Hello everyone,
I’ve been playing street fighter games since super nintendo but I’ve never been around at the competitive scene. I’ve always just used whatever controller came with the system to play. I’m trying to up my game a bit and I know all the hardcore people use sticks.
My question is:
Do you think it’s worth it for me to go stick just for home play? They’re expensive even with the black friday weekend deals.
What I use now:
Sega Saturn USB pad. on PS3
Your suggestions are appreciated.
Not to be a dick but, sticks aren’t favored by the majority of the competitive scene because they’re not worth it. Although Saturn pads are decent as far as pads go, pads pretty much suck for Street Fighter. It’s unusual that you see many people placing high in tournaments using a pad.
Your question really boils down to: is it going to be worth it for you? I can’t answer that question; only you can. I don’t know how serious you are about it or what your goals are. I also don’t know what kind of income you have.
Also, to save you a bunch of flaming, you should really read these threads before posting new stuff, since you’re new here and all.
Message for new members:
http://forums.shoryuken.com/showthread.php?t=177861
Tech talk read before posting thread:
http://forums.shoryuken.com/showthread.php?t=209057
Also, be aware there is a thread for noobie questions (where this probably belongs):
http://forums.shoryuken.com/showthread.php?t=143234
If you’re still interested in an arcade stick after that, but you don’t want to spend too much, I would suggest getting a Hori Fighting Stick 3. Amazon is selling them for about $35, and they’re not too difficult to mod.
I think if you have always been into fighting games and plan on continuing to do so, then a stick is an inevitability. You may get one and find the change frustrating like most of us do at first, even to the point of never really using it. But as a respectable fighting game fan you will at least have one.
I used to play with ps2 pad, then switched to a stick. Kind of like you, it’s for home play with friends as I don’t really play in tourneys.
To me, It makes the game much more enjoyable. I think getting a stick motivated me to play better too because after you drop 100-150$ on a stick, you’ll want to get good on it. After about 2 months of stick use, I can do things that I wasn’t able to do before with a pad for ex FADC stuff. Granted I never practiced that stuff on a pad, but getting the stick really motivated me to play better…haha…
Anyways, if you really like the game and think you’ll be playing for a while, get a stick. It might suck in the beginning cause you gotta adapt, but I really like it and I don’t regret getting it.
I just bought my first sticks and Im happy with it. The learning curve is steep and fustrating but If you keep with it and re train your hands its worth it IMO. My buddy and I just used them for the first time the other night and we were totally noobin it and button mashing but after a few hours we started to look like we knew how to play sf. Read the stickys. If you dont want to start big do like earlyberd said and get the HFS3.
FDCs own me.
Thanks for the helpful input guys.
Yeah, I’ve finished most of the trails with a pad and it’s been ok. Actually, I played in a tournament once that I just happened to stumble upon. Most of the people had custom built sticks but I did pretty well using a 360 pad (I don’t own a 360 though). I actually got beat by a kid dressed as ken with a ken madcatz fightpad.
Anyways, Amazon says I can refuse a shipment for a full refund if I decide I don’t want an item so I ordered one the HRAP3 SA for 90 bucks. When it gets here I’ll run the debate in my mind and decide whether to open the box or not.
BTW, any of you feel bad for owning a stick when you play with friends? “Here, use this dualshock while I bust out my $250 sanded, varnished, custom-artworked, fightstick of doom.”
I kind of feel like I would lol.
Keep the comments coming, this has been really helpful.
Wow, you went for a HRAP3-SA, huh? I’m going to hit you if you decide to send it back. :nunchuck:
I don’t really feel bad for my friends, as I always try to share my stick when I bring it to lan parties, and my friends have been playing long enough with gamepads that the stick doesn’t offer much of an advantage. Usually we play so that the loser of each round has to give up their controller, so eventually everyone gets a chance to use my stick.
