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4 button - square or diagonal?
android:
From an ergonomics point of view, the diamond pattern allows you to use your index, medium and ring fingers almost simultaneously. With the square pattern, you can only use two fingers at a time.
Tiger-Heli:
--- Quote from: SirPoonga on April 15, 2003, 01:18:49 pm ---I'd go with square, but that's cause I play star trek. how ever, diamond would work better for missle command and double dragon.
--- End quote ---
Well, Star Trek uses this layout
1 3 4
2
Which probably works better with this diamond layout, but . . .
My opinion - Tekken 4 used square. Vanguard used diamond. Anything else, yes, the diamond is a 3-button layout, where the square is basically 2-button.
I'm pretty biased toward the diamond, because my primary panel will use something like this:
5 6
4
3 2
1
Another advantage of the diamond, is it is set up logically to use the points of the diamond as directionals if you don't have a 4-way joystick. Another advantage with the layout above is I can use buttons 4 through 6 for Gun.Smoke or 3 through 6 for Neo-Geo.
FWIW!
Chris:
I use the diamond:
3
4 2
1
I find this layout handy for lots of things I play, including Track and Field and Missile Command. The #4 button is close enough to the joystick to use as a fire button for Assault and Missile Command, and I use it in a 4-way pattern for the Tron light cycle and tank sequences.
hedge:
--- Quote from: Tiger-Heli on April 21, 2003, 03:17:49 pm ---
--- Quote from: SirPoonga on April 15, 2003, 01:18:49 pm ---I'd go with square, but that's cause I play star trek. how ever, diamond would work better for missle command and double dragon.
--- End quote ---
Another advantage of the diamond, is it is set up logically to use the points of the diamond as directionals if you don't have a 4-way joystick.
FWIW!
--- End quote ---
I totally agree. One of the reasons I am going with a diamond shape is to attempt to play 2-player 2-joystick games like karate champ, and to be able to use the buttons as a 4-way controller. It may actually be better to use the 4 diamond shaped buttons than an 8-way joystick for games like pac man. And finally, track and field would be much more playable with a diamond layout. Neo geos should also be pretty playable.