth of information, presented in a very non condescending way, keep it up bro, much love and respect
Practise and comfort, just like you said. I'm old now but even as a kid I couldn't play fighting games on a DPAD (and no, analog stick is no option for me lol) because my thumb would hate me. Especially when deathgripping.
Pretty informative video overall, i always enjoy your videos, I just hope more people could give enough information about pads too! It seems like people don't really mention stuff outside of the regular ps4 pad or some mods for it
I agree with everything in this video. I bought at stick a couple years ago. Played Tekken for years on pad ( I still do actually), but I will add that playing on stick is not as hard or cumbersome as some people say. There is a learning period, but if you have fundamentals, and because they are made for fighters, you will find them to be intuitive. I bought the Hori HRAP and loved it, and I just ordered the Vitrix Pro, but that’s cause I bought it as a celebration for getting a new job during this crazy time.
Definitely not but some games have certain techniques that are easier to perform on stick like plinking owing to the fact you have more than just your thumb to use. Even just some small things can make a stick better like on a pad playing say SFIV you're not gonna be holding 3 seperate buttons to do your ultra but assign one of the shoulder buttons to press all 3 for you but you don't need to do that on stick cause it's much easier, helps a lot if you like to use different characters or switch ultras and they have different inputs, otherwise you're constantly having to go to button config to chance from punch to kick or back.
Generally, I learned SF2 in an arcade with a stick then played some versions on console. Was never happy with a gamepad/controller compared to stick. Muscle memory and all that. Having recently bought SFV, I'm probably going to get a stick controller, if only to save my controller from abuse (already too late). :)
BlazBlue on the psp forces you to use the thumb stick, so I mostly use the stick in other games too. Just feels better on the hand. But I also prefer to play with a stick so whatever.
Using a Hitbox-style controller helps SO much with sweaty hands. I had trouble even gripping the stick consistently sometimes on a traditional one. With a Hitbox, there is no grip to worry about.
Homesliced Videos how do you like the hit box? I’m really curious about it and can’t really decide if I should purchase one (import to Europe costs a lot...)
@@TheMasterOfCeremony never owned a hitbox. Im making one with an arcade stick and removing the stick for 4 buttons. Iv heard its hard to adapt at first. You be at Babysteps to start with. But ither than that iv seen pretty good reviews from it. Alot of people prefer them.
Advocating the use of pads makes it easier to sell fighting games to new players. But the fact that so few players use them in the long run speaks for itself. Personally, I've never been able to figure out how people manage to play fighting games with a pad and I'd probably just stop playing them if that was my only option.
I think you cannot underestimate the fun factor when finally changing over to stick... really adds new life and energises the game... not a MK player mind but can really see how that would be more pad geared... did MK ever play well on stick? Even back in the arcades lol ;)
stick just feels way more fun to use. I'm switching to it knowing that I'll likely be way worse for a while, but will have more fun than with a boring old pad
I think the pad vs. stick is character/game dependent, with Street Fighter games probably benefiting the most from stick overall. Zangief can be very difficult for pad because of the motions (I still can't play him on pad but he's not bad at all with stick), and I never really got good at charge characters like Guile/Bison until I switched. I don't see the point of using stick for say, Dragon Ball FighterZ.
I know this video is old but I recently got into GGST. playing on pad hurts my thumb for movement so I've been using keyboard. long sessions I've noticed my wrist and hand hurts quite bad on the same hand. the one controlling movement. (for those unaware, playing on keyboard isnt bad. it's basically a hitbox) looking in to sticks now which I hope would alleviate that stress my hand is getting
im someone who went both through the keayboard to pad transition, and pad to stick transition. keyboard to pad took me around 2 months to get sompletely used to it. pad to stick took me half a year. stick is very hard to get used to, especially if you never touched a stick before. it's completely different from everything you ever did to control your games
I play stick because I grew up with arcade fighting games in bodegas on every corner. I rarely had fighting games at home. I’m also left handed, so strict timing on small buttons was impossible on most pads and I had to try to piano with it leading to hand pain on my right. It’s all about preference. Trust me, I would love to not spend $150+ on sticks.
Surprised he didn't bring up 6 button games like Street Fighter and Skullgirls being a little easier. Well I guess he did mention pianoing, but getting a hitbox really helped me improve at Skullgirls.
I've been playing fighting games ever since the vanilla Street Fighter II and consistently played on pad all the way up to Tekken 7, where I finally swichted to stick. I enjoy playing on stick so much more now. I feel it's like playing racing games with a steering wheel, it's just so much more fun if you nail your moves/combos on stick rather than pad.
