Is a fight stick better than the controller?

[Spencer]

Im thinking about purchasing a fight stick and want to know if theres any benifits.
In my opinion im really good on pad but, I think the stick will be better for stuff Kabal's nomad cancels, and every characters Instant air fireballs and all around just more accurate and better.

 

[FrothyOmen]

They wouldn't exist if they weren't better in some way shape or form.

 

[GNG Iniquity]

Entirely dependent on the game. There's really no inherent advantages to a stick with MK or SCV. Boils down to preference in these two. SSF4 and KoF 13? Yes, I'd say there's an advantage with a stick there.

REO pulls off Kabal's NDCs and iAGBs on a PS2 pad consistently.

 

[elLesSDee25]

I had the same question for the same reasons. I don't suggest buying one, at least a nice one until you have tried one out. I ended up making my own hitbox, and I am very happy with it. I realized that a stick has the advantage of a finger for every attack button. And a pad has a huge advantage over a stick. As long as it is a PS pad. That is because of the directional pad is faster and easier then a stick. For example you never have to find neutral on a D-pad, and you can press two buttons at once. But if you build or buy a hitbox you get the advantage of both.

 

[Ssj4Crisis_x]

Honestly, for MK9 a pad is probably better because of the fact MK9 was built with the pad in mind. There's no complicated movements or anything that really requires the use of a stick as you would find in ssf4 or mvc3. However that's not saying that you can't use a stick or do well with one. Its honestly your preference. In my own experience I've found that a lot of characters work well but some honestly play better on pad...like Jade for example.

Sent from my DROID3 using Tapatalk 2

 

[nwo]

Honestly, my simple "up, down" or "left, right" movements are faster on stick, you only have to find neutral if your doing like "back, back" real fast, but you let the stick find neutral for itself, and if finding neutral is an issue, you could always install a heavy spring. I heard if your new to a stick that helps.

 

[GamerBlake90]

It all depends on what best suits the convenience of the player. I myself could never get in to using the arcade stick even when I got it on the midnight release. I'd personally recommend the PS3 controller for its D-pad.

 

[smokey]

For games with plinking , sticks allow you to hit hard links a bit easier, but they are all timing based anyway so you could learn it on pad and not need to plink. Really its preference, but stick players will have a different argument im sure.

 

[GNG Iniquity]

For games with plinking , sticks allow you to hit hard links a bit easier, but they are all timing based anyway so you could learn it on pad and not need to plink. Really its preference, but stick players will have a different argument im sure.

Plinking isn't bad in MK on a pad, there's really not much of it involved. Reptile's NJP I plink with 1 & 2, KL's 21212 as well but those're both really easy with your thumb. I really can't think of any other instances where you'd plink in the game. Stuff like Sektor's 12B1 you can plink but isn't necessary.

 

[smokey]

Plinking isn't bad in MK on a pad, there's really not much of it involved. Reptile's NJP I plink with 1 & 2, KL's 21212 as well but those're both really easy with your thumb. I really can't think of any other instances where you'd plink in the game. Stuff like Sektor's 12B1 you can plink but isn't necessary.

Plinking in street fight if you plink over medium light or heavy light, it will give you a double input of the heavy or medium, so you effectively make it so you have 2 chances to hit links that are down to the frame. Also known as pianoing i think, it is a stick exclusive mechanic/technique, or at least i have never heard of it being implemented with a pad.

Watch this to see what i mean: pay attention to the inputs on screen, the heavy take priority over the medium, thus giving a double input:

 

[GNG Iniquity]

Plinking in street fight if you plink over medium light or heavy light, it will give you a double input of the heavy or medium, so you effectively make it so you have 2 chances to hit links that are down to the frame. Also known as pianoing i think, it is a stick exclusive mechanic/technique, or at least i have never heard of it being implemented with a pad.

Yup, that's exactly what I do with Rep's NJP. KL's 21212 method with my thumb I wouldn't say is actual plinking though, that's just me sliding my thumb to and from. Rep's NJP I slide my thumb from 1 to 2 in a quick motion though to get the double input to nail the NJP consistently.

MK just doesn't have much plinking involved, and the plinking that is involved, is really simplified and easy to manage on a pad.

