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[rastex]

I got an X-Arcade stick a couple of days ago (thanks sis!) because while I'm pretty decent at fighting games, I always get my ass totally handed to me in the arcade because I suck with the stick. There're times when I want to just punish certain whifs or whatever and crap comes out because I can't pull any moves. So that's why I bought an X-Arcade to work on my skills for the arcade and to play all the awesome 2D fighting games coming out for Xbox in the fall.

So I've been playing CvS2 and trying to get back into the motions and get to my level with the pad, but I've been having some difficulty. I can perform dragon-punch and fireball motions with a pretty good success rate (75%, compred to 95% with controller), but the one big motion I'm having trouble with is the double fireball motion, in either direction. I don't know how the stick should get to the down state after completing the initial fireball motion. I'd also like to start performing 360 motions, which are pretty much impossible with a controller pad, but I don't know how to do them, and have thus only performed them successfully by luck. If there's anyone that can help me out that'd be great! Tips or whatever would be great.

 

[Ferrio]

Practice.

For 360 the motion I use is: 4123698 no matter what direction I'm facing.

 

[rastex]

Well, for a double qcf motion after the first qcf do I move the stick to the neutral position and then down and perform another qcf motion, or can I do a reverse qcf motion to the down position and then back up? Do I have to do the full motion the second time or just to the down-forward position?

And I'm not too familiar with the numbering scheme (been a while since I've looked at any faqs/guides).

 

[Grifter]

The scheme corresponds to your numeric keypad. For QCFx2 motions, I just hit the 236 and bring the stick back down to do 236 again in a small, circular, flowing motion.

Unfortunately, a friend bought the 2P X-Arcade stick and we all hated it. He switched it for a MAS.

 

[anotheriori]

another method to do 360 is to do 412368 or 632148, that seems to work for me

 

[rastex]

The scheme corresponds to your numeric keypad. For QCFx2 motions, I just hit the 236 and bring the stick back down to do 236 again in a small, circular, flowing motion.

Unfortunately, a friend bought the 2P X-Arcade stick and we all hated it. He switched it for a MAS.

Hey, just read your reply, why did you you hate the X-Arcade? And why is MAS better?

 

[Grifter]

IIRC, the parts in the X-Arcade aren't up to standards with the genuine arcade parts that they use in MAS'. That applies to both the stick and buttons.

 

[ravingloon]

IIRC, the parts in the X-Arcade aren't up to standards with the genuine arcade parts that they use in MAS'. That applies to both the stick and buttons.

Or he can simply order the joystick and buttons from Happ controls, and replace the items he has (Keeping the casing and brains).

The best option for these things is to build your own controller from scratch, but since he already has this stuff, he could replace the parts with Happs for a reasonable price.

 

[rastex]

My problem isn't with the quality of the parts, it feels like a really solid well made piece of hardware. The one thing I'm a bit dissatisfied with is the looseness of the stick, I know a lot of arcade sticks are just as loose, but I prefer the stiffer ones. Does MAS have a stiff stick?

 

[ravingloon]

The problem with regards to quality and arcade sticks, a subpar joystick will have mushy and inprecise control that results in inputs you didn't intend.

 

[Grifter]

Yes, you can get a stiffer stick from MAS or order one from Happ. MAS' default stick is as tight as you'd want.

I was trying to avoid the DIY suggestion but yes, you can swap the parts. As for building one from scratch, yes, I know people that have carved some mighty sticks but telling people that it's the only way to go reminds me of PC snobs telling random people to build their own rigs. Besides, I love how my MAS is built and it beats the homemade sticks I've encountered at fighter tourneys.

BTW, my friend got a full refund for X-Arcade so that's why he did it.

 

[rastex]

Ya, I just got the stick recently and have 25 more days or so to return it if I'm not satisfied, that's why I want to figure out if my problems with the stick are me or the stick. I mean right now when I'm using it, and i know I pull off the move correctly, the move comes out as it should. But it's those damn double motions that I'm having trouble pulling off. I mean, even with a stiffer stick I still have problems pulling off the 2xqcf motion, I just want to make sure my lack of skill isn't compounded by a shoddy stick.

Would it be possible to modify the stick already inside teh x-arcade? I realize this may be getting into too much detailed information, but just wondering if you heard anything. I already modified the sensitivity of the stick, but I want to be able to modify the stiffness, guess I'll try looking that up.

 

[ravingloon]

I wasn't referring to actually buidling a joystick from scratch (Eeck!). I've got a couple Ultimarc T-Stick Plus joysticks, Happs buttons, Happs trackball, and Oscar spinner. And a control layout perfectly tailored to my wants.

Didn't realize he could return for full refund.

 

[Asbel]

Do a 360 motion during a jump or roll and time it so that when you stand, you finish the motion. That'll help you get used to successful motions so you can pull off 270s just standing or buffered in an attack.

Are you having trouble with the double fireball in combos or just any time at all? You are probably screwing up the motion doing it too quick. Try it slower and get your hand used to a correct motion.

 

[rastex]

Awesome advice, thanks!!

And it's at any time at all. I don't think I have the full motion down since even doing it slowly is giving me problems :/

 

[ArcadeStickMonk]

I thought, "There'll be no stick talk on GAF for a few days," and took a powder. Apologies.

Adding my two cents to all the comparisons on this page:

X-Arcade's parts aren't that bad. True they are not Happ, but they are not evil. They use a clone of a Happ super. Personally, I would never want to use a Happ super for a fighter. I'd prefer a Happ competition.

The X's spring is actually tighter than most Happ springs. In fact, I put a spare X spring into the Happ Competition I used for my SC2 stick. When you look at Japanese sticks, it gets even looser. Note that I am not advocating that tighter=better; but if you really like tightness, check out the Happ P360. Ouch!

Springs can also be adjusted by cutting a little bit off, and then extending what's left over to the same height. Do your research first.

Mas uses Happ parts BTW. So if they build it or you build it, it's the same quality parts.

I do like my Mas though, they are professional, but don't think for a second that homemades cannot be made better. Mas's PCB work leaves a lot to be desired. A builder would be better off hacking an actual console pad for the PCB. Plus, if you wanted a Japanese style stick, maybe 'cuz you were into VF4, Mas couldn't help you there.

 

[rastex]

Thanks for the tips.

I definitely know what you're talking about with the looser Japanese style sticks, those are the lollipop ones, we have those in our university arcade. It's just that there's a SFA3 machine at my work that has a really tight stick and I love it!

But I'll definitely look into cutting the strings, if it messes up I'll jsut return out, I doubt they'll check that far

Thanks again!