Fighting Games. When you hear that genre what immediately comes to mind? Street Fighter! Since the early 90s when Street Fighter II hit the arcade scene a whole new animal in the video game world emerged. A true battle of skill came along pinning player verse player to see who has what it takes to be the best. You would have quarters lined up alongside the Arcade’s bezel signifying the queue of players waiting their chance for glory. It was a smash hit and one that Capcom, Midway, Namco, Sega, Nintendo, and others wanted to capitalize on and bring to the home console market. It was a move that came with great success and with the games now being at the disposal of the average home user the concern that arose was how the system’s controller would be able to deliver the Arcade feel at home. Most of us simply had no choice but to get used to the respective console controller’s D-pad to perform the moves, combos, and finishing moves, but there was always that element missing; the Arcade experience. It didn’t take long for companies to start releasing Arcade Stick accessories for the different consoles, and the race to produce the best began.
Fast forward over a decade and with the current-gen systems such as Xbox 360 and PS3, the need for Arcade Sticks became more important than ever before. The reason being is that the default controllers that come with the system just don’t live up to their predecessors and flat out suck which is a big issue when playing a fighting game. Moves won’t come off when you want them and how you want them and those are factors for what deters a person from playing a fighting game, let alone buying them. So you will want to get yourself a decent Arcade Stick or Fight pad so that you can maximize your potential in the fighting game world, and with Marvel vs Capcom 3 right around the corner and Mortal Kombat 9 a few months away, if you still are wondering what to do worry not as you have options.
You can purchase an Arcade Stick from either MadCatz or Hori. This is great for games such as [Super] Street Fighter IV, Marvel vs Capcom 2 & 3, Arcana Heart 3, Street Fighter 2: HD Remix, Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 and the new Mortal Kombat 9 because now you have at your arsenal the tools required to flawlessly master and execute moves, combos, and finishers all the while getting the arcade experience right at home. Oh, as an added bonus they also allow for neat customizations for their buttons and sticks.
If you’re a purist to the Mortal Kombat arcade control panel Mad Catz has announced, via Markman, that those who have the Tournament Edition fighting Stick can purchase a replacement top panel that accommodates the Mortal Kombat button layout. Check it out:
I have a MadCatz TE stick and love every second of it. The stick and buttons are super responsive, the cable compartment easily houses the 6 foot cable that comes with the stick. The parts are all the same parts as you would have in the Arcade cabinet themselves ensuring that you have the Arcade experience, and the button layout is easy on the hands. It’s all around a solid bang for the buck. It gets my vote. A friend of mine has the Hori Real Arcade Pro. EX and I got a chance to play with that stick as well. It also has the same parts that you would find in the Arcades themselves and the stick is decent, but it just felt clunky to me. It took a while to get used to that stick, whereas with the MadCatz TE stick I was immediately comfortable and ready to go. I have seen and heard that the Hori VLX, although massive in size, is a very solid stick as well. I can’t say much for personal use as the VLX is very expensive, but I’d imagine with that price comes the utmost quality and customization. So shop around and get yourself a fighting stick that suits your needs so you can be well equipped to kick some ass online or else you’re going to get on blast.
I’ll leave you with this, If you’re having fireball problems I feel bad for you son. I got 99 problems but a hadoken ain’t one.