 

[smokey]

Yup, that's exactly what I do with Rep's NJP. KL's 21212 method with my thumb I wouldn't say is actual plinking though, that's just me sliding my thumb to and from. Rep's NJP I slide my thumb from 1 to 2 in a quick motion though to get the double input to nail the NJP consistently.

MK just doesn't have much plinking involved, and the plinking that is involved, is really simplified and easy to manage on a pad.

Yeah the MK plinking method really is as simple as sliding your finger over 2 buttons to get 2 inputs, when it comes down to attack strengths and priority its more technical than MK goes, but really its the same concept.

 

[miloPKL]

stick is better

 

[PND_Ketchup]

I prefer pad, as i grew up playing MK on a pad. But i play every other fighting game on stick.

It's what you prefer, and what you grew up with, i find the block button on a stick to be really confusing.

 

[GNG Iniquity]

i find the block button on a stick to be really confusing.

MK and SCV are just pad games for me. SFxT, SSF4, KoF 13 I would feel bizarre not playing on a stick. Block button is just more comfortable on a pad for me as well, but I want to feel the gate on a stick if I have to hold back to block.

 

[aj1701]

Honestly, for MK9 a pad is probably better because of the fact MK9 was built with the pad in mind

I keep seeing this posted, but never anything to back it up. At the same time, I believe I've read on Boons twitter they had the pdp stick in mind. That, and the way you input commands in MK hasn't changed since MK1 - 3, and those were most certainly played on arcade sticks. A pad might be better suited, but I think say it was "built with a pad in mind" is a stretch, at best. But the fact that some people play better on stick / hitbox than pad I'd probably say there's no real difference.

 

[Ssj4Crisis_x]

I ...(shorten for space)...at best. But the fact that some people play better on stick / hitbox than pad I'd probably say there's no real difference.

MK1-3 was also played on pad and pad like devices (gameboy, game gear...ect). I more then positive that MK1 came out on the Snes before the arcade version was released as well. Not sure about the next two in series. Most information (through a simple google search) I can find on it just says it was ported to "x" system and not really stating which was first. Assuming they followed the same pattern as MK1...they were built with pad in mind.

MK9 was announced before the pdp stick, was it like a year before or half? Either way the inputs are simple on MK9 which doesn't call for any advance movements or learning shortcuts. Even if it did that's not saying it requires a stick or not because it can be done with either or. The fact that playing on stick or hit box doesn't make the game any easier then on pad just supports the whole thing. I'll post again once I find the article that was released that supports my theory. It was either ign or gameinformer. The article is about MK and the pdp stick...

 

[CURBOLICOUS]

I'm pretty sure MK9 doesnt need a stick but it might be better for execution. SFxT and SF4 need fightsticks.

 

[kilnkilagn]

I went with the PDP TE MK9 for one reason: I burned out my thumbs playing MKD incessantly and obsessively. I can't play more than half an hour without fatigue and then pain. Worst of all, the longer I play, the worse I got because the fatigue lead to input malfunction. I can't comment on the learning curve since I switched back and forth between the two, getting frustrated with one then the other. Finally, I've settled on the stick. No choice really, unless I want to play for 20 minutes at a time, a few times a day.

With the stick I can play for hours and hours, and not only do I not get fatigue or pain, but I get more accurate. At this point I wouldn't go back to the pad even if I could. While some things are a bit easier on the pad, others are much easier on the stick. Everything is a trade off. However, as I grow more comfortable with the stick I'm noticing that not only is there anything I can't do with it, but I'm doing them consistently. In other words, the longer I play, the better I get.

As for the game being built with one or the other in mind, I lean towards the stick.

To simplify: Try it long enough to learn it, and then you'll know if it suits you. For all you know you may discover that you're better and happier playing on it than the pad. Only one way to find out.

Last, I would suggest you try (if you can) the "X" configuration of the PDP and the Madcatz/Qanba (the latter is for PS3/360/PC) layout of four over four. What I find is that the spacing between the buttons is a bit far in the "X" formation, and squared up---as opposed to the ergonomic slant to accommodate the natural curve of the hand (Madcatz/Qanba).

