I’ve actually used sticks before in the arcades in the 90s, but since PS1 have been on pad for fighting games. I was using the PS3 pad until a couple of weeks ago when I got a Saturn USB pad with 6 face buttons. It’s a better d-pad than PS3, especially for SF, although not knocking the PS3, it’s great too.
If you’re not getting a stick tho, I recommend this pad, I got it on ebay for like $25 USD total including shipping from Hong Kong. I would’ve ordered more than one, but I wanna get the Madcatz SFIV pad. That one has turbo and it’s wireless, and if the d-pad is better than the Saturn, I’mma get a couple of them. Don’t know if I’ll ever go back to stick…we’ll see.
Been always been a pad player, I sadly have never owned a Saturn Pad, and right now I am stuck with the 360 Pad (I use the joystick for charge and pad for commands).
I really wanna give it a try to the Madcatz SFIV Pads, I wish they would get more attention from websites. My local Gamestop even told me they didn’t know what the SFIV Pads were, and when they realized what I was talking about they told me only the PS3 was getting them…WTF?!
Anyway…question here, how do you guys do reversals? Do you put your fingers on the buttons and release like a piano?
Since we never had an arcade in our area, I never grew up using a stick, so I’ve been a pad player for life. I use for Saturn controller for anything 2D. I hate D-Pads that lack diagonals - so that’s any Nintendo D-Pad, including the Snes controller I’m afraid. Beyond that, I’m just so used to the slightly raised, ‘roller-base’ feel of the Saturn D-Pad. I use a USB Saturn controller for most things these days.
That said, I have been considering learning how to use stick. Just a matter of being prepared to buy an EX2.
That’s actually pretty cool, I prefer playing command characters on pad as well while charge characters can stay on my HRAP2:SA. Awesome! And as for reversals, I do a pseudo piano. Since I’m on a Saturn pad, I enter my reversal attack motion then just slide my thumb quickly across all the necessary piano input buttons.
I’m a Smash Bros. player as well, but I gotta say, PS2 and PS3 pads just drive me nuts. They feel so odd considering how squishy their D-pads feel.
I’ve never had an arcade nearby either, so I missed the 90s arcade rush. Now that I’ve actually chanced myself to use one, I’m really liking the American Saturn Model 2 pads immensely, though as long as the D-pad isn’t segmented (like on Sony controllers), I can tolerate the d-pad well enough. If you’re gonna be buying an arcade stick though, I really don’t recommend buying an EX2. I’d go for something a bit higher grade, like the Mad Catz FightStick Regular Edition or maybe fetch yourself a HRAP EX and mod out the buttons.
It’s surprising the what great things come out of Honk Kong and ebay. I found these great PS2 controllers [non-official] for 6 dollars on ebay each, one red and one clear. Bought both of them on the off chance they wouldn’t be complete crap, and what do you know? They’re absolutely amazing. Buttons are more clickly, d-pad is more firm, shoulder buttons are a lot more clicky, ect. These pads have to be the greatest knock-offs I have ever had. It’s like some gamer in Honk Kong designed them himself or something, I feel like every part is optimized. Anyone else have one? Here’s a picture:
Anyway, I recently got a SFIV TE stick, and while I’m still getting used to it and the like, and while I still love it, I can’t help but prefer my USB Saturn Pads for some things. It’s weird, and I might get over it, but those pads just feel so ‘right’ for doing some moves. That, and they’re a lot easier to transport…
I’m a fan of the US V2/JP Saturn pad, in both USB and original Saturn form. Wish I could have gotten one for the PS2 when they were around. I wish Sega would make one for the PS3 and XBOX360, but the Madcatz FightPad is good enough for me.
The N64 pad would have been absolutely epic for Street Fighter – but unfortunately, the N64 wasn’t exactly a “Street Fighter”-ready system. Just thinking about it, I’ll try my N64 to USB converter and see how it works for MAME.
Did anyone ever own the Hori Fighting Commander Pad 2way for the PS1?
This one wasn’t well known, but just on general design alone, would have been excellent for Playstation systems. The only improvement I’d make to it is that the last 2 “face” buttons should be L1/L2 so that one would never ever have to go to the left shoulder unless they wanted to.
They had a version for the Super Famicom as well:
If only I had known of this back in my Super NES playing days… I would have really had a better time playing SFII Turbo and Super Street Fighter II.