I got into fighting games in 2008 because my friends were playing super turbo HD remix and vanilla sf4, and back then the attitudes seemed a bit different where it was stick or bust. It was painful at first to play stick but it's worth it in the long run. It's a lot of fun having arcade hardware and playing stick with other arcade games. On the topic of injuries, I mostly play sf which I don't get any issues but if I play darkstalkers it's harder on my wrists and forearm.
stick is just more fun to me, I enjoy it more if you get a stick and suck at first, heres a tip: play some old 2d games like Mega man or castlevania with it. It helps you get used to it
I love the idea of fighting games but I never played them growing up so I suck at the inputs. Holding the stick upwards to jump feels weird to me too because of all the platformer games I've played. I like smash bros because it's kind of easy to control but I really want to get into something that's more of a "true" fighting game with that more intimate 1v1 close in camera feel.
Ahh goddamn it, the ergonomic thing is a hard sell for me. I'm 30 years old, been playing games all my life, but I just started getting into fighting games and this shit hurts my hands. Part of the problem is that I keep pushing after I start hurting, but god I can only imagine how much easier on my hands a hitbox would be. I play piano so I think the adjustment period wouldnt be too bad.
No but if you’re just itching to play with a stick make your own, they’re super easy to build and it only cost me around 50 dollars to make mine. If you like the stick you made and want to keep using it you can upgrade the parts over time.
I think ergonomic for me I always had fun playing fighting games but when started using a stick I just felt more confortable and genuinely had more fun than I thought I would have playing
I played fighterz with a controller before. I bought a stick and it was much harder to play at the beginning. However, after some time I felt like doing more advanced combos was easier on the stick then on the controller. I think it's because I prefer to hit multiple hands with the hand instead of having fingers on both the buttons and on the Ls and Rs. So I think it's a matter of preference
No, but they're fun to use. I've played fighters a lot on cabinets at my local arcade, and while I'm not as good at it as I am on pad, I still wanted one, so I decided to get one. Edit: nowadays, I can't imagine playing fighting games without a stick. It's my preferred way to play.
I thought for the longest time it wouldn't matter, but after trying a stick I knew it was for me. I don't actually play any better (I have always been terrible) but it's a 1000x more comfortable for my hands.
I feel like it depends on the person. Some people are uncomfortable when playing with a pad. Though I have heard quite a couple of people saying that you can have an advanced gameplay with a pad. I say that is wrong, I can T.o.D and perform proper combos with a pad.
I scratched the itch to get a FightStick early this year by simply buying the Hori FS mini for the Switch. Some say I should have saved more money for better sticks, especially because some say the size is just way too small, but since I have no reference point because I never played on a stick before the one I bought, I am just fine with the one I have. I already got used to it. I might change it in the future, but I’m not in a hurry to do that.
How does people play on those horrible ps pads. They're awful lol. I'm currently playing on a Wii classic controller, cause due to the current situation I haven't been able to buy a wired fightpad. I wish I could mod my current controller to make it usb instead of having it always connected to a wii remote because the dpad on this thing is godlike.
I'm also part of the tinfoil-hat team because 4 Street Fighter inputs sf4 was overly difficult than might have contributed to the sales of you know arcade sticks just from all those one frame inputs.play what you want there's a guy that beat pros at Guilty Gear with a freaking initial d steering wheel.
u know i agree with everything until u said mvc2, for me that game is so easy to input moves compared to some modern fighting games. It could be me but i really like how that game feels and that subjectively its really forgiving. I have thought of trying a hitbox for a while now but they are kinda big oof
It took me a couple weeks to get the stick down. imo, it’s harder to mash on stick and just “hope” for an outcome. Once you start to feel the clicks in the stick you feel how much more control you are in.. These days it can be so character dependent on the stick/pad you use. GGS on arcade stick just feels right. DBFZ i’m just not there yet lol
I built my first arcade stick with my dad because I wanted a little project to do. When it was done, I was like "Well if I don't use it, it would be a waste of money" Now I find a hard time playing fighters on pad lol
one reason to play stick is negative edge, where you do a move when you release a button as opposed to pressing it. On a pad, your thumb can only do so much at the same time, while on stick you can dedicate a finger to holding down buttons while still being able to press others reliably. Noteworthy examples being playing Zato in guilty gear, Arakune in blazblue or Cody's zonk knuckle in street fighter.
i bought a stick took me a week. I'd reccomend starting with street fighter helps you get comfortable and trains your brain. i play dbfz but when i tried with the stick i just got it was very hard at first. but after about a week i got the hang of it. i think its a lot easier to pull of combos on stick and do instant air dashes but that's just me. I wouldn't recommend if your only into one game
I used to play DBZF on controller but swapped to a hitbox cause of my sweaty ass hands. Doesn't really solve my problem but it's easier to wipe than my controller
I just switched from pad to stick and it's really frustrating having to learn the inputs again. I'm improving and I can tell that once I get good it'll be easier to do certain inputs with it, but in the meantime it's pretty annoying knowing what to do but not how to do it.
