Arcade controller: Difference between revisions

An '''arcade controller''' — sometimes referred to as a '''fightstick''' or '''box controller''' — 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.

Nintendo has created an arcade controller titled the ''NES Advantage'' in 1987 for the Nintendo Entertainment System, which enlarges the button and uses a joystick in place of a D-pad, and is primarily meant for home console ports of arcade games. {{iw|wikipedia|ASCII Corporation}} would follow this up with the ''Super Advantage'' in 1992 for the Super Entertainment System and made mostly the same changes. Hori developed the ''[[Wii]] Fighting Stick'' and peripheral developer MadCatz partnered with [[Capcom]] to develop an arcade controller to coincide with the game ''{{iw|wikipedia|Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars}}''. Hori returned alongside [[Bandai Namco]] to release a [[Wii U]] arcade controller to coincide with ''Tekken Tag Tournament 2: Wii U Edition.'' Several manufacturers, including Hori and PowerA, have developed arcade controllers specifically for [[Nintendo Switch]].

Any arcade controller can be used for any hardware it can connect to and is compatible with. This sometimes creates an issue where arcade controllers meant to be used on a specific proprietary system are effectively locked to said system and are not forwards compatible with new hardware. Also, a new developmental hurdle arcade controller users and manufacturers face is the introduction of firmware updates that can suddenly make previously compatible controllers incompatible, sometimes meant specifically so, necessitating firmware updates of its own.

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.

In 2017, {{Sm|Hax$}} assisted Hit Box during the development of the Smash Box, but found its button placement to be unsatisfactory. After his requests for better button placement and payment for his analysis were refused, he parted ways with the company and went on to produce the B0XX, which has improved alignments and modifications to make it more tournament viable. Hax$ released a video on the topic accusing Hit Box of stealing his design and explaining the benefits to his B0XX controller over the Smash Box.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wAfLlDFp-Cg</ref>

Gravy would contest these 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.

{{Sm|tompas92}} also accused Hax$ of deliberately abstaining from conversations about legality with the intention of getting the controller banned later.<ref>https://www.dbltap.com/posts/4742326-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 Smash Stick is an upcoming "fightstick" produced by [http://www.altlabcontrollers.com/ Alt Lab Controllers] that 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>