Stepping Up to the Stick

So, you've been using a pad to play VF. You feel reasonably confident with it, but you can't help but notice how all the top players are using arcade sticks. You wonder, could using an arcade stick be the ticket to stepping up your game?

You think it over for a while, and you decide to take the plunge. You order an arcade stick off the internet. You do your research and you buy a high quality stick, so you know you won't be disappointed. Finally, the big day arrives. You get the package in the mail, tear it open, and drool over the beauty of your new arcade style controller. The only thing left is to plug it into your console and start pwning.

You jump right in, confident in your new weapon... but wait, something is wrong. None of your combos seem to be coming out correctly. You try a bit harder, concentrating more carefully on your stick motions, but even the easiest combos to perform on a pad seem to elude you. Well s***, you think, there must be something wrong with your stick. And after spending all that money on the piece of crap. You promptly unplug the stick, and head straight for the dumpster. Wait, stop right there.

If this describes you, then you have made the same mistake many before you have made. You have purchased an arcade stick under the assumption that you will instantly see improvement in your game, without taking into account that using an arcade stick has a steep learning curve for beginners. Especially for those who have already learned the game on the pad, you are going to have to relearn things your brain already knows (which is actually more difficult that learning something with a blank slate).

But fear not. I've been there, I've overcome those obstacles, and you can too. But if you need some help, you've come to the right place. In this thread, I will impart to you every useful tip I've accumulated over the past months for getting used to an arcade stick. And if any other VFDC members have anything useful to add, by all means feel free. Now, onto the tips!

#1: Learn to use the stick on a game you've never played before.

I cannot stress enough how useful this is. When you decide to pick up a stick, odds are you are planning to use it for a game you already play on the pad. But this will create some major crossed wires in your head when your muscle memory for using a pad clashes with your attempts to use a stick. The best way to overcome this is to practice using the stick on a game for which you have no muscle memory. This way, you can focus on your execution, without being too worried initially about how much worse you are with a stick than a pad.

#2: Practice.

Yea, I know, not the most helpful tip in the world, is it? Or then again, maybe it is. When you were first learning VF with a pad, your were subconsciously learning execution at the same time as you were learning strategy. Now that you are using a stick, the strategy is there, but not the execution. The only cure is to practice your inputs over and over until you get a feel for what it takes to pull off moves consistently.

#3: Timing is everything.

When you first start using a stick, the fact that you are using a completely different input method will throw off your timing. Even if you do the correct input sequence, you still may not get the result you expected because your timing was wrong. The best cure for this is to just keep it in the back of your head for a while to pay attention to your timing when you are inputting a move. Pay attention to when you start the stick motion, when you stop the stick motion, and when you press the button. If you pay close attention to this for long enough, you should be able to get a feel for that sweet spot you need to hit to nail your moves.

#4: Coordinate your input.

Aside from screwed up timing, the other problem you may initially have is lack of coordination between your stick and the buttons. You have to get a feel for when you need to be moving the stick, and when you need to be pressing buttons. If you start inputting the next stick motion before you press the button that should've followed the previous stick motion, you will not get the move you expected. Again, pay close attention to what your are doing until you get a feel for the sweet spot.

#5: Slow it down.

If you get to the point where you can usually nail a certain input, but then all of a sudden, you start screwing it up repeatedly, try to slow it down a bit. Once you start to get used to the stick, it becomes easy to input certain things too quickly, and possibly flub your input. But for the most part, when you are dealing with buffered input there's no reason not to slow it down a bit and make sure your timing and execution are precise.

#6: Tapping a direction is hard.

On the pad, tapping the same direction twice quickly is easy. In fact, much to the chagrin of Akira players, it's actually harder to do on the stick than the pad, even for the most experienced stick users. This may create a number of difficulties for you initially, not just in executing moves, but also in executing movement commands. Unfortunately, I have found no real panacea for this issue. The only thing I can recommend is to focus on how you are holding the stick when you attempt tapping, and look carefully for the sweet spot. Focus as much as you can on the consistency of your movement. With some practice, eventually you can overcome this obstacle.

#7: You're allowed to overextend circulars.

This may come as a surprise, but you can actually overextend circular moves with no particular consequences. To a point at least. I happen to play Eileen, and for me figuring this out really helped me nail many of her moves more accurately. Here's an example. Say you have a move for which the input is . In order to avoid missing the and imputing first by mistake, you can intentionally input the move as . You'd be surprised at how effective this can be at preventing flubbed input.

#8: Take it one move at a time.

Rather than trying to bring over your complete pad playing style to a stick right away, try to develop a small subset of moves you know you can execute consistently and rebuild your style one move at a time from there. Only use one or two moves that you are trying to work on getting down in matches at a time. Don't bring in new moves until you can perform the ones you are working on as consistently as everything else in your repertoire.

#9: More practice.

Even as you start to gain competency with the stick, your execution isn't going to be perfect right away. This can be frustrating if you want to focus on just playing VF without any encumbrance. However, frustrating as it may be, there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Just follow the tips I laid out (and any other good ones that happen to get posted), and avoid reverting to the pad out of frustration. Eventually there will be a day when you are wondering how anyone could play VF well without a stick.

Edit: New tip added.

 

Great advice Xzy. I have tons of trouble with stick its gotten to the point where i dont feel or observe the situation in a vf match but more toward frustration on stick and button coordination,timing, and execution. Gotta Practice, practice, practice

 

Marlyjay: Good point.

VFnumbers: You might want to take note of the new tip #8 I snuck in there.

 

i should practice everything on 2p side first and lock the moves in command training.

 

Wow, I've been having troubles doing quarter circulars for TKOD on my new stick but your point #7 looks promising! Everything all boils down to practicing in the dojo room, awesome points Xzy!