He just got straight to the point. He lost ALOT of view time doing that. I respect it.
It still reached the 10 minute mark 🤷♂️
@@GIR177
He answered the question from the begging so if you don’t want to support him just leave
@@GIR177 And?
He got my like for that.
Maybe maybe not some ppl will turn the video off for rambling irrelevant crap.
I might be the only guy I know who plays PC DBFZ with a frickin pro switch controller
So you're the chosen one.
I do that too lol
I use that one too, is comfy enough for fighterz
Yo dead ass I did for a while but my pro controller shit the bed so now I use a Xbox One controller. The D bad on the switch pro was nice ngl...
I also use a Switch pro controller, wired Pro A.
I've played with a pad all my life and had no idea how clunky it was for me till I switched to a stick. I always keep dropping inputs with a pad due to my big hands. It was like night and day when I finally tried out a stick. It took a couple of days to get used to, but now I have no intentions of going back to a pad.
I have smaller hands so pad works better for me
@@donovanloreman Mine has the exact opposite effect. Companies should invent a hotdog finger edition controller or something.
Dude same. My hands are fucking massive and using the pad is almost impossible because of my big ass thumbs so I use the analog stick on the controller and drop moves all the time. I want a fight stick to actually put in half circle and quarter circles without dropping them.
Playing on pad would destroy my thumbs, I could only play for an hour at a time at most. Switching to stick relieved the thumb abuse, and was able to play for 2 to 3 hours at a time without any issues.
Exactly, that is by far the biggest difference, unless someone uses the analogue stick or a mechanical d-pad
@@fiveromannumerals it is not a difference that is just people not being used to pad and pressing to hard. You want to avoid pressing hard at all costs because it either damages your thumb like in this case or wrist if you press to hard on punch buttons since you are grabbing pad to hard and twisting your wrist.
Pad is hard to get used to for sure I'm new to fighting games and pad so I can attest to that but that has nothing to do with pad and more with me not being used to device.
People that grew up with pad don't have issue with this since they are so accustomed to it and hold it naturally.
For me, the fight stick actually hurts my wrists and aggravates my arthritis more than a pad
I also love smashing the stick buttons when things get hype. When you mash on pad your gripping the controller even harder to keep it in place. A tip that helped my on pad was to focus on lifting my fingers for inputs, instead of sliding you thumbs on the face buttons, That’s a recipe for sloppy inputs.
Speaking of the community aspect, I had this one beautiful moment that happened when I went to a USFIV tournament at a convention. Since I was volunteering for a free pass to the tournament I couldn't safely bring my stick to the venue, but there were a handful of people who brought their sticks to the tournament. They all were more than cool to share their sticks for anyone who wanted to play with them, so it was great that everyone got a chance to play with the controllers most comfortable for them.
So you played with another guys stick? :P (Sorry I had to)
You can't forget about the God himself Lil Majin who was tearing it up on a pad.
He switched to mixbox
I just think fight stick looks sick af
I play all games (that support it) on stick - Mega Drive, SNES, Saturn, PlayStation, everything. Sticks are so accurate, but also so much more enjoyable.
My man played saturn with a fighting stick. Please tell me you played fighting vipers
I switched for two reasons, the most important being nostalgia, I love that feeling of playing at an arcade. Bit also I spent alot of years mashing the wrong stuff on a pad never actually looking up how to play these nor having anyone around that knew properly, switching to stick allowed me to bypass the already worked in bad muscle memory and just start fresh:)
I bought a stick when I realized they existed mostly because I'm old enough that I first learned to play fighting games in arcades and it enhanced the childhood nostalgia aspect of playing games.
I had spent a good chunk of time playing Tekken on PS pad in the middle decades and when I briefly picked up Tekken 7 on stick I found relearning movement took some work despite having been playing 2D fighters on stick beforehand. But one competitive advantage not really touched on was how much easier 2 button inputs are on stick. 3+4 for example on pad either requires playing with a claw grip which is absolute hell on my hand or has a high level of input error trying to hit them both at the same time with my thumb. Stick lets you hit both buttons with separate fingers with an ergonomic grip.
