Custom controls for efficient aerials and grabs

[Bourg]

I always played with normal controls as a kid, but now I have started using the X button as my grab. I found that leaving my pointer finger on Z was uncomfortable and I always use Y to jump so I came up with that solution. Now I feel like my SHFFLs never happen quite right because going from Y to the C stick is a leap. Since I have learned all of my L-Cancels and techs on L, would rebinding jump to R be a bad idea? Is there anything that would suffer from that?

TL;DR: I use X as grab and I want to use R as jump. Thoughts?

 

[Bourg]

Note to self: Short hopping with a shoulder button is nigh on impossible.

 

[-Fatality-]

Note to self: Short hopping with a shoulder button is nigh on impossible.

That's exactly why you shouldn't use a shoulder button to jump, short hop is way too important to overlook in any way. Otherwise, just experiment till you find a control scheme you're comfortable with.

 

[Kati]

Keep both shoulder buttons as shield so that when it's fixed, wd oos will be easy.

I jump with the B button. Special is Y. Special move execution doesn't lose anything by being moved to the Y button, whereas my shuffles are super easy because of the minimum distance between B and the Cstick.

It took me a few months to get to used to.

 

[Bourg]

That's actually a really interesting idea. I might give that a shot, though I'm wary of making too many control alterations because of the setup time at fests.

 

[Drodeka]

You can try setting Z to jump. It's faster to press and isn't pressure sensitive.

 

[Bourg]

The Z button in general bothers me. For now I'm staying standard save for my X grabs, but I may try swapping B and Y at a later date. Haven't really decided yet.

 

[Kati]

That's actually a really interesting idea. I might give that a shot, though I'm wary of making too many control alterations because of the setup time at fests.

Set up time has nothing to do with control schemes. No one can deny you the time needed to make your name...

I just went to a monthly with 12+ set ups. I had to make my control scheme on all of them, and I had missed the "set up"/friendlies time due to moving my own tv's from a parking lot far away. No one had an issue with the small amount of time I needed.

That being said, I'm ditching my control scheme for the time being. It has served me very well, but I am going to try clawing for a variety of reasons. Clawing would allow you to jump with your right index finger while keeping two shield buttons which I still recommend.

But yeah, my control scheme also used z for grabing. By rolling the stick up, I could get very consistent jcgrabs with it.

b=jump (closest button to the c-stick, same distance to the a button as y or x)
a=attack
x=grab
y=special
z=attack (dacus/unlimited moonwalk).
or
z=taunt (footstool)

I'll check back in in a few months after the claw grip has been integrated into my system.

 

[Crescent Monkey]

Switching control schemes and picking up other characters just seems so daunting to me. I feel like there would have to be a significant time investment poured in to either where your level of skill substantially drops and you would have to fight your way back up to where you are now. I don't know about you all, but I'm anxious to get better as quickly as possible. Once I get to the level skill where the only people I ever lose to are the top of the top in my region, and the only reason I lose is matchups, then I would invest the time into another character, or maybe another control scheme if necessary, but only because that would be a necessary step in my improvement. All I know is that I personally would never do anything that would hamper my rate of improvement which is already much too slow for my tastes. Not to mention the fact that if you change your controls you lock yourself out of the option of playing melee, which is quite unfortunate.

 

[Kati]

loooool long post

One of the reasons that I picked up clawing is that I can now go back to melee and play against more skilled players in my region. Back when I had my custom control scheme though, there was no reason to play melee.

Picking up a new control scheme does not simply set one back along a linear spectrum of ability. Where technical execution is hampered, strategy and general cognitive ability continue to function at the same level. Taking a step back allows for different ideas and interpretations to suddenly emerge for well-known scenarios.

Learning a new control scheme is also a nice way to stay mentally flexible. Think of bilingual people who initially might mix up languages but eventually learn to maintain two overlapping speech centres.

The fact is is that the default control scheme makes little sense. It exists because it shares the most similarity with the n64 control scheme and by video game convention, A is used for "standard stuff" while B is used for special stuff cuz it's a tiny red button as opposed to those matching grey buttons.

Let's get back to clawing though, but let's collapse it cuz there are a lot of words.

Spoiler

I have been clawing for two weeks, and have come to realize that the label is incredibly misleading. Clawing? to claw? with what... crab pincers..? it sounds so unnatural.

And yet clawing can produce the most natural hand positions possible.

Spoiler

First thing pianists learn is to hold their hands correctly. Fingers should be bent, but not too bent.

When I claw, I pull the y button with my index finger, press the z with my middle, and R is controlled by my ring finger. As only my pinky remains, my right hand does not really support the weight of the controller anymore. As a musician who has received instruction from a dozen different teachers for 4+ instruments, I am more confident than ever that my right hand is in the best position now to avoid repetitive stress injuries.

But what about m2k..? doesn't he have hand problems now? this is where I need to do more research. I hear he claws, but I also hear that he claws by curling his index finger fully in order to press the x button.

If that's true, then that's unfortunate.

By clawing for just two weeks, my wd oos improved, I learned how to up smash oos instantly, and full hop missile spamming with Samus instantly became more consistent. For the latter, the jump button has to be held long enough for Samus to preform a full jump, but a super missile has to come out before she reaches the top of her jump. If the missile is too late, she will not be able to fire a second missile right before landing.

The day before the two week mark, I entered my local tournament. Our scene has been growing to the point where we can now justify an entry fee. We even had people from out of town attend. I placed second, despite terrible seeding that placed me against 4 of the 5 top players along the way including one that convincingly four stocked me just 13 days ago.

But with all that being said, there is still some catching up to do. My shffles are only 95% of what they used to be. Short hopping with the index finger is difficult, but it just made me remember how difficult it was to do with my thumb initially. When pulling, not pressing, the y button, I find it is important to think of flicking the finger away from the button as soon as possible, rather than let it linger by the button after pulling it.

Yes, strangely enough, the physics of the controller allow for the y button to slide down effortlessly when force is applied to the top ridge.

Claw man. The only reason not to is if you have some competition coming up VERY soon, you are scared of losing friendlies, or get frustrated easily over a video game. That being said, I would say classical guitar lessons gave me a very good foundation, so I would not predict that everyone could claw and play to half their standards within two weeks. That being said, my brother picked up clawing within two hours >_> so what do I know?