Which hand do you use?

[+JasonlikesINTV]

Jason in his younger days...

 

[Rev]

How many times have you cracked your nuts.

[+JasonlikesINTV]

How many times have you cracked your nuts.

More times than Tchaikovsky.

[tripletopper]

Back to the subject, who said anything about using the thumb on the disc. I use my right INDEX FINGER on the disc, and move it to press keypad buttons, and use the left thumb, index and middle fingers for the buttons. The only 2 things tat do work simultaneously are the pad and the buttons. If a keypad is pushed, the buttons and disc make it do weird things if presses together.

 

Probably the finest ergonomic example and the pinnacle of the American Era in Video Gaming was the Colecovision Super Action Controller. One hand on the joystick, and one finger on each of the 4 buttons. He joystick hand also operated the keypad and the roller wheel. All Coleco games were designed so you don't have to use the roller, joystick and keypad all at the same time. The buttons was your home controls.

 

Also if you let go of the buttons, the controller falls. Your left hand was used to holding controls since the 2600 days.

 

Even the mighty 2600 had almost every third party making lefty (actually Aambidextrous) third party sticks and lefty pin-swap adapters. And the computers had some games with software-based lefty modes.

 

Why do none of the Japanese companies have rightie sticks? It took Beeshu to make right handed arcade sticks for the NES, Sega Master System, TG16, and Genesis. I have to literally get yelled at by people at Shoryuken who either don't understand sticks are for more than just fighting games, or don't know a possible danger in fixed mapping according to a mirror standard only. If you've played Tutankham, Side Arms, or Pac-Land you know exactly what I'm talking about with just 2 buttons. Left fire button to fire right, and vice versa. Most people on Shoryuken do good work, they just don't see the need for flex mapping. Unless you specifically mention it, everyone assumes you're joystick left, and you are happy with that.

 

Visit http://56ok.org/Ambidextrous to read a story on how, for 2 weeks I was the local king of Street Fighter, and one of the people I beat in 1993 you may have heard of if you followed video game competitions from 2005-2009. The secret is a right handed fight stick. Then the joystick broke down in 2 weeks, and (I'll name them) KY Enterprises' idea of customer service was solder it yourself.

 

Nintendo said learn to play and beat the other guys using your off hand. It was Sega who recommended KY Enterprise for custom sticks. They gave me 2 weeks of joy worth a lifetime, and $50-75 wasted in 2 weeks in 1993.

[mr_me]

Sega had the right handed Control Stick for the SMS in 1987. Sega, Namco, and Taito did make arcade machines with right handed control panels during the golden age. Most machines were ambidextrous at the time.

 

You're not the only winning Street Fighter player to favour right-handed joysticks.

 

Working the Intellivision control disc with your finger rather than thumb is a little unusual, even if the instructions say it. Did anyone else do this?

Edited October 16, 2018 by mr_me