Fr my king chain throws are so much easier on stick
I switched to stick because it’s more sturdy than pad, I kept wearing out my pad so eventually I just splurged
ayeee
Yeah that's a good reason when ever I click L2 on my ps4 controller it inputs up as well
Do you NEED a stick?
Short answer: Sonicfox
Best answer ever
...And Sonicfox use a modify controller with mechanical buttons...
@@OXGAMES_Z It's still a pad though. Most top players usually use custom made controllers that work best for them, so it's not weird
NOBODY argues that stick is better for dbfz
Lil majin is my fav pad user, top 8 first american on tekken. Which is dominated by koreans, and hes a very entertaining player. Every round is different for him and he actually uses all the characters kit instead of being safe and just trying to win a game
i hate fighting games, but idk why i am addicted to watching you jmcrofts 😂
Nice voice, good explanations, never tilted, and smooth head.
This makes no sense how’d you even find this very niche channel
what are you doing with your life?
Lol I suck at them but I still like them. I'm not good but I'm good enough to clap my friends when a fighting game comes on
@@BIMONLAKI Nah, it was jm who put me to this. Lol
Look up battle beaver controllers. You can buy a kit that turns your dpad into 4 directional buttons rather than one large button that is used in ps4 and xbox controllers. The kit only costs $20 and if you want a controller that can be used for multiple genres, they have a custom controller builder and you can basically customize everything. Affordable too
I play on both, depends on the game.
@Dale Macarena
Pad:
Power Rangers BftG
BBTag
Tekken
Soul Calibur
MK
Stick:
SF
GG
BlazBlue
Skullgirls
Lol I'm struggling a lot playing GG on stick mostly because of the dashes and movement generally quicker to do on pad
But maybe that's just lack of practice.
@@miguelodeon4978 To clarify a little more, my stick is a Hitbox. I don't know if it counts as a separate thing. Dashes and IAD's are way easier to execute.
Yeah I guess its like playing on a keyboard, I'd say they're two different things for me. However I'll practice some more with regular stick on those kinda games before calling the stick not as good for them on the long run.
Four buttons I can play on pad, but six-button Capcom games I basically need a stick. Tried for years but never got used to using the shoulder buttons.
My mom caught me playing with my stick in the middle of the night
Maybe cause it loud
r/whoosh
@@cope3415 Nope, it isn't a woooosh
@@Puffle573 no it definitely is cause the first guy quoted the vid and the guy put a genuine answer to the problem that was a joke meaning that shit went straight over his head making it a whoosh
@@cope3415 i'm pretty sure he wasn't serious with his response lol. r/wooosh should be on you
PSA: I'm like six months in and still practicing the basics every day... it can take some people a WHILE. However, with that said I can see the benefits and say it is worth it. I'm not ashamed to admit I've hit a brick wall with dragon punch motions but seeing small improvements as I've stuck with it; up to 25 consecutive without a mistake 1P side and 16 consecutive 2P side with no mistakes. All the other motions on Ryu in SSF2 Turbo I have down no question (and yeah, I'm that insane person who wants to work up to Hawk). If you are looking at something like Tekken (or something that has a lot of fast dashing) you might want to go with Korean style lever, if something like Street Fighter (lots of quarter circle and 360 type motions) Japanese style is best suited for that. Also, don't forget about something like Hitbox, it does make some things possible that you can't on stick and can be an easier transition from keyboard.
The comparison to learning a musical instrument is 100% correct. What you are practicing is proper technique and trying to develop good habits instead of bad ones. It means doing a lot of very basic things over and over, but if you want to be a wall to your opponent you have to start with a solid foundation. Also, just like an instrument you are looking for ergonomics; everything is as relaxed and natural as possible, NOTHING should hurt. If something hurts you are doing it wrong. You are developing muscle memory, which means you want to do at least a little EVERY DAY. Practicing 8 hours one day a week does almost nothing, while taking 10 minutes every day in that week will yield progress; just like learning an instrument.
Your practice should be very focused and not just going through the motions on autopilot; think about what you are doing. Visualize the motion in your head, then execute, rinse and repeat. Looking down at your hands as you do it can help at first. When starting out, take as much time in between each action as you need to visualize it. Slow the motion down if you have to; you are attempting to have EVERY time you do it be correct, no matter how long it takes to do... speed comes with time. If you are going on autopilot and missing half of your inputs you are NOT building muscle memory as fast as you could if you slow down, do half as many are you currently are, but they are all correct inputs.
