Editing Arcade controller

An '''arcade controller''' — sometimes referred to as a '''fightstick''', '''box controller''', or '''rectangle''' — is a controller designed after an arcade cabinet's control deck, mainly designed for use with traditional fighting games. The rise of modern arcade controllers dates back to 1987 with the release of the original ''Street Fighter'' and has since been a staple in the fighting game community.

The compatibility of an arcade controller depends on the product itself; in general, they are either designed for a specific brand of arcade machine, a PC, or a proprietary game console. Modern arcade controllers are commonly designed with USB ports and/or wireless technology like Bluetooth, which makes them compatible with a range of systems, including the Nintendo Switch. This also makes them compatible with a range of converters, such as those that make them compatible with the GameCube, effectively extending their range of compatibility, albeit at the cost of some latency. This gives them compatibility with more systems than the average game controller.

 

Despite the growing compatibility and options, no game in the ''Smash'' franchise officially supports arcade controllers as an option and thus does not automatically map buttons accordingly. However, all arcade controllers with internal components based on official controllers licensed by Nintendo are unofficially compatible with the ''Smash'' series, albeit with the player having to manually configure the button layout. Thus, this has opened a niche for third-party arcade controllers designed for use with ''Smash'', such as the B0XX and SmashBox.

Due to their drastically different control layouts, arcade controllers are often considered to have higher learning curves compared to the average controller, making them harder to switch to from traditional ones. The considerable increase in surface area means that the player needs to put more effort into performing an input than a controller user doing the same. This leads to artificially slower reaction times for inexperienced users of arcade controllers, though this downside wanes with time. Arcade controllers also tend to be much more expensive than regular controllers, and the world of used arcade controllers is almost nonexistent due to the occasionally mandatory purchasing of new components, effectively making it new again and no guarantee that it will be compatible with the system, a risk regular controllers do not experience. Arcade controllers with buttons in place of a stick also contain the same shortcoming as [[keyboard]]s in that the subtle input reading of a stick is removed and a player can only be stopped or moving at one speed as well as lose access to specific angles that hamper recoveries without mapping each movement speed and angle to an individual button, making the controller far more complicated to use than a standard controller.

 

Dustin, the Founder of Hitbox, would make a response video on the next day refuting many of Hax's arguments.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0tK2B5NPE0&ab_channel=HitBoxDustin Dustin's response to Hax]</ref> He would accuse Hax of trying to steal the SmashBox by using his influence to make the kickstarter to fail with "he said, she said" slander in order to start his own kickstarter of the same product that he would own. Dustin would go on and accused Hax of being a narcissist, with Dustin saying Hax declaring himself "a pot of gold who fell from the sky" who believes himself smarter than he doctors that advised the Hitbox team. and Dustin pointing out after two days of playtesting, Hax demanded the SmashBox to be rebranded the entire product around himself.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20170326123841/http://imgur.com/Snhfx7l Hax's Business Partnership offer DMs]</ref> Dustin would also refute Hax's claim of selling a knowingly inferior product, stating the original design was always a proof of concept build that Hax knew was never attended to be sold or the final design. Dustin would reaffirm that they are a grassroot company trying to make the best product that they can.<ref name="dbltap Article" /> The Hitbox team would go on to talk about the struggles caused from Hax's accusations on the Kickstarter comments section.<ref>[https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2099087376/hit-box-smash-box-video-game-controller-for-smash/comments Kickstarter HitBox team comments]</ref>

 

Gravy the next day after contest Hax's claims and argued that Hax$ "acted as an authoritarian lead designer throughout the time he spent playtesting", [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbrQV_xl_2w producing a video on the topic]. In this video, Gravy shows that the button layout the B0XX used was the one that he and Hax$ discussed prior, and claims Hax$ used this layout to compete with the Smash Box and say that it has an inferior layout, arguing that the B0XX's layout was a stolen design. Gravy also contradicts Hax$'s claim that he didn't want a straight button layout, as his main layout contributions used straight layouts. He also contested Hax$'s insistence on removing the [[X button]], arguing that two [[jump]] buttons is important for these types of controllers to ensure that all advanced techniques have accessible routes. Gravy believes Hax$ sabotaged the Smash Box to try and get the Kickstarter to fail. Gravy also acknowledges the claim that he said he wanted to fight Hax$ and apologises for those words.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbrQV_xl_2w&ab_channel=HitboxGravy The Truth about B0XX]</ref>

{{Sm|tompas92}} also accused Hax$ of deliberately abstaining from conversations about legality with the intention of getting the controller banned later.<ref name="dbltap Article">{{cite web|url=https://www.dbltap.com/posts/4742326-smash-box-s-recent-struggle-and-the-questionable-origins-of-the-b0xx|title=Smash Box's Recent Struggle, and the Questionable Origins of the B0XX}}</ref> This was after working with Hax$ on the B0XX, where he claimed to have been treated negligently.

