PimpUigi: While tiers matter, most players aren’t at a level where tiers inhibit them. Zangief would never win ST? If Pony was playing in our tourneys, I guarantee he’d be winning some, even against some of his most disadvantageous matchups. It’s just a question of how much dedication you put in. Meanwhile, in HDR, it’s still not clear to me whether Zangief is that good or if Snake Eyez is that good or both.
As for pads, Snake Eyez used the Mad Catz pad with all the buttons lying on the face so it wouldn’t have been terribly difficult to perform normal SF lariats holding a pad in the “Tekken” multi-finger manner. And pads are just as possible on any arcade version of ST via the use of laugh’s PS converters, which were used in all the recent ST tourneys, so that’s not really an issue either.
On an aside, I’m not sure you can discount Snake Eyez just based off a button shortcut without proof that he wouldn’t be just as good without it. Right now, he remains an unknown commodity at ST, possibly just as excellent as in HDR, possibly not.
Regarding the supposed recent east coast shift away from HDR, it’d be best to take a look at posts here from pre-Evo. The question of versions started well before Evo, when HDR scenes started cooling down nationwide and northeast folks started preparing for Tougeki SBO. At the tourneys you’ve attended, how was HDR received by everyone else?
If more people like you who actually supports the game came out to tourneys, we really wouldn’t be having this disagreement since many active ST fans would just tough it out with HDR like they were before (and some still are) as a cost for playing a more popular game. I’d certainly be willing to sacrifice my preference for some slight changes and a majority of entrants who are there just for HDR, and have done just that in the past. But when HDR is no longer demonstratively more popular in their area’s competitive scene, then ST fans have to question their decision to not play their preferred version.
If HDR had increased numbers at Evo (like SSFIV did), then perhaps that would have been some cause for hope. But instead, the numbers fell. Now, HDR’s turnout didn’t drop much from the previous year but compared to SSFIV’s large growth at Evo this year, the growing disparity is a cause for concern. And will this number hold once MVC3 rushes onboard?
This concern is heightened in light of HDR majors this year dropping to, but maintaining, ~30 entrants, which is good but it’s exactly the numbers ST used to have before HDR. If SFIV majors were experiencing those same numbers filled with former 3S players, you can only imagine them clamoring that 3S should have the turn back in the spotlight again. Why not play a game that gets the same results yet players enjoy more?
Essentially, your hate is misdirected by a case of mistaken correlation: it’s not ST fans who’ve pushed HDR fans out but rather HDR fans who choose not to compete and thus the remaining HDR fans such as yourself are experiencing less representation. How can you possibly blame the group that’s been most dedicated to HDR (in tourney form as Sirlin had wished) during its lifespan for not supporting the game? Just because they’ve chosen to turn back now when they don’t see anybody following their lead? A lead into a path that they were heading into only because new players seemed to prefer that path but have now abandoned them?
I feel that the 2 year window (since HDR’s release) given for players to show their dedication wasn’t unreasonable. Now that it’s just about disappeared in my area, I’ll play the game I’ve always preferred (in my words: if HDR is 9.5, ST is a 10) unless I turn back and see a crowd again. Pretty much the only thing I’m heavily against in HDR isn’t the rules changing but rather the input lag in at least the PS3 version (which really ought to be scientifically tested): it’s not only annoying but it unfairly affects players who have poorer reaction times.
But as always, there are still plenty of opportunities for HDR fans to sway the curve their way. Anybody in the west coast region, esp. those who often play online, should really represent at NCR and/or SCR. If you really want your version to keep going strong, that’s the best way to make your case. Perhaps Sirlin is happy enough with verbal/written support but the scene as a whole cares little about what SRK posters think and will move to what the majority of its players want.
If players don’t show up, it’s possible nothing will change but don’t be surprised if HDR gets continually less support. Otherwise, if enough HDR fans participate, then I can’t honestly support switching to ST over in Cali so long as real support is there. Yeah, it requires more energy and self-confidence to participate offline but no worries, I can assure you that every SF2 veteran is happy to see new players on board and you’ll have a more satisfying time playing the game in its intended environment without the extra online variables.
This post may go unheeded and, honestly, I may be sounding like a broken record now with variations on the same theme, but I do honestly think participation is the best step HDR players could follow if they really want their game to have a competitive future and maybe attract back some folks who’ve already given up.