I never really got around to using a stick until just two days ago when I visited an arcade. I had problems of course, I couldn’t even land hadokens. I spent 4 quarters (one quarter per play) on SF III Third Strike as practice until I got everything down and was ready for SF4 vs the other people there. I actually enjoyed using the stick and it forced me to play a lot smarter for some reason. I’m actually buying a stick very soon. 
the thing is, once you get used to playing on a stick, if you try and go back to playing on a pad you’ll be shocked at how imprecise they are.
there is definitely a learning curve to begin with (more so on games with more intensive stick-motions i found) but once you get used to it i’m sure you’ll find it much more consistent.
plus, you’ll be able to play decently at the arcade too.
Nope, I get my sticks for me to enjoy playing fighters more, not for someone else.
Keep the HRAP3SA, I have an HRAP2SA (for PS2) and it’s a very solid stick. That’s a very good price too.
thats why you buy more than 1!! so your friends will have something to use!
if the gameshark store still has SE’s at a 2 for 1 deal, i’d jump on that.
sign up for newletter
get 10% off code
2 SE sticks for just under 80$ (70 if its ps3 sticks)
Keep the damned thing and order a second one for player two. At $90 that thing is practically free.
Reading these threads makes me sad for the kiddos who didn’t grow up in arcades. If you had then you wouldn’t have to have an internal dialog trying to convince yourself to go with a stick.
I never got around to playing arcades because back then, that kind of stuff didn’t interest me or probably my generation. We used to play on our consoles at home and we got used to it. My dad was a frequent gamers in the arcades though, in fact just yesterday we had a discussion about how he used to go to the arcades. Too bad I never did :(. I went the other day and it was pretty fun, definitely going back soon.
Yep. I’m not sure when the age the cut-off happens.
The last fighting game I remember playing when arcades were plentiful was the original Marvel vs. Capcom. I know that there are obviously still arcades in existence, but this is when they were everywhere. Wiki says this was 1998. My guess is they were on the decline around 2000.
Let’s say you’re 16. That would make you seven at the time. I guess that makes sense.
The closest thing I had to an arcade was the fourth of July carnival my town had. The city would bring in some company to run concession stands and a few junky rides for a few days before the fireworks. They always brought in a tent for arcade games where I used to play tekken and area 51. Only problem is, I was only maybe 12-13 at the time and, with only a couple hours a year on it, I don’t even remember what it felt like to use the arcade machine.
Man I’m glad there are consoles now. So much cheaper for the amount of hours I put into playing nowadays. That ps3 practically paid for itself.
EDIT:
Final showdown here.
2 Madcatz SE + Buttons and Sanwa JLF for one of them
OR
1 HRAP3-SA and friends get the d-pad of doom.
Need to make a call tonight. Anyone care to weigh in one last time?
Joystick on a fighting game is like how a keyboard and mouse is for an FPS.
Even if you just buy it for home use, you will significantly find yourself getting past that glass ceiling that controllers give.
Although it may take some time to get used to (learning curve), but it is def worth it in my honest opinion.
I have yet to meet a person who started using a joystick, to eventually just go back to using a controller.
I only played SF2 on the SNES when I was young, so I shared your sceptisism for sticks. For us console players, the pad just feels so native to us.
After switching to sticks (no homo) I have upped my game by a great deal. Cleared all hard trials in three days with my TE (helps being left-handed), whereas I only managed 3-4 trials in a month with da pad.
So goooo buy one. But DON’T buy a shitty one, go all sanwa/seimitsu from the start.
Good luck!
2 for 1 Deal on MADCATZ SE + Sanwa Joystick and buttons for 1 of them
or
Stick with the HRAP3-SA.
That’s my options, need to make the final call tonight.
I’d like to have something for my friends to use even if it’s a little junkier.
Anyone care to weight in one last time?
Get the SA. The deal that Amazon’s got on the HRAP3-SA is a steal (rock solid Hori PCB, all Sanwa parts, compat with BC) and it’ll last you much longer than a stock SE - better to have one stick that will last you forever than 2 that’ll likely be pieces of junk in the near future unless you spend even more money modding them.
RE: your friends getting the d-pad of doom - I have personal experience with this, and to be honest it’s not a big deal if you’re the only one playing on stick and everyone else is stuck with the controller. Most people who only have the option of playing on pad will probably prefer to play on one because it’s what they have available to practice anyways. Anyone who wants to play on stick will buy one for themselves and bring it over whenever you play fighting games.