Hori still makes a pad (most recenly for the XBOX360), but it mirrors the 360 design for the most part. They should make another pad in the vein of the Fighting Commanders. Before they were known as Commercial Stick Gods, they were pretty dang good controller makers.
Batsu, I totally agree with your sentiments regarding the N64 pad and the Saturn pads. And I must say, those are some REALLY epic gamepads. Go Hori, dominating the gamepad market since…well, whenever!
And Inverse, I heartily empathize with you on that regard. The D-pad just ain’t the same as it used to. I guess it’s understandable though since the focus of controllers started moving off of the quality of the D-pad since the N64/Saturn/PS1 era with the advent of analog controllers. It’s really a shame. But it’s good to know that companies like Nintendo and Sega haven’t totally forgotten them, what with the SNES style Classic Controller Nintendo made a short while ago near the Wii’s launch and the USB and PS2 Sega Saturn pads that Sega produced.
I have both the PS1 and Super Famicom Fighting Commander pads.
The PS1 pad is not great, but it beats the hell out of the Street Fighter 15th Anniversary PS2 pads (which are utter crap, d-pad-wise). Generally speaking, if you see a circular d-pad, caveat emptor. It seemed like a good idea in 1992 or so, but in practice, it always leads to less accuracy (though some are much worse than others - I will mention the PC ProPad 6 as one example of an okay d-pad, and I’ve heard good things about the Saturn controller as well).
The SFC pad, OTOH, is basically perfect. The turbo switches are annoying and very easy to hit by mistake, but I took those all out and put some black plastic foam into the sliders inside, and now it’s totally awesome. The other cool thing about that controller is that the rubber pads inside are completely replaceable with SNES replacement parts (you just need to have two sets and cut one ABXY pad in half, and that is in fact the way the rubber pads come stock - one regular ABXY pad, and one half-pad).
It would be completely perfect if Hori would make a PS3-compatible version of the SFC Fighting Commander with triggers and no turbo. Heck, an SNES->PS3 USB adapter with the three extra buttons would rock. Or even just one that mapped Home to Select, Start to Start, and all the other buttons to any regular PS3 buttons/triggers would be enough to make me stop thinking about shelling out megabux on an arcade stick.
The other good pad I’ve used was the Interact ProPad 6 for PC. It had a circular d-pad assembly, but it actually worked like it should (though still not on the level of SNES pads), unlike the stuff that’s out there now.
Still have a few import Saturn controllers in my closest and they still are the best. Next up would be the Madcatz SFIV fightpads, but it’s still not the same.
I’m new to the forum but I couldn’t resist posting my collection.
I love SNES controllers, especially the japanese ones; the buttons are pretty lol!
Here is a thread on racketboy with some shots of my SNES pads and ways to protect them:
If you are wondering where I got all the SFC pads; well, eBay is way to fricking expensive… I tracked down a site that sells SFC pads for $5 bucks each! You have to pay shipping from japan but I think I paid $62 for 11 pads shipped. What’s great is he takes them all apart and cleans them individually; so they are basically mint. He also sells all kinds of other controllers and TONS of classic systems. Amazing place. Here is the site: http://www.japangamestock.com/videogames,jeuxvideos,import,66.html Also, he even has white Saturn pads, a NEW SFC multi-taps, NEW PC-FX pads, etc!
Also, if you are wondering why the heck I have so many Saturn pads; well, about 2 yrs ago I found a no-name website selling NEW Officially Licensed Saturn Pads from 1998 for $4.95! So I picked up a few, as you can see.
Here is a little gem I picked up awhile back; the battery life is 1,000 hours (yes, that’s 1,000).
Finally, I just picked this one up today; it’s so fricking sick… I’ve never even heard of the GOLD version before!
yeah I just bought one of the clear ones at Ross (lol of all places) I don’t know if it’s amazing, but in the grand scheme of things it cost me 5 bucks (6 with tax and all that) and I’d agree that this little thing is one of the greatest knockoffs of the Dual Shock 2 I’ve ever played with. It even says DualShock 2 along the top like an actual Sony one. My R2 button is a little loose though, and my left “motor(?)” is kinda wonky because some metal thing in there is loose so it rattles if you shake it, but if you’re playing and it rumbles or something, it’s fine. I actually bought it to play Persona 4 and not fighting games. lol. But for those types of games, it’s ok at best.
