For those who despise square gates, which do you prefer to use? I’m considering getting a circle gate, but i’ve never used an octagon before. Wondering how much better it is, if it is at all better, than the circle. Poll coming.
I can’t stand circle gates, but that’s just me. I have a square gate and a circle gate right now, but I prefer an octagon gate.
If you don’t have hundreds of hours invested in a certain gate (I.E. You are an OG professional who have been a happ player all your life), just go with square for fighting games. You might feel like the square gate is holding you back, it isn’t. You most likely just aren’t very skilled.
Slagcoin explains why square is just flat out better.
edit- This can be applied as well for people who are extremely selective about whether they use Sanwa or Seimetsu parts yet are terrible players.
i agree but Octogon does one thing that the rest dont have.
it tells you what a safe forward is.
like if u had a square gate you could dash up and instead jump totatly by accident.
Plus who doesnt like riding the gate?
u cant ride the square gate
this topic has really been done to death
try searching or reading slagcoin
Well, this is the reason why i prefer a circle gate. I can ride it pretty well. I just wanted to know whether there was another advantage, as it’s probably easier to ride anyway. But i imagine that i would feel the same about doing D-F and D-F-DF movtions as i do with a square gate. The corners throw me off. I like the smoothness all the way around. So i guess i just answered my question… sweet.
I ride the square gate all the time, I don’t know what people are talking about. I do executions just fine when riding the square gate, and I play shotos.
if your hitting the gate for a simple dash, you are moving the stick to far
also play a charge character and tell me you don’t ride a square gate.
i guess the main problem i have with square gates is that there’s no definitive position for a non-diagonal direction. for example, whenever i try to block high, i have to move the stick up slowly or else i overshoot and wind up jumping back.
neither 
Square gates give you clear corners, which offer enough tactile feedback for reference (finding your way by feel), while providing equal sized engage zones all the way around, which means your margin of error for hitting a position isn’t variable.
The diagram at slagcoin was enough to sell me. All 8 directions are equally represented:
http://www.slagcoin.com/joystick/restrictors.html#8-WAY
Look at those tiny corners, on both circle and octo. Easy to miss an engage zone (e.g. try to go ‘down-right’, but actually end up just entering ‘down’) when trying to rapidly enter a sequence of directional movements, like in SF.
Even if you extend the throw distance all the way around (by making the circle or octo bigger) in order to make the tiny corners bigger, and thus easier to hit, you proportionally increase up, down, left, right along with the corners, so the engage zones will vary in size no matter what. And I think having all the engage zones the same size mean fewer errors.
Sure, in order to make all enage zones the same size (square gate) it requires you also have a longer throw for the diagonals… but i think the size of the engage zone matters more.
And, since square gate is default, Apparently Taito/Vewlix, Capcom, Madcatz, and Sanwa agree.
looking at those diagrams, i would much rather have larger non-diagonal engage zones. inputting diagonals is easy enough. it’s inputting non-diagonals that i have a problem with on a square gate.
I can see what you mean, without a notch it’s hard to feel. I think I always just intuitively hit the up down left right zones ok, but mess up on the diagonals without a gate to use for reference.
but then of course with a handheld controller (like a PS3 or 360 default one) I have the same problem as you, i mess up accurately hitting sideways (jumping by accident).
i’ve been playing on a PS pad since forever and it’s actually what i’m most comfortable with. to me, that’s the definition of definitive (lol) directions. you press the button, you get the direction. no engage-zones or anything. I recently picked up stick just to get a feel for it. i could probably get used to it, but right now i feel like the square shape is what’s hindering me.
If it were up to me, i’d have a Wii Nunchuck-like device in my left hand, except with a d-pad instead of an analog stick, and just the buttons portion of an arcade stick for my left hand.
It isn’t
That means you need practice, not a stick mod.
Pakistex, I meant analog stick on the ps3 controller. on the D-pad, no problem hitting the right direction, but it’s a bit hard on the hands and wrists once you get into Ultras and FADCs
In my opinion-- in no particular order…
Square gate: most accurate diagonals (uses a large and distinct activation area to counteract the fact that you must trigger TWO switches to get your single diagonal input)
Circular gate: sacrifices precision (by mechanical advantage, i.e. smaller diagonals, bigger throw and dead zone), however allows for very fast, fluid inputs
**Octagonal gate: ** middle ground between square and circle, more accurate (in terms of mechanical advantage, i.e. you can feel out directions) than circle
^^^
This all being critical of the advantages inherent in the above gate types by physical design only. Similar to Slag-coin (which don’t get me wrong-- is an EXCELLENT source of information), the above is not taking into consideration simple player PREFERENCE.
There is absolutely no reason why a practiced player can’t be accurate to within 99% on a circle gate as they would on a square. I think the major difference that’s overlooked between sq vs. circle is that while the square lends itself to simple and short movements stemming from primarily the wrist, the circle instead favors the use of the whole arm in conjunction with the wrist. When you think back to the historical usage of the circular gate-- the taller US sticks with battops (and even the JLW’s unique americanized design), this makes sense. The larger stick height allows for even more purchase, making it easier to use more muscles. More muscles doing the work on a circular gate means more sources for the fabled ‘muscle memory’, which in turn makes the tighter input requirements more bearable over time.
All this said-- I do believe that the square is both the optimum beginner’s gate as well as the pro’s choice as well. However, no gate is ‘better’ than any other in the department of PREFERENCE. We live in an era beyond that of the arcade, where you showed up and played on whatever was in the cabinet. We now have the option to play on whatever we like, so to each his own.
PS Zangief is better on a roundie.
try practicing, it helps more than new gear.
too much nonsense in this topic
round restrictor is a good, only circular joysticks are poorly designed
many stick is designed to square gate and circle/octo is the only option and work bad or no ideal, changing parameters
on circle joystick you can have over 45 degress diagonals my mod P360 have 60 degress diagonal and have circle restrictor. but stick must have correct project throw/engage, optimal switches spacing (lever long or short). my mod JLW have 45 degress diagonal (original only 20-25degress) on round restrictor it is easy to fix
I was using an octo restrictor/gate
this gate is very easy to play,
even if i prefer the octo one , i have to play with the square gate because all commercial arcade stick (hori, madcatz) comes with it but also because the real arcade uses square gate
and playing with a square gate when you spend many hours on a stick with octo gate is very hard …