Since MB first came out on PC, I know most of you started playing this game on keyboard. I WAS ONE OF YOU GUYS, and
I fucking loved keyboard, used it for 2+ years learning and playing this awesome game.
However when MBAA came out of the ps2 my dreams of destroying everyone with my amazing keyboard crushing skills became nonexistent. Delusional, I first thought I could just play on emulator and use my keyboard there like in MBAC, but of course I realized it was complete fucking shit, and I should slap myself, etc.
So I started to look for an arcade stick to use. My first arcade stick was a
Arcana Heart 2 ps2 stick made specifically for the amazing (lol) port examu did. Then came the long road but rewarding road to learning
how to become gay play on stick.
Now I can't say I'm a total expert on sticks, and I'm not. But I'm hoping that I can help people who were once like me to get a good start on finding/learning about sticks.
Now if you're reading this thread, you're probably either:
a) Wanting to change to stick but dunno how to start
b) Wondering why you should change to stick in the first place
c) You love me
If its A, C, then <Good!>. A should skip the pros and cons and go on down.
If its B, then you've come to the right place. Here are some pros and cons to learning stick (IMO of course), and from those pros and cons you should be able to determine whether or not you want to learn stick or not.
Pros:-
Universal Controller for a reason: You can generally get converters to play on any console, you can also mod it too for the same effect. You can play it on pretty much any console out there, as long as you get a willing modder + $$$.
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Borrow Shit: When you go to gatherings/tournaments, if you forget your stick somewhere you can generally ask someone to borrow theirs. Whenever I've been lazy or I lent my stick to someone else, people were always willing to lend me something to use if I ask nicely. No one is going to really lend you their keyboard, and there probably isn't a extra keyboard anywhere anyways.
-^That being said, almost everyone in the fighting game community knows how to use stick, so its basically a universally used controller which can be very convenient. (Of course theres going to be pad players too).
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Play Arcade Cabs: Arcade Cabs use stick = When you go to japan, you can play on their cabs :]
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Pretty Pictures: Stick art (Can't decorate your keyboard) + pretty buttons + pretty balltop
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You aren't carrying a keyboard around...-
Keyboard Banning: Keyboards can sometimes be banned from tournaments (for example in MBAC you had access to both players controls on one keyboard).
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Almost Every Fighting Game Supports Arcade Stick (can't think of exceptions, but I'm sure there's some in the realm of poverty somewhere.)
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Hand dominance plays less of a factor in execution. Cons:-
$$$Expensive$$$: One thing that deters many from playing on Arcade Stick is the price. Most arcade sticks are anywhere from 60-300 dollars! Modding just adds onto that overall cost.
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Bulky/Heavy: Unless you have a special bag, its kind of a bother carrying arcade sticks around since they're bulky and sometimes very heavy (VLX).
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Takes Time: Depending on the person, it can take a lot of time and patience to learn how to play on stick transitioning from keyboard/pad/etc.
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My computer came with a keyboard.-
If it breaks....: Generally normal people don't know how to fix an arcade stick or are too lazy to learn. They usually have to contact someone who knows how to mod to get it fixed and that just adds to the amount of $$$ you have to shell out. Keyboards you can just get a new one for 15 bucks.
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Slower directional input speed.I think thats it. (Thanks to Kamina and Living shadow for help on the pros and cons).
For those of you who aren't daunted by the cons to learning stick, please read on!
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Buying my First Stick aka Where the Fuck do I Find a Good One?NOTE: DUE TO THE COMING OF CC ON PC, I WILL ONLY BE CONCENTRATING ON PC/PS3/XBOX/PS2TOPS3 CONVERTERS/ETC INSTEAD OF PS2 STICKS.NOTE 2: IF YOU WANT TO PLAY ON BOTH PS3 AND XBOX, GET A XBOX360 STICK. IT IS DIFFICULT TO DUAL MOD PS3 STICKS. (Or you can just get a PS2 stick then get two converters for xbox/ps3 or just mod the ps2 stick.)NOTE 3: BTW, there are two major preferred companies from where people get their parts which are, Sanwa and Seimitsu parts. There is a third company that makes parts called Happ parts and those are the usual "American" style arcade parts. Theres no difference in quality, its just a matter of preference. 1.
The Madcatz Tournament Edition (TE) Stick (Solid Choice)Price: Roughly $120-$150
Its a solid choice, comes with Sanwa stick and parts, you can't really go wrong with this one. You will also frequently see a ton of deals for this stick too since its so popular. (I know Roku got two for the price of one once). You can pretty much buy this anywhere.
2.
Real Arcade Pro V3/VX by Hori (Solid choice number 2)Price: $100-$130
Another solid choice, just by a different company, sanwa parts etc. The compartment that holds the wire is much nicer than the TE's though.
3.
The Madcatz Standard Edition (Cost Efficient, but you need to mod this stick ASAP)Price: Roughly $60-$90. With modding, expect to add about 45-55
Not bad, but some people don't like the curvature near the bottom of the stick. The stock parts it comes with are fucking ass, so you would need to mod it right away. If you find a cheap one though, and you're on a budget, I'd say go for it. You would need to buy a new stick (roughly 23~ dollars) and 5-6 buttons (~10-30 dollars) (buttons are anywhere from 3-5 each).