Think of muscle memory like an XP bar; every time you do it right, you gain a little bit of XP... but every time you do it wrong you lose even more XP. THAT is how you need to approach it, you will gain more XP taking your time and getting it right. If you are just going at it trying and miss, miss, miss... stop for a second. Take your hand off the controller and take a relaxing deep breath. Place your hands back in position and visualize the motion. Then, very slowly practice what the motion is, being completely relaxed (don't worry that it isn't fast enough to come out). Do that a few times and gradually speed it up, visualizing the motion between each time, until you work it up to speed.
I know that sounds like a pain in the ass, but you will be a fucking execution MONSTER when you are done. I went to college for music and spent a LOT of years teaching people how to play various instruments. It will take you years to master something difficult, and there is always room for improvement. So I know the best way to approach it; It is a marathon, not a race... and try not to be hard on yourself, stay positive and know that getting frustrated is actively working against you. Know that you will get there eventually if you put in the work.
i know this is a year old, but you’ve reinspired me to learn a stick. controller has always felt much more comfortable and i’ve been using a stick this past week that i just bought and it’s been nothing but painful. i’ve been looking at a ton of videos to see if you really need to play on stick to be good, and this comment is what really got me to understand the process. i’ll try my best to learn how a stick works, thank u for your wisdom
@@holllow , no problem. I'm glad I could help.
The keybox gives a very small distinct advantage when it comes to very precise inputs and speed. I was only able to pull off certain combos with them thanks to the wasd format.
I love my Hori Fighting Game Commander,I feel it offers me the best of both worlds and it's super affordable. Great vid man!
I actually just bought one just for the hell of it, I still use the pad but I've been wanting to learn stick for a hot minute. Plus I love using it on MAME games! I think I'm starting to get into collecting them just for fun.
The only time I played stick was when we need an extra controller to play overcooked and I was happy to use the stick, It was almost instant that I new the joystick felt better and bought one. It really is as simple as trying one out, even if that means going to a local arcade and checking how the stick feels. It's hard to know with button placement but it you are using an analog, it's easy to compare it to the feel of a stick
I switched to stick because of ergonomics, I have Arthritis due to playing alot of precision games and had to start wearing a hand brace, plus the longer stick felt better and less cramped
After years of this debate, I came to the conclusion that the best thing is to try everything you can. Your never going to know whats better for you if you haven't really tested out each option. I own or have tried almost every pad out there, all of the Hori fightpads (PS1 to the recent PS3/4 commander), the various madcatz, to the og sega saturn 6 button controller (& several "retro" saturn clones) etc. I plan on eventually purchasing a fight stick and hitbox to see if either one is better for me. Dont be afraid to experiment with different options, it can be a fun process and could end up making you a better player too.
The 8bitdo m30 has really helped me out on the switch.
Switch to fight stick around two years ago for third strike and now I find most fighting games not easier but easier if that makes sense. It feels really good and The ergonomics of it really are a selling point. Especially if you play a lot of fighting games or game’s in general I’m the long run I recommend it 100%
”not easier but easier“ makes total sense... i know exactly what u mean.
It’s got something to do with Developers’s intent for sure when it comes to arcade era games
@@ICA_Ghost Thanks man! knew someone would get it!!!!!!
Can you even use stick for non fighting games
sticks are way more fun imo
Plot twist: The only reason he says that switching to stick won’t help you become a better player is because he doesn’t want other people to become better.
My honest answer is if you grew up in the arcades, then stick with an arcade stick controller or if you grew up playing with regular pad controllers all your life, then stick with a regular pad controller.
I cant do circles on keyboard. I imagine its gonna take me days to figure out. If a stick could make that easier, id def consider buying one
For a fairly short answer for anyone who plays on PC: Keyboard is borderline broken
For decent examples, you can have multiple binds for moving in a certain direction. So if you struggle with a shoryuken motion on the four directional arrows, you could use something like a numpad, or if you think that a normal 3x2 button layout for your attacks is uncomfortable, you could have the attacks on a 2x3, or you could bind your most used attacks closer to where your fingers usually sit, stuff like that.
Another example, for Tekken fans, Korean Backdashing is complicated to do. For a backdash that works on characters with sways, you need to tap back once, go to neutral, tap back, go to down back, then back again, go to neutral, and do the back, down back, back, neutral cycle. This takes weeks, if not months to get fast and consistent with. In a keyboard though, you can hold back and tap forward and down repeatedly and you'll get a fast backdash.
And for the last example, it's just easy to grasp. Doing a consistent Akuma combo in 3rd Strike (low mk, short tatsu, heavy shoryuken, optional cancel into super art 1, then light shoryuken) was very hard when I used a controller, but then I decided to use my keyboard and I started hitting it consistently within a few minutes of practice. Understanding motions in a controller is easy but handling them is a different chore.