*You mentioned Kabal's instant air blasts, and I can say that there are best to do with a Hit Box. I can do them consistently on the stick, but not fast enough so that they hit a standing unblocked opponent. They go over the head by a hair. Maybe it's me. I may not be good enough to do them fast enough yet. But I believe they can be done, just easier on a HB. Dash cancels are easy enough, along with everything else.*

**It's much easier to use Reptile on the stick since the back-forward motion is so much faster using your wrist on the stick than thumb on a pad. Again, might just be me, but I would never choose the pad over the stick for back-forward motions, or half circle rolls for Tsung's soul steal and Kano's ball.**

 

[aj1701]

I

MK1-3 was also played on pad and pad like devices (gameboy, game gear...ect). I more then positive that MK1 came out on the Snes before the arcade version was released as well. Not sure about the next two in series. Most information (through a simple google search) I can find on it just says it was ported to "x" system and not really stating which was first. Assuming they followed the same pattern as MK1...they were built with pad in mind.

MK9 was announced before the pdp stick, was it like a year before or half? Either way the inputs are simple on MK9 which doesn't call for any advance movements or learning shortcuts. Even if it did that's not saying it requires a stick or not because it can be done with either or. The fact that playing on stick or hit box doesn't make the game any easier then on pad just supports the whole thing. I'll post again once I find the article that was released that supports my theory. It was either ign or gameinformer. The article is about MK and the pdp stick...

Wow we really need the face palm icon back. Mk1-4 were all done as arcade games first, then ported. All the console versions were inferior to the arcade as you had custom hardware more powerful then the consoles st the time. This was true of many of the games at the time. Just like pcs today are always more powerful than consoles. The arcades were popular, and the console makers wanted to have their system to be the I've with the ports. Mk1 specifically was a cluster fuck for nintendo as they forced the game to be censored, changing the blood to sweat and even
Changing some of the fatalities.

That hurt nintendo alot, forcing them to allow mk2 to be the first nintendo game to allow blood.

I know this because I lived it. Why would I dump quarter after quarter into an arcade game when I could have just bought the console or pc version?

If this article is where you got the info in the early mks don't bother posting it because its clearly wrong, lol.

 

[Tim Static]

MK1-3 was also played on pad and pad like devices (gameboy, game gear...ect). I more then positive that MK1 came out on the Snes before the arcade version was released as well. Not sure about the next two in series. Most information (through a simple google search) I can find on it just says it was ported to "x" system and not really stating which was first. Assuming they followed the same pattern as MK1...they were built with pad in mind.

MK9 was announced before the pdp stick, was it like a year before or half? Either way the inputs are simple on MK9 which doesn't call for any advance movements or learning shortcuts. Even if it did that's not saying it requires a stick or not because it can be done with either or. The fact that playing on stick or hit box doesn't make the game any easier then on pad just supports the whole thing. I'll post again once I find the article that was released that supports my theory. It was either ign or gameinformer. The article is about MK and the pdp stick...

 

[Eddy Wang]

I

Wow we really need the face palm icon back. Mk1-4 were all done as arcade games first, then ported. All the console versions were inferior to the arcade as you had custom hardware more powerful then the consoles st the time. This was true of many of the games at the time. Just like pcs today are always more powerful than consoles. The arcades were popular, and the console makers wanted to have their system to be the I've with the ports. Mk1 specifically was a cluster fuck for nintendo as they forced the game to be censored, changing the blood to sweat and even
Changing some of the fatalities.

That hurt nintendo alot, forcing them to allow mk2 to be the first nintendo game to allow blood.

I know this because I lived it. Why would I dump quarter after quarter into an arcade game when I could have just bought the console or pc version?

If this article is where you got the info in the early mks don't bother posting it because its clearly wrong, lol.

THIS

clearly this.

 

[Ssj4Crisis_x]

...

No, the article deals with MK9. Like I said i couldn't find information on which came first and stayed away from wiki. So if I was wrong on that then I gladly take it back. I was like 4 or something when MK1 came out and didn't get into the arcade scene to much later. So i don't have the personal history to reference from. Like I said i did a simple google search and what I found was that MK 1 came out on Snes first. *shurgs* again all stated in reply i made.