The [https://frame1.gg/ '''Frame1'''] is an arcade controller produced by former B0XX developer {{Sm|Greg Turbo}}, [https://twitter.com/Frame1GG/status/1303362459726688258 revealed in September 2020]. An Open Source repository called [https://github.com/GregTurbo/Open-Frame1 Open-Frame1] is available, allowing one to produce a Frame1 Light PCB, in part due to supply issues.

 

Originally a concept that was produced in 2017 with a cardboard box, this would lead to Greg Turbo assisting with the B0XX's development before leaving the team. The Frame1 prioritises latency, using a strong processor to make it faster than most controllers. It also uses a thin "box" for lightweight portability, as well as a non-slip design so it's easier to stay on one's lap. Unlike its competitors, the Frame1 uses optical Gateron buttons — the first of its kind to do so — giving it some additional longevity. The controller first opened for pre-order September 11, 2020.

The Smash Stick is an upcoming "fightstick" produced by [http://www.altlabcontrollers.com/ Alt Lab Controllers]. Beta production was announced in 2021, but as of June 2024, the website and Twitter pages have not been updated.

 

The Smash Stick uses a traditional arcade controller layout, joystick, and 24mm Sanwa buttons, making it the only Smash-centric arcade controller to use a joystick. It features a swappable octagon gate with the joystick, allowing customization with other gates like square, circle and hexagon. The artwork can also be customised by removing the acrylic panel. Like other arcade controllers, it's designed with the intention of reducing hand strain. Additionally, it's compatible with all ''Smash'' titles,<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pHP9ZtlRl7Q Smash Stick Trailer]</ref> being usable on the N64, GameCube, Wii, Wii U, Switch, and more. The Smash Stick was successfully funded via Kickstarter.<ref>[https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/altlabcontrollers/smash-stick-the-analog-arcade-stick-0]</ref>

The legality of arcade controllers is a controversial subject. Some argue that the controller's capacity to do otherwise impossible techniques, such as multiple simultaneous actions and performing complicated actions with greater ease, gives users an unfair advantage over regular controllers. Some players within and outside the ''Smash'' [[community]] have gone as far as to consider these types of controllers [[cheating]] and advocate for their banning. Others argue that their inherent downsides, such as steep learning curves and loss of subtle intricacies regular controllers possess that lead to more limited and predictable gameplay, offset their advantages. Players for arcade controllers also cite the accessibility enhancements for those with hand problems, which has allowed many ex-competitors to return to tournaments. Hax$, one of the biggest proponents of these types of controllers, has gone as far as to [[nerf]] his B0XX controller for the sake of making it tournament-viable, largely appeasing community members. Outside of the ''Smash'' tournament scene, some controllers have explicitly been banned, with that ruling sometimes bleeding over into ''Smash'' tournaments. A notable example is the "GafroBox" that was popularized by {{uv|Street Fighter}} player Daigo Umehara. On top of the already controversial Hitbox layout, this controller has a unique simultaneous opposing cardinal directions (abbreviated as '''SOCD''') cleaner, meant to algorithmically decide which directional input would take priority over others held down at the same time, that prioritizes the latest input. The previous standard was to return the character to a neutral position. This change alters how games not designed for it are played, such as walking forward while charging inputs and allowing frame-perfect reaction times not possible on other controllers, and thus it was officially banned in all [[Capcom]] sanctioned tournaments.<ref>[https://www.oneesports.gg/street-fighter/the-gafrobox-the-banned-tech-that-made-daigo-ditch-his-arcade-stick/ The GafroBox: The banned tech that made Daigo ditch his arcade stick]</ref>

Arcade controllers are generally considered legal for tournaments given they comply with the same stipulations as all other controllers, specifically not including macros or turbo functionality or having specific firmware that alters how the game or characters are played.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20200302113040/https://smashworldtour.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/SWT-2020-Rulebook.pdf Smash World Tour ruleset, pg. 19]</ref> However, this standard is not universal, and specific rulings are sometimes made on a case-by-case basis by [[tournament organizer]]s with each individual arcade controller being inspected prior to a game to make sure no player is trying to smuggle unauthorized controllers into a tournament with malicious intent.