But personally I picked the keyboard because the under side of my left thumb started blistering when I tried to do fast execution in Tekken, so there's that.
I learnt with a stick right out on SF4. The only other time i had play was in the Arcade. So it felt natural. I attempted the D-pad, didn't work.
Great intro. Great video. I was felt stick was superior for fighting games, but that maybe because I started on arcade boxes.
1 huge advantage I've learned on controller is when someone tries to cross you up you can literally block both ways at once by using the d pad and the stick at the same time hold back on the d pad and forward on the stick it will block both ways
Really dig your content, as someone who's always been interested in fighting games but not necessarily had my heart in it, been getting more passionate about new and old series that caught my attention, (mk, dbfz, blazblue) and you are really a wealth of information, presented in a very non condescending way, keep it up bro, much love and respect
Practise and comfort, just like you said. I'm old now but even as a kid I couldn't play fighting games on a DPAD (and no, analog stick is no option for me lol) because my thumb would hate me. Especially when deathgripping.
Pretty informative video overall, i always enjoy your videos, I just hope more people could give enough information about pads too! It seems like people don't really mention stuff outside of the regular ps4 pad or some mods for it
I use pad but I do use either control stick or d-pad depending on the game
This is like saying do you need a $3000 Gibson LP to play a live show.
I agree with everything in this video. I bought at stick a couple years ago. Played Tekken for years on pad ( I still do actually), but I will add that playing on stick is not as hard or cumbersome as some people say. There is a learning period, but if you have fundamentals, and because they are made for fighters, you will find them to be intuitive.
I bought the Hori HRAP and loved it, and I just ordered the Vitrix Pro, but that’s cause I bought it as a celebration for getting a new job during this crazy time.
Congratulations on the new job, dude! Stay safe out there!
Might be also worth to add that pro pads can really help as well.
Definitely not but some games have certain techniques that are easier to perform on stick like plinking owing to the fact you have more than just your thumb to use. Even just some small things can make a stick better like on a pad playing say SFIV you're not gonna be holding 3 seperate buttons to do your ultra but assign one of the shoulder buttons to press all 3 for you but you don't need to do that on stick cause it's much easier, helps a lot if you like to use different characters or switch ultras and they have different inputs, otherwise you're constantly having to go to button config to chance from punch to kick or back.
There's a technical term you kept using regarding stick vs pad. You mentioned "budget". What is this "budget" you refer to?
Money
How much money you can spend
a budget controller = a cheap controller
Generally, I learned SF2 in an arcade with a stick then played some versions on console. Was never happy with a gamepad/controller compared to stick. Muscle memory and all that. Having recently bought SFV, I'm probably going to get a stick controller, if only to save my controller from abuse (already too late). :)
I feel like I'm the only one who plays with the analog stick instead of the Dpad on controller...pls someone tell me I'm not alone
Analog gang
All capcom fighters I use analog bro, but on Netherealms its D-pad. I thought i was the only analog user too mayne lol
BlazBlue on the psp forces you to use the thumb stick, so I mostly use the stick in other games too. Just feels better on the hand. But I also prefer to play with a stick so whatever.
@@carlos25301 same
I use both, d pad for movement and analog for inputs.
Pad is fine unless you get sweaty hands
Sweaty hands and arcade stick is worst...
Using a Hitbox-style controller helps SO much with sweaty hands. I had trouble even gripping the stick consistently sometimes on a traditional one. With a Hitbox, there is no grip to worry about.
Homesliced Videos how do you like the hit box? I’m really curious about it and can’t really decide if I should purchase one (import to Europe costs a lot...)
I got sweaty hands and it's fine
@@TheMasterOfCeremony never owned a hitbox. Im making one with an arcade stick and removing the stick for 4 buttons. Iv heard its hard to adapt at first. You be at Babysteps to start with. But ither than that iv seen pretty good reviews from it. Alot of people prefer them.
Advocating the use of pads makes it easier to sell fighting games to new players. But the fact that so few players use them in the long run speaks for itself.
Personally, I've never been able to figure out how people manage to play fighting games with a pad and I'd probably just stop playing them if that was my only option.
Great video explaining the reason's the arcade stick is beneficial, controller most people use because it's what we get used to.
