Is it just me or do the controls for this game feel imprecise?

[p3ngw1nKing]

I mainly play Melee and Project M, so I know part of it has something to do with that nasty long input buffer. But I think it's more than that.

My main problem is with dash attacks and smash attacks. A lot of times I try to do a quick dash and I end up smashing. I have no way of measuring how many frames it is, but the window for getting a smash out seems UNREASONABLY long. Like, almost a quarter of a second maybe?

Another example (that I think is unintentional and should maybe be fixed by the devs) is that if you are holding up on the stick and press jump and then hit A to do an up-air it will do a smash attack if you go too fast. That doesn't make sense.

I also don't like the way the c-stick is handled in the air. Particularly when it is set to smash attacks. You can't use it to do a d-air without fast falling and you can't use it to do a f-air/b-air without changing your momentum.

I use a gamecube controller with the official adapter. I have also tried the gamepad and pro controller.

Anyone else have problems with this?

 

[JamietheAuraUser]

I mainly play Melee and Project M, so I know part of it has something to do with that nasty long input buffer. But I think it's more than that.

My main problem is with dash attacks and smash attacks. A lot of times I try to do a quick dash and I end up smashing. I have no way of measuring how many frames it is, but the window for getting a smash out seems UNREASONABLY long. Like, almost a quarter of a second maybe?

Another example (that I think is unintentional and should maybe be fixed by the devs) is that if you are holding up on the stick and press jump and then hit A to do an up-air it will do a smash attack if you go too fast. That doesn't make sense.

I also don't like the way the c-stick is handled in the air. Particularly when it is set to smash attacks. You can't use it to do a d-air without fast falling and you can't use it to do a f-air/b-air without changing your momentum.

I use a gamecube controller with the official adapter. I have also tried the gamepad and pro controller.

Anyone else have problems with this?

The window for a Smash Attack is much longer than it used to be, making stutter-stepping smashes a very powerful option. To get an instant Dash Attack instead of a Smash, hit down on the C-Stick (assuming it's set to Smash Attacks).

Cancelling a jump into an Up Smash has been a thing in past Smash titles as well, so that is also nothing new. In fact, it's used in Melee. What is new, however, is that the startup on a jump seems to be slightly increased. This is likely an attempt to make it easier to perform a short hop.

DAir shouldn't make you fast-fall in Smash 4 as performing any aerial attack instantly ends a fast-fall. In fact, not being able to C-Stick down without fast-falling was a problem in both Melee and Brawl, and has not been a factor in Smash 4 at all by my experience. The problem with doing FAir/BAir with the C-Stick is a known issue, however.

 

[CyberHyperPhoenix]

I mainly play Melee and Project M, so I know part of it has something to do with that nasty long input buffer. But I think it's more than that.

My main problem is with dash attacks and smash attacks. A lot of times I try to do a quick dash and I end up smashing. I have no way of measuring how many frames it is, but the window for getting a smash out seems UNREASONABLY long. Like, almost a quarter of a second maybe?

Another example (that I think is unintentional and should maybe be fixed by the devs) is that if you are holding up on the stick and press jump and then hit A to do an up-air it will do a smash attack if you go too fast. That doesn't make sense.

I also don't like the way the c-stick is handled in the air. Particularly when it is set to smash attacks. You can't use it to do a d-air without fast falling and you can't use it to do a f-air/b-air without changing your momentum.

I use a gamecube controller with the official adapter. I have also tried the gamepad and pro controller.

Anyone else have problems with this?

The last one is an easy fix: Flick the C-stick instead of pressing it all the way.

 

[κomıc]

The game's controls isn't that great. This from someone who played Brawl near religiously. The C Stick problem is really holding me back since I'm mostly an Aerial- type play. I do well in the air than being grounded (maiming Kirby and Ness, and now Palutena who excels in air game).

Interestingly enough, I find the 3DS version to be more precise in controls.

 

[Sean²]

I have had no problems adapting to this game's controls.

 

[Khao]

The lack of input buffer is honestly one of the biggest reasons that Melee and Project M feel super clunky to me. Controls simply don't "flow" well in them.

But yeah, there's a few oddities in the controls of this game. Mainly related to the fact that a lot of the buttons are actually sort-of macro shortcuts rather than being linked to the actual actions they're supposed to do (like Z actually being shield+attack rather than being a "real" grab button, or the C-Stick being Direction+Attack instead of a smash attack.), which leads to some unexpected results when pressing a button sometimes.

 

[Sleeplost]

I'm an advocate of input buffer despite that being a largely hated thing in the Smash community. It throws me off in Melee and Project M since the controls seem to not flow together. I can see why it bothers you, but your knowledge and muscle memory which applies to the frames and controls of Melee/PM hinder your performance in Smash 4. Trying to cross-play the games in the franchise can lead to some really annoying habits as consequence to the immense differences in the several iterations of the game. It makes total sense, but as someone who plays Smash 4 daily and Melee every so often, I feel more trouble playing Melee than anything else.

 

[JamietheAuraUser]

The lack of input buffer is honestly one of the biggest reasons that Melee and Project M feel super clunky to me. Controls simply don't "flow" well in them.

But yeah, there's a few oddities in the controls of this game. Mainly related to the fact that a lot of the buttons are actually sort-of macro shortcuts rather than being linked to the actual actions they're supposed to do (like Z actually being shield+attack rather than being a "real" grab button, or the C-Stick being Direction+Attack instead of a smash attack.), which leads to some unexpected results when pressing a button sometimes.

These were all problems in both Melee and Brawl as well, actually. In Melee, Z was Attack+Light Shield. In Brawl, it was Attack+Shield as the Light Shield no longer existed.

The biggest difference in Smash 4: C-Stick now counts as Attack + Direction being held rather than just a 1-frame tap on both. This is a very unnecessary change, as even if you weren't coordinated enough to perform a Smash Attack manually you could still C-Stick and immediately press and hold A (or probably even Z, which would be far easier to hit while C-Sticking) to charge. This worked for most Smash Attacks in the game (and assuming pressing Z works, which I haven't tested, it would work with all Smash Attacks). The change to the C-Stick also makes it more difficult to input a Smash Attack without accidentally charging it slightly. This is a problem, as it effectively increases your startup and also makes you vulnerable, as you take increased knockback if hit while charging a Smash Attack.

And I don't know if this was in Brawl, but you can cancel the first few frames of an air dodge into a tether, thus meaning that by simply holding Z instead of tapping it you're guaranteed to get a tether rather than an accidental air dodge.

Edit: And speaking of Brawl's C-Stick, even in that game if you tapped C-Stick left/right plus Jump with the wrong timing, you'd jump left/right instead of jumping and immediately performing an aerial. One of those moments where the input buffer rather frustratingly decides to not do its job.