If you go this route, this video is very helpful:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4wDobtOmY04.
Real Arcade Pro 3 by HoriPrice: $80-$120
Sanwa stick, but you need to replace the buttons. Buttons can be replaced same way as above SE stick. Different button layout (Notice how it curves downwards?), and has a nice box to rest your hands on.
More to come...---
OKAY I have my Stick, How2Play???First, you have to learn how to grip the stick. I only really know three ways, so if people could help me out by adding more, I'll gladly edit the post later.
Find the one that is most comfortable for
you, that is the most important step.
1. Half Wine Glass Style: 
Cup the ball inbetween your middle finger and fourth finger (Yeah it sounds gay but do it anyways)
Then turn it over to the side.
This is how I hold it. Its really nice doing things left to right, but right to left is a little tough to get used to. Use your thumb for doing things right to left, use your other fingers for doing moves left to right.
2. Half Wine Glass Alt.
Instead of keeping the stick inbetween your fingers, you don't.
3. Wine Glass Style (JP STYLE)
Cup in between your middle and fourth finger, but don't move anything over.
Equal strength on both sides, pretty versatile but it was too weird for me to use.
4. Alternative Wine Glass (With pinky and fourth finger instead)
Instead you have the stick in between your pinky and fourth finger.
5. Grab your dick style aka Battop style.
Self explanatory. Don't know much about this style so I can't comment much.
6. Ball Top Style
For this style you use your thumb and index finger almost exclusively, I personally recommend keeping the rest of your hand loose and not gripping with your entire hand. Quarter circles are done by rolling the pressure from the middle of your index finger to either your thumb or the top of your palm. Or at least that's how I do it.
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Pressing down on the buttons, unlike keyboard where you use only three fingers, utilizes all five of your fingers. A is for your forefinger, B is for your middle, fourth for your C button, Pinky for E button, and Thumb for D button. (Thats how I prefer it, you can do whatever you want really.)
Important: Make sure you lift your wrist a little while playing, or you will do some damage to your wrist. Or get a oppai chan to help out, like Jimmy here
:
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BLARGH! I CAN'T DO SPECIAL MOTIONSWhen I started learning stick, I imagined these motions in my head:
236x and hcf (41236)x are pretty obvious. Most people like me though, have trouble with the DP motion. What I did to get used to it was to learn a character that uses the DP motion frequently in their bnbs. (Vakiha, Sacchin, Tsubaki in BB, etc). Just imagine writing a Z in your head.
Note: Be careful about hitting 7/9 while doing motions! When I first started playing I would hit these frequently because I would over exaggerate my motions. Do it slowly, and keep constant control in your hand, you should be able to build speed soon.
Note 2: Regularly practice doing things right to left, and left to right. Change it up so you get used to doing it both ways. I've had times where I would learn how to do combos left to right, and when I played a match right after I would get owned cause my friend would always be on the left side.
Instant Air Dash:This is what killed me. I could not do IADs to save my life. Unfortunately, I know people who come from other games frequently complain about how difficult it is to IAD in MB on stick. So its not just you or me, its pretty much MB's fault. But don't worry, MB made IADing actually easier once you know that 6A+B = dash.
Basically you can just input 7/8/96A+B and you will get your IAD :] (I personally use 76A+B).
I use 76A+B because with the A+B macro, you need to hit 6. It's not 9/6/3 A+B, it only reads 6, which is easy to mess up off just 9. When you hit 9A+B, you get JB, which is definitely not what you want and will probably lead to a bad situation.
Keep that in mind ^.
If you want to do it the harder way, you can input: 7/8/966 or 686 or 696 or 6956 (Don't remember anymore off the top of my head, I use 686 when I want a raw IAD though). Most players use both, so its very useful to learn it both ways.
You don't need to hold a direction all the time!Another HUGE thing most people forget to mention about learning stick is that you HAVE to get used to letting the stick sit at neutral 90% of the time. Let the stick go where it wants to go, to neutral, almost all of the time unless you're blocking. When you do specials and movement, just tap the stick in the directions you want to go. No need to be too forceful, no need to hold it, just get used to constantly being in neutral.
[5] is extremely important to learning stick so make sure you get that down really well.
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This takes a ton of time to learn, and a lot of patience. But if you keep at it, the rewards are great! Good luck, and don't get discouraged; took me about 2 months to get used to stick, then another 6 months to master it. Combos were hella easy, but getting used to movement was what took the longest time for me :X
Useful Links:
www.lizardlick.com - This is where you can buy your buttons/sticks
www.shoryuken.com - Oh noes SRK. Just go straight to tech talk, you can learn a LOT about modding your stick, finding modders in your area, and learning about sticks in general.
http://www.tek-innovations.com/arthobbies/ - This is where you can get those fancy plexi covers as well as templates for whatever stick you have
Any comments/criticism would be really appreciated, just whipped this up really quick so people could start getting ready for CC (if they wanted to transition for a while but didn't have a reason to till now).
Edit: Updated
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