I think you cannot underestimate the fun factor when finally changing over to stick... really adds new life and energises the game... not a MK player mind but can really see how that would be more pad geared... did MK ever play well on stick? Even back in the arcades lol ;)
I've recently found out I can play dbfz on keyboard. I'm too broke for a fight stick so I customize my keyboard to be like one... broke life
I felt that lmao
Instead of the Hitbox you got the Shitbox j/k
stick just feels way more fun to use. I'm switching to it knowing that I'll likely be way worse for a while, but will have more fun than with a boring old pad
- Checks to see if my ps4 controller is still plugged in - boots up fighterz - proceeds to play - nope, dont need one :)
I think the pad vs. stick is character/game dependent, with Street Fighter games probably benefiting the most from stick overall. Zangief can be very difficult for pad because of the motions (I still can't play him on pad but he's not bad at all with stick), and I never really got good at charge characters like Guile/Bison until I switched. I don't see the point of using stick for say, Dragon Ball FighterZ.
I know this video is old but I recently got into GGST. playing on pad hurts my thumb for movement so I've been using keyboard. long sessions I've noticed my wrist and hand hurts quite bad on the same hand. the one controlling movement.
(for those unaware, playing on keyboard isnt bad. it's basically a hitbox)
looking in to sticks now which I hope would alleviate that stress my hand is getting
im someone who went both through the keayboard to pad transition, and pad to stick transition. keyboard to pad took me around 2 months to get sompletely used to it. pad to stick took me half a year. stick is very hard to get used to, especially if you never touched a stick before. it's completely different from everything you ever did to control your games
I have huge hands and long fingers. Playing on the pads are a pain and everything feels cramped. I might try a stick soon.
I play stick because I grew up with arcade fighting games in bodegas on every corner. I rarely had fighting games at home.
I’m also left handed, so strict timing on small buttons was impossible on most pads and I had to try to piano with it leading to hand pain on my right.
It’s all about preference. Trust me, I would love to not spend $150+ on sticks.
It’s depends of preference. I have both but I prefer the controller
Surprised he didn't bring up 6 button games like Street Fighter and Skullgirls being a little easier. Well I guess he did mention pianoing, but getting a hitbox really helped me improve at Skullgirls.
I've been playing fighting games ever since the vanilla Street Fighter II and consistently played on pad all the way up to Tekken 7, where I finally swichted to stick. I enjoy playing on stick so much more now. I feel it's like playing racing games with a steering wheel, it's just so much more fun if you nail your moves/combos on stick rather than pad.
I got into fighting games in 2008 because my friends were playing super turbo HD remix and vanilla sf4, and back then the attitudes seemed a bit different where it was stick or bust.
It was painful at first to play stick but it's worth it in the long run. It's a lot of fun having arcade hardware and playing stick with other arcade games. On the topic of injuries, I mostly play sf which I don't get any issues but if I play darkstalkers it's harder on my wrists and forearm.
stick is just more fun to me, I enjoy it more
if you get a stick and suck at first, heres a tip: play some old 2d games like Mega man or castlevania with it. It helps you get used to it
I would completely disagree in certain games yeah you do need an arcade stick!!!
One day i might have one.
I love the idea of fighting games but I never played them growing up so I suck at the inputs.
Holding the stick upwards to jump feels weird to me too because of all the platformer games I've played.
I like smash bros because it's kind of easy to control but I really want to get into something that's more of a "true" fighting game with that more intimate 1v1 close in camera feel.
Ahh goddamn it, the ergonomic thing is a hard sell for me. I'm 30 years old, been playing games all my life, but I just started getting into fighting games and this shit hurts my hands. Part of the problem is that I keep pushing after I start hurting, but god I can only imagine how much easier on my hands a hitbox would be. I play piano so I think the adjustment period wouldnt be too bad.
No but if you’re just itching to play with a stick make your own, they’re super easy to build and it only cost me around 50 dollars to make mine. If you like the stick you made and want to keep using it you can upgrade the parts over time.
TL:DR Play what's most comfortable to you.
@Christophe Cruz you know arcades exist right
@@kill3rshotgun i live in Minnesota and arcades dont exist unless you want to take a 1-2 hour drive and even then they may not be open.
How can we do that if we don't own a stick?
@@kill3rshotgun you know at some places arcades are outdated. Tag 1 is still here in Malaysia.
@@jimmyext atleast you have arcades haha
I'm buying my first just to have the arcade feel in regular games fighting included. Hey that's the Quanba stick im getting haha
I think ergonomic for me I always had fun playing fighting games but when started using a stick I just felt more confortable and genuinely had more fun than I thought I would have playing
personally movement especially dash is way better on stick also if it's 6 button fighters I use stick its strange using triggers for highs
I played fighterz with a controller before. I bought a stick and it was much harder to play at the beginning. However, after some time I felt like doing more advanced combos was easier on the stick then on the controller. I think it's because I prefer to hit multiple hands with the hand instead of having fingers on both the buttons and on the Ls and Rs. So I think it's a matter of preference
Did you guys know the ANCIENT TECHNIQUE of putting the Pad under the shirt? I love using that shit.
I prefer pad cause it feels easier to me do charge inputs and i main charge characters
No, but they're fun to use. I've played fighters a lot on cabinets at my local arcade, and while I'm not as good at it as I am on pad, I still wanted one, so I decided to get one.
Edit: nowadays, I can't imagine playing fighting games without a stick. It's my preferred way to play.
I thought for the longest time it wouldn't matter, but after trying a stick I knew it was for me. I don't actually play any better (I have always been terrible) but it's a 1000x more comfortable for my hands.
Thanks for making this!
I feel like it depends on the person. Some people are uncomfortable when playing with a pad. Though I have heard quite a couple of people saying that you can have an advanced gameplay with a pad. I say that is wrong, I can T.o.D and perform proper combos with a pad.
Go Pad:
Let us stick players keep our advantage.
I NEEDED THIS, Thank you daddy crofts
It doesn’t matter for most characters, but negative edge characters like Zato are definitely easier on stick.
You can just claw, but yeah stick is still more comfortable
No you don't, Maximillian Dood said the same.
I'm planning on getting an F500 for my first and last stick. Just because I couldn't mash my Dualsense
The only thing i hate about pad is how much sweat gets on it after playing for a while lol.
This really didn't need a video. It's been covered to hell.
The real question is will stick it be easier to land more combos compared to pad ?
I had to switch to stick because I injured my left thumb on a hori fighting commander. I don't regret it.
I always use a SEGA Genensis 6 bottons pad (With an addopter to use it on PC) in fighting games, I can use all the botton and the works amazing
I scratched the itch to get a FightStick early this year by simply buying the Hori FS mini for the Switch. Some say I should have saved more money for better sticks, especially because some say the size is just way too small, but since I have no reference point because I never played on a stick before the one I bought, I am just fine with the one I have. I already got used to it. I might change it in the future, but I’m not in a hurry to do that.
Last time I was this early only a third of the roster was Goku
Hahahahabahabahahahahahah
How does people play on those horrible ps pads. They're awful lol. I'm currently playing on a Wii classic controller, cause due to the current situation I haven't been able to buy a wired fightpad. I wish I could mod my current controller to make it usb instead of having it always connected to a wii remote because the dpad on this thing is godlike.
Got myself a stick mostly due to my hand pain and found this a lot better. Still trying to get better as I still miss quite a lot of inputs
I'm also part of the tinfoil-hat team because 4 Street Fighter inputs sf4 was overly difficult than might have contributed to the sales of you know arcade sticks just from all those one frame inputs.play what you want there's a guy that beat pros at Guilty Gear with a freaking initial d steering wheel.
u know i agree with everything until u said mvc2, for me that game is so easy to input moves compared to some modern fighting games.
It could be me but i really like how that game feels and that subjectively its really forgiving. I have thought of trying a hitbox for a while now but they are kinda big oof
It took me a couple weeks to get the stick down. imo, it’s harder to mash on stick and just “hope” for an outcome. Once you start to feel the clicks in the stick you feel how much more control you are in.. These days it can be so character dependent on the stick/pad you use.
GGS on arcade stick just feels right.
DBFZ i’m just not there yet lol
I built my first arcade stick with my dad because I wanted a little project to do. When it was done, I was like "Well if I don't use it, it would be a waste of money"
Now I find a hard time playing fighters on pad lol
one reason to play stick is negative edge, where you do a move when you release a button as opposed to pressing it. On a pad, your thumb can only do so much at the same time, while on stick you can dedicate a finger to holding down buttons while still being able to press others reliably. Noteworthy examples being playing Zato in guilty gear, Arakune in blazblue or Cody's zonk knuckle in street fighter.
i bought a stick took me a week. I'd reccomend starting with street fighter helps you get comfortable and trains your brain. i play dbfz but when i tried with the stick i just got it was very hard at first. but after about a week i got the hang of it. i think its a lot easier to pull of combos on stick and do instant air dashes but that's just me. I wouldn't recommend if your only into one game
I did and IVE NEVER LOOKED BACK ON A CONTROLLER
I used to play DBZF on controller but swapped to a hitbox cause of my sweaty ass hands. Doesn't really solve my problem but it's easier to wipe than my controller
I just switched from pad to stick and it's really frustrating having to learn the inputs again. I'm improving and I can tell that once I get good it'll be easier to do certain inputs with it, but in the meantime it's pretty annoying knowing what to do but not how to do it.
But also feel free to try stick. I had a feeling I would like stick better so I